English for Freelancers: Getting Started

FREE

MODULE 1: SELF-STUDY 1 What makes a successful freelancer?

Freelancing involves learning **new skills **and new tools. Which of these do you want to learn more about?

Let's look at how you manage your time.

As a freelancer, time really is money. The more organised you are, the more money you can earn.

Choose the options that describe Sara's work after using Toggl Track.

Which box is where emergency tasks go?

Another way of managing time well is to use a time tracking tool. The tool will tell you how much time you spend on different tasks. Do some online research to find the best time tracking tools for you. One popular – and free – online time tracker is Toggl Track

MODULE 1: SELF-STUDY 2 Digital freelancer vocabulary

In the last lesson, you learned some new vocabulary related to freelancing. Now it’s time to cover more of the vocabulary you’ll need to start working as a digital freelancer in English.

If the deadline for a project is tomorrow at 5pm, you must start the work at that time.

Next, you’re going to meet Mohammad, a freelancer. He's going to talk about his first freelance project. Listen to how he uses the words you have just learned.

MODULE 1: SELF-STUDY 3 The pros and cons of freelancing

80 per cent of people who went freelance say they are **happier than when they were in a traditional job. **

And **82 per cent **feel less stress.

But let’s look at what some freelancers found challenging about their job.

Which five topics did the freelancers talk about in the video?

In the video, the freelancers used language for talking about facing challenges and overcoming challenges. When you overcome something it means it was difficult at first but now it’s easier. Choose the phrases that describe overcoming challenges.

Even something as ‘small’ as this can provide a communication challenge.

Watch a video of a freelancer, Hala, talking about what happened when she faced this situation.

What did Hala do when the child appeared?

Which two things did Hala do?

MODULE 1: PRACTICE Are you ready to review this module?

Let's practise prioritising tasks using what you learned this module.

How do you normally prioritise your tasks? Do you have a to-do list?

Read the tasks on the next slide. This is your to-do list. What do you need to do first?

MODULE 2: SELF-STUDY 1 Introducing yourself

It’s important to make a good impression when introducing yourself. You're going to watch a video of people introducing themselves. While you’re watching, think about what is good about these freelancers’ introductions.

Which two things make these introductions good?

Using the phrasebank, video record yourself as if you are introducing yourself, like in the videos you just watched. You can use your phone. Keep it short – 30–40 seconds. Save the video. You will need it at the end of the course in Module 12.

MODULE 2: SELF-STUDY 2 Writing a CV

A CV is another kind of introduction. You normally send your CV when you apply for jobs.

It might be one of the first things an employer sees ... ... so it must make a good impression.

The interviewer might refer to it during the interview so it needs to be clear and well-organised.

In this module, you’ll learn how to create a professional CV. Let’s see what you know about CVs already.

Which two sentences about CVs are true?

Employers need to be able to find information in a CV at a glance. If they have to search for it, it’s not a good CV. It's much easier to see information with bullet points and subheadings.

Look at this example CV. Which information is at the top?

It's best to list your experience as bullet points in a CV. These bullet points need to be short.

One way of doing that is to: Use the past simple Delete ‘I’ and the verb ‘to be’ **I’ve been designing **… >> Designed … Now try it yourself …

You’ll use the same style in your CV in the sections about education, skills, etc.

For example: Graduated with a 2:1 in Visual Arts. Won a scholarship. Completed a course in Python.

Which of these hobbies are good to put on a CV?

MODULE 2: SELF-STUDY 3 Building a freelance profile online

So how do you create a great profile? Which two sentences are true?

Which of these should you include in your online freelance profile?

Some of the sections of the profile are very similar to your CV. These are sections like Employment history, Education, and Other experience.

Writing your CV first will help you create an online profile because you will have all the information ready.

MODULE 2: PRACTICE Are you ready to review this module?

Let's practise introducing yourself using what you learned this module.

This is Zeena. She needs help writing her CV.

Ask Zeena some questions to find out the right information for her CV.

Nice work! Let's take a look at Zeena's CV...

MODULE 3: SELF-STUDY 1 The online freelance marketplace

In this module, you’ll learn how you can use online platforms like LinkedIn, Truelancer and Upwork to find clients and get work.

On most freelance platforms, your first step is to ‘verify’ your account. This is to prove that you’re a real person and you’re using your real name.

There are different ways they can ask you to verify yourself … You will probably have to send a copy of your government ID. This could be a passport or identity card.

And you might do a short webcam interview. An interviewer will call you and ask you some questions.

The questions in a verification interview aren’t difficult. But it’s good to prepare. A new client or contact might ask you some of these questions too. Let’s listen to an example…

Hussam sounds very professional and helpful on his call. One of the ways he does this is to use words like: Yes, of course! **Absolutely! ** When does he use them?

MODULE 3: SELF-STUDY 2 Assessing clients and jobs

When your profile is complete and verified, you can start looking for work. If you’re lucky, clients might send you a message and invite you to apply for a job. Either way, when you're looking at a possible job, you need to decide if it's right for you. There are two things you need to assess: 1 the job itself 2 the client

It can be a waste of time to apply for a job that has lots of proposals. And on some platforms, you have a limited number of bids or proposals you can make.

