SOFT SKILLS TRAINING FOR FREELANCERS & REMOTE WORKERS
WORKING REMOTE IS COOL, BUT ALSO KIND OF CHAOTIC. LIKE… ONE MINUTE YOU’RE IN BED WITH YOUR LAPTOP, NEXT MINUTE YOUR CLIENT FROM CANADA WANTS A VIDEO CALL AT 3AM. FREELANCING AND REMOTE WORK ISN’T JUST ABOUT TECH SKILLS. IT’S ABOUT PEOPLE SKILLS, TOO. AKA… SOFT SKILLS.
WHY FREELANCERS NEED SOFT SKILLS
BEING A FREELANCER = YOU’RE BASICALLY YOUR OWN BOSS, EMPLOYEE, AND CUSTOMER SERVICE DEPARTMENT. WITHOUT SOFT SKILLS, YOU CAN GET CLIENTS… BUT YOU’LL STRUGGLE TO KEEP THEM. HERE’S WHY:
- COMMUNICATION: BAD EMAILS = LOST CLIENTS. CLEAR MESSAGES = MORE PROJECTS.
- TIME MANAGEMENT: DEADLINES DON’T CARE IF YOU OVERSLEPT.
- NEGOTIATION: CHARGE WHAT YOU’RE WORTH, NOT WHAT THEY THINK YOU’RE WORTH.
- ADAPTABILITY: ONE DAY DESIGNING A LOGO, NEXT DAY FIXING A WEBSITE. FLEXIBILITY WINS.
TOP SOFT SKILLS FOR REMOTE TEAMS
IF YOU’RE IN A REMOTE TEAM (STARTUP, AGENCY, INTERNATIONAL COMPANY), YOU NEED MORE THAN WIFI. YOU NEED THESE:
- VIRTUAL COMMUNICATION: ZOOM MEETINGS WITHOUT AWKWARD SILENCES.
- CROSS-CULTURAL AWARENESS: UNDERSTANDING WHY YOUR TEAMMATE IN JAPAN TAKES LONGER TO SAY “YES”.
- SELF-MOTIVATION: NO MANAGER WATCHING = YOU HAVE TO PUSH YOURSELF.
- TEAMWORK ONLINE: GOOGLE DOCS AND SLACK ARE YOUR NEW CLASSROOM.
FREE CERTIFICATES FOR FREELANCERS
LOOK… CLIENTS LOVE TO SEE CERTIFICATES, EVEN IF THEY NEVER CHECK THEM. LUCKILY, YOU CAN GET FREE SOFT SKILLS CERTIFICATES ONLINE. GOOGLE, JOBBERMAN, UDEMY, EVEN LINKEDIN LEARNING HAVE THEM. PUT IT ON YOUR PROFILE = INSTANT CREDIBILITY BOOST.
PERSONAL STORY (BECAUSE WHY NOT)
I ONCE LOST A CLIENT BECAUSE I REPLIED TO THEIR EMAIL 4 DAYS LATE. THEY SAID “YOU SEEM UNRELIABLE”. THAT HURT. BUT IT MADE ME FIX MY TIME MANAGEMENT. NOW I USE GOOGLE CALENDAR + A TO-DO APP. AND GUESS WHAT? CLIENTS STAY. SO YEAH, SOFT SKILLS = SURVIVAL.
FAQ (FUN, CASUAL STYLE)
RESPOND FAST. EVEN “I’LL CHECK AND REPLY LATER” IS BETTER THAN SILENCE.