The Lady Programmer

Can we ever blame people who do NOT like to venture into online freelance opportunities?

I’ve been taking out some payments out from online payment sites to my local Philippine bank account a number of times. I never had problems using oDesk debit Mastercard or Paypal. I can just tell that my earnings match the monthly paycheck that I get when I was still employed.

Just like other bloggers, holding the cold cash out from a local ATM is enough for me to jump for joy and tell everyone about my find.

Then, people ask me how I do it.

As a freelancer I get most of my earnings from various sources. I’ve worked on some projects and earn well from blogging too. Sometimes I’d get surprised that I’ve earned something from passive sources too.

I could comfortably say I’m doing a variety of freelance jobs. At least I’m not in the group of the unemployed.

Image credit to dougwoods

Some people even seem to get genuinely interested in freelance jobs. I’ve noticed that those who really persevere to find ways to learn the hard ropes of freelancing, but majority of those that I’ve convinced did not really made it and moved on.

My Convincing Prowess

I’ve convinced a close friend to earn residual from blogging. But he eventually realized that he is more of a better speaker than a writer.

I’ve tried to convince my best friend to earn from blogging. She is actually aware that the internet is a gold mine, but she is prefers to exert efforts in making herself a better full-time guidance counselor. She is skilled at writing than I am.

I’ve invited two former office mates to sign up under my account and take up freelance jobs as I did. Unfortunately, their skills are not a match to the online opportunities around, so they did not make it.

Finally, I was not able to convince my father to join with me in blogging about his life experience, or his interest in making water-powered car technology, or even about his engineering job. He is a better writer than I am, and he IS computer-literate. He can surf the web to find information and write documents in MS Word despite his age. He knows that paid blogging is a good way to earn income, but still he tells me that he is not interested.

A Lesson Learned

I’ve finally realized that online jobs are not really for everyone. Everyone has his reason for doing so. Eventually everybody finds the one opportunity that they like doing for the most of their working lives.

But this WILL NOT STOP ME from finding people who are truly interested in the internet gold mine. After all, I’ve discovered freelance opportunities online through a friend. If not for him then I’ve never known that earning online existed.

And even blogging.

Have you ever tried convincing someone to money-making opportunities from the internet?

Have you ever think of quitting your day job?

Getting into a freelance career is often associated with the image of freedom, coffee shops, travel and huge opportunities. In truth, this kind of life is achieved by the successful few who had managed to reach this nirvana. Most freelancers are struggling through both extremes of the “feast and famine” of freelance careers.

Unstable Career Option?

A close friend of mine often argue that freelance is not a stable job. It is NOT a stable job indeed. On some months you’d get projects that seem to come one after another which leaves the freelancer tired but feeling rich. On some days there are no jobs that await the freelancer which leaves this guy rested but pocket-poor.

Road to Riches

A freelancer often starts at the rock-bottom going up. He starts up with hundreds and thousands of freelancers throughout the site.

Only a few manages to get ahead. Those who own impressive profiles and exempt ag

I have been tweaking out this blog’s layout over the weekend. Finding a new combination of widgets was not an easy task: it took me more than a day to accomplish. Finally I got a layout that I am happy to have – at this time.

Read More About Me

Since I got a very early post about myself, I thought that I might as well place that link below my profile. I’ve also added a contact me page for those who need to get in touch with me through email.

Easy Entrecard Drops

Entrecard visitors are a different bunch. They usually skim information and make their drop. I made that widget accessible right below my profile.

Freelance Stuff

These are featured posts that I plan to change from time to time. These posts are the one’s that I have written well but did not make it through the top lists.

What’s Hot and What’s New

Image credit to jonner

What’s Hot is a list of my most commented posts. What’s New is a list of my newest posts. Take a pick.

Purely oDesk or Paypal

I’ve created One-Stop oDesk Corner to accommodate oDesk and Paypal visitors to these information. I have written a lot of posts about oDesk, Payoneer and Paypal but these information get buried under the dozens of posts that I have written. Now the link should be easier for oDesk visitors to get to the posts.

Paypal is a very common payment method. The write-ups should also help these visitors well.

Other Minds

This is simply a blogroll that lists down blogs with the most recent posts. This is a great opportunity for link lovers to get their blogs listed. I maintain two blogrolls, a page containing links where blogs are categorized, and a blogroll list at the right side. If you often update your blogs, then this is a good way to get featured.

I decided to have one blogroll to maintain. It is the list of links along the right sidebar of this blog.

Lessened Number of Posts

From seven posts per page I decided to reduce it to only three posts to facilitate loading time. I believe this move made by blog load significantly faster.

My Own Template

I am still interested in coming up with my own template – the one that I can truly call my own. Right now I’m contented with the change in widgets.

Do you like the new layout?

The main reason why I changed the layout is for every group of visitor to easily access information that they need. I got oDesk visitors, blog visitors and search engine visitors too, so I need to cater to those groups. I still have some loose ends to finish but I think the major changes are helpful enough to most visitors of this site.

Do you have something to say?

The profile title is often an overlooked aspect in one’s profile. A good profile is sometimes missed out just because the title is not worded in a way that will catch the client’s eye. If you have to put up with a lot of competition in online job marketplaces, a catchy profile title should entice a prospective client to check your profile first. It should also help you get leads to new clients too.

When applying to online job board sites, a profile is always a must. If you plan to go for different freelance job sites, then there is no choice but to do several profiles for these different sites.

Most profiles stand out when there are portfolios associated with these. A portfolio shows a solid proof of a freelancer’s working experience. Here’s how to build a great portfolio for one to stand out.