The one question I get more than any other is from people starting out who are trying to figure out their way. They have big ideas but no idea where to start. I totally get this; it is intimidating, especially when you haven’t made that first elusive dollar from the internet. That first buck changes everything; it is proof that it works and that people will pay you for something from the internet.

My favorite name for it is ‘WiFi money.’ I love it because it is the perfect descriptor of our work. If you’ve got WiFi, you can make money. It is that simple. But then again, it’s not. Let’s dive in and find out what your first steps ought to be.

Skills inventory

Okay, the first step you need to do, step number 1, is conducting a skills inventory.

Your skills inventory has to be 100% honest; now is NOT the time to lie to yourself about what you are good at and what you aren’t. You need to be totally honest with yourself right now because you will be basing your future career on the skills you bring to the table.

Copywriting is very faddish. Everyone seems to be trying their hand at it, and it can pay stupid good money. But if you suck at writing, you need to be honest. If you hated writing in high school, college, and beyond, the odds are that you will not suddenly start to like writing.

Pro tip: if you hate writing, you will never get paid well to do it because you won’t last long enough to get into the money.

Thankfully for you, there is a lot more out there than just writing. And that’s good because most people are not good writers. Even those who enjoy it and do a lot of it every day have plenty of room for improvement.

Make dang sure it’s something you like doing

I already touched on this, but as you make your skills inventory, go through it and annotate what you are actually good at and break them out into things you enjoy doing. The center of that Venn diagram is your sweet spot.

If you have been complimented on your good writing in the past and you enjoy it, then writing is a great place to start. It is the gift that keeps on giving because the skill is always in high demand.

Make sure it pays

This one seems to be obvious enough, but the good idea fairy doesn’t always strike at the most opportune time.

Look, nothing dashes your dreams faster than realizing your dream isn’t going to pay the bills.

Do some research. I suggest you check out Upwork often and plug in the skills in your skills inventory. If none of them come back with any available gigs, or the pay all sucks, then you need to figure out something else.

Use Upwork…at least for a while

I highly suggest starting out on Upwork, at least for a while.

“But John, you said they take a big cut of pay.”

Yes, that is true. But they also provide a lot of security for guys just starting out.

First, all of the leads on Upwork are warm leads. They are there and have posted a gig they need to fill. You already know the parameters of the gig. You know the pay. And you know that you can get a good review.

But more than anything else, you can dip your toes in the water of freelancing with the added security of Upwork holding pay in escrow. No chasing down unresponsive clients. If you submit the work for payment, and the payment is in escrow, it will pay out unless the client disputes it.

Tl;dr

Ok, so here are your first baby steps:

1. take a skills inventory

2. figure out what you like doing

3. determine which one of those is worth money

4. put yourself out there on Upwork (not required, just a suggestion)

This is the 10,000’ view, but these are the simple steps I would take to get started from scratch.

As always, keep hustling, and you will be in the top 1% for sure.

Also, check out my ebook on getting your start with Upwork. It’s short, easy to read, and full of receipts.