One of the coolest things about being a freelancer is that we have the ability to work as much or as little as we want. We can look at this blessing in two ways. Either this means that we can spend more time with our families, or more time to manage projects and make money.

My private school teacher worked from 8:30am-6pm and then one hour in the night. He did not mind working almost 12 hours of being bossed around by the bitchy principal simply for his set wage of £40K…and he thought he had hit the jack pot!

Freelancers have the ability to be able to go above and beyond this as we have no boss to order us around but also because everything we make is ours. The private school I mentioned provided a service for a price, and the only person really making money was a rich snob. He could afford to pay high wages because he was making silly amounts of money. A freelancer is in the position of the rich snob, as we provide a service for money and we do not need to give employees a cut.

This gives us the advantage of being able to excel more-so than others and get rich faster. I understand that many people will feel wrong to be motivated by money, as most of us entered this field in order to do something we enjoy. I, however see no harm in using money to motivate you, because ultimately we need it.

1. The 10% Rule

Paul McKenna and many other self-help gurus will tell you of an ancient concept if you want to make money. This concept spans the millennia and even then the 10% rule applied.

The concept is simple. From your monthly income, put 10% out of reach. Out of reach means make it untouchable and live nine tenths of the life you were living before. Save the 10% and build it up until you can take advantage of number 2.

2. Invest the 10%

You should trust yourself more than anyone else. When investing the 10% ensure that you invest it in such a place which you know will definitely make you money. If you want to invest in something you have no idea about, don’t! Instead invest in yourself.

Use the money to market your freelancing business and grow your business to new levels. If you are an entrepreneur, then you may want to carry out a project with this money. There are several positive ways in which you can spend this money, whichever you chose stick with it.

3. When You See Returns – Reinvest

Whatever positive investment you do with your money, when you see a return, don’t use it, reinvest it!

It may be that you began a marketing campaign and this boosted your income by 40%. When you get the extra cash, do not got running to buy a new TV, instead be wise and reinvest it like you did in step two. Only when you see returns on your returns, you can enjoy these and spend them.

4. Expand

By learning new skills you will expand your skills and by investing more into your business you will expand your business. More growth leads to more income.

5. Charge More

Freelancing has really been bruised by so many people in third world countries charging next to nothing. Many clients have decided to compromise quality for a cheap job.

Such an odd phenomena, bearing in mind that if a client wants a redesign of their site (for example) they go to someone who is dirt cheap and does a dirty job. I would ask the one who practices this weird behaviour why they redesigned in the first place?

Unfortunately, this price drop has made many freelancers to cut their prices, which in turn reflects the entire market forcing all of us to drop our prices.

A simple solution is to stay true to your pricing theory, thinking independently of what some dude in another country is charging. Even if you are in a developing country like the sub-continent, Africa or South America, I would urge you to charge more. By all of us charging what we are worth, we will lift the entire web-freelancing industry and be paid fair prices.

If you double your prices, and due to this half of your clients leave you, you are now making the same money for half the work! Up your price tags!

Conclusion

Becoming a well-off freelancer all depends on your mindset. You should start by telling yourself that you deserve more because you are worth more. Once you have a clear mind of exactly what you want to achieve, you will be heading out toward your goals every time you think about them.