Based on the information you just saw, do you think this is a good client?

Choose the three best jobs and clients from these pieces of information.

In other platforms, like LinkedIn, you can’t see what other projects the client has worked on, or the freelancers they worked with. So it’s important to look at the profile. Think about these questions: Is their profile complete? How many connections do they have? Do they have a real photo? *Do they have a company email address? *

The most important things are that (if possible) the payment method is verified and that the client has good reviews. After that, be careful about your usual online safety. For example, don’t give out personal information, be careful about clicking on links to other websites, etc.

Good luck!

MODULE 3: SELF-STUDY 3 Starting conversations with clients

When you start looking at job posts online, you’ll notice that they can vary a lot. Some job ads have a lot of information. Others are just one or two sentences long.

Clients can also vary. They might be professional companies or they might be individual people who need help with something. Maybe these individuals have never hired a digital freelancer before.

You’re going to read a series of job ads where some details are ambiguous. Ambiguous means the information is not complete or it is not clear. These ambiguous points can be very useful to you as a freelancer. After each ad, decide which is the best question to include in your proposal.

Job: Looking to hire a Photoshop expert to edit, transform and touch up images on a contractual basis. I run a thriving small business and need help editing designs each week. Which question is the best to include in the proposal?

Here's another job ad. After you read it, click 'Next' to answer a question. Job: Android developer for fitness app development (API integration) Need an Android (Java) developer who can continue working on an existing project. Need to implement some logic and integrate APIs.

Job: I need assistance to design the wedding dinner menu and table numbering. Which question is the best one to include in the proposal?

How many questions should you include in one proposal?

So here’s what you need to do when you’re looking for work online.

Search for job ads in your field. Assess the client and the job to see if you want to apply.

Mine the ad for ambiguous information. Think of some questions and choose the best one or two to include in your proposal.

Mining a job ad for ambiguous points is also part of tailoring the proposal to the ad. You’ll learn more about this in Module 4.

MODULE 3: PRACTICE Are you ready to review this module?

Use what you learned this module to assess three job posts.

Imagine you are a translator.

Look at some jobs for translation work and decide if it's a good idea to submit a proposal.

Remember, there are two things you’ll need to assess: the job itself the client

Which job shouldn't you submit a proposal for? The 'Website content translations'.

Which job shouldn't you submit a proposal for? The 'Website content translations'.

Which job shouldn't you submit a proposal for? The 'Website content translations'.

Now look at the interesting posts in a bit more detail ...

... and start a conversation with the clients.

What's good about this post?

What's good about this post?

MODULE 4: SELF-STUDY 1 How to write a proposal

In the last module, you learned how to mine a job ad for details to ask questions about the job.

The main part of your proposal is the part where you …

Example questions: Do you have any questions about the job description? Do you have suggestions to make this project run successfully? What challenging part of this job are you most experienced in? What part of this project most appeals to you? What past project or job have you had that is most like this one and why?

How important is it to answer these ‘Additional Questions’?

MODULE 4: SELF-STUDY 2 Making a human connection and showing enthusiasm

Nowadays, many people not only work online, but they also live half their lives online. It’s always good to remember that behind every job ad is another human.

If you can make a connection with the human behind the ad, you are more likely to get the job.

From what you saw in the video, which of these are good pieces of advice?

MODULE 4: SELF-STUDY 3 Tailoring proposals to job ads

What are the advantages of using a template for proposals?

Which three things in the proposal do you 100 per cent need to change?

If you only do one thing, for example website design, you might not need to change the experience part of your proposals. Should you always send the same examples of your work?

When you tailor a proposal to a client, you can mine the ad for useful information. Work out what’s important to the client and then include that in how you sell yourself to them.

What skills could you include to add value to your proposal for this job?

Client: "Looking for a developer who can remodel an android app for iOS. The app will need to display companies on a map interface, have user accounts, display apps in a categorised list, and display some news articles." Reply: Welcome to Truelancer! I see that you are looking to complete an Android app and then migrate it to iOS. I can help you with that, and I can start right away. Do you have a link to a beta version of the app in a service like TestFlight? I’ve got five years of experience building apps for Android and iOS and you can see two recent apps I built here and here. There are some key requirements so that an app is approved in the Android stores vs Apple. I can help you be successful in both. I’m excited to help you with your project as I especially love working with people who have a clear vision for what they want to do. Plus, like you, I started developing apps when I was a student, so I know what it’s like to work on side projects while studying! I’m available for a chat if you want to discuss the project further. All the best, Mena

What is good about Mena's proposal?

MODULE 4: PRACTICE Are you ready to review this module?

Use what you learned this module to edit a proposal for a job post.

This is Abdel.

He wrote a job proposal. He's not sure if it's ready to send. Can you help him?

There are a few mistakes in Abdel's proposal too...

Correct the mistakes in the following sentences.

Check out Abdel's improved proposal... Dear Anna, I see that you need some videos for your new product. I can help you with that, and I am free to start right away. I recently worked on a similar project. I’m really passionate about animation. I would love to discuss the project further. Looking forward to hearing from you. Thanks Abdel