Don’t want to read over 3,000 words on how to stand out as a freelancer? Listen to the podcast OR watch the YouTube Video. It’s tough to stand out as a freelancer when there are currently 57 million of us in the US, and that number gets bigger every day. In a lot of ways, […]

Don’t want to read 1,000s of words on how to make a winning bid on UpWork? I got you. Listen to the podcast instead. Or you can watch the video. If you haven’t figured it out yet, you can’t just create an account on Upwork and sit back as the jobs start rolling in. No! […]

There’s a lot of fear behind the question, “How do I price my services as a freelance web designer?” I can feel it everyone time someone asks me. And, I get it. In the early days of being a freelance web designer, it feels like most of what you’re doing is just guessing followed up […]

Most high school seniors automatically think their next big life decision is choosing which college to go to. They graduate dreaming of the fun they’re about to have from dorm life or fraternities or the general “college experience.” But, not Michael. Michael knew that even if did go to school for computer science he would […]

“Can you really get high-paying clients on Upwork?” That’s a question I’m asked a lot. It’s not always that direct BUT every so often someone will mention something slightly negative about it in passing. It comes in forms of: “Upwork is fine…if you’re just getting started.” Or “If things get slow enough I guess I […]

It’s pretty tough to know how to price your services as a freelance web designer. There are so many people that will tell you something different. Some say you should charge hourly while others say a flat rate is the only decent thing to do. Some will tell you to charge a minimum of $5,000 […]

Most of us think that starting a side hustle will give us a little extra money to buy things we probably shouldn’t with our normal salary. With the money we earn, we imagine we’ll be able to splurge on a night out or slowly save up for an epic vacation. Not Josh Burns. Josh spends […]

I got an email this last week. And it wasn’t a fun one: I have to be honest. That was a blow to the gut and it’s even pretty hard to admit that it happened. For the longest time I’ve been a huge advocate of Upwork. I’ve even been featured on some of their advertisements. […]

Forget about making a little bit of extra money on the side. This graphic design freelancer is making enough money to fund a small town in Arkansas. What amazing secret source did she use to find her success? Upwork. That’s right. The place that everyone says is a race to the bottom. The place so […]

Not many college students can say they make $120 an hour. But, that’s not the case with Josh Ahles. Josh started freelancing as a web designer only a few short months ago. But, in that time his success has skyrocketed. Here’s the crazy thing, only 8 months ago, Josh was afraid of freelancing as a […]

I’ve talked to a lot of freelancers over the years. After a while, a few common issues started to pop up. It turns out a lot of us are struggling with the exact same issues but no one is talking about it with one another! That’s the topic of this week’s episode on the Self-Made […]

Today I talk about how it all began. My story starts out of tragedy but it doesn’t end there. 6 years ago my wife of 10 years left me. When she did I had to figure out how I could make extra money for me and my 3 daughters as a single dad. Off of […]

There has never been a better time to start a side hustle in a tech-related field. There are so many opportunities out there to find work you can do right from the comfort of your own home. Best thing? You don’t have to have a ton of experience to get started. In fact, you can […]

I have a confession to make. I haven’t always had a great Job Success Score on Upwork. In fact, there was a season that my Job Success Score got all the way down to 78%. In Upwork world that’s the equivalent of a huge sign that says, “Worst Freelancer Ever. Do Not Hire.” But, despite […]

I’d like to tell you an all to common story about an average web designer and their client. Our first scene begins with the initial conversation. And ACTION! Client: “I’ve got a really short timeline. Can you get this done quickly?” Web Designer: “Well, it won’t be easy. I’ll have to push some other things […]

I hear it pretty consistently. “Upwork is a race to the bottom. The only people that go on there bid so low I can’t compete with them.” Let me set the record straight. Upwork isn’t a race to the bottom. It’s a platform that you can make really good money IF you’re a good web […]

I’ve been fortunate to have a lot of success on Upwork. In fact, a few years back when Upwork decided to go public I was a featured freelancer in their Time Square ad campaign. To be clear I’m not a branding guru or logo designer. I’m a web designer BUT who cares! My face was […]

“You’ll never make real money on Upwork. People only go there for cheap, poor quality work.” Those are the things I was told when I first started building a portfolio on Upwork. And, here we are now I’ve made over $70,000 from Upwork alone. Oh, and don’t forget about all the projects that came as […]

The one objection I hear most often about starting a web design business is the fear of not being able to deliver what you promised to clients or majorly screwing up on something important. Let me put your mind at ease with 6 simple words: “You are going to screw up.” It’s inevitable. It’s going […]