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(THREAD) Freelancers can thrive professionally by diversifying how they offer their unique expertise.
This model is made of three activities: consulting, education and building products. It's hyper freelancing.
This model is made of three activities: consulting, education and building products. It's hyper freelancing.
How it works:
1. As you work with clients as a freelance consultant, you'll naturally spot recurring pains.
2. You share that knowledge in courses.
3. With the community grown and further insights built, you build a product.
1. As you work with clients as a freelance consultant, you'll naturally spot recurring pains.
2. You share that knowledge in courses.
3. With the community grown and further insights built, you build a product.
Consulting:
The consulting phase it is crucial to refine your positioning, grow a small professional network, build credentials and spot wider trends.
Pros of this activity: you get to choose when to work and with whom. You just trade your time for a unique expertise.
The consulting phase it is crucial to refine your positioning, grow a small professional network, build credentials and spot wider trends.
Pros of this activity: you get to choose when to work and with whom. You just trade your time for a unique expertise.
Cons: as Naval wisely tweeted, "you’re not going to get rich renting out your time. You must own equity" The inconsistant flow of new clients is also of anxiety for freelancers. https://twitter.com/naval/status/1002103360646823936
Education:
With experience and enough abstraction, you then share everything you know in the education phase. This phase creates multiple virtuous circles, notably letting you charge higher rates for your consulting activity and creating an audience for your first product.
With experience and enough abstraction, you then share everything you know in the education phase. This phase creates multiple virtuous circles, notably letting you charge higher rates for your consulting activity and creating an audience for your first product.
Product:
Finally, with an audience, experience and cash, you can remove yourself out of services and sell a product that grows without you.
What does it take to make this model work?
This model can only work if one's value proposition is differentiated enough.
Finally, with an audience, experience and cash, you can remove yourself out of services and sell a product that grows without you.
What does it take to make this model work?
This model can only work if one's value proposition is differentiated enough.
To make we need to sell, to sell we need to be heard, to be heard we need to conquer a space that’s our own. When online: don't try to be the best, try to be unique. The knowledge economy, with universities as its foundation, rewards hyper specialization.
These three models are just different ways to sell that specialization: for the masses (product), for the rest of the knowledge economy (courses) and for individuals (freelancing). As you keep mixing, explore or exploit a unique positioning.
Hyper freelancing requires a broad set of skills.
So many, in fact, that you can’t possibly be good at all of them. But as entrepreneurs of ourselves, this is an exciting self-development ideal.
If freelancing is hard, this model is god mode.
So many, in fact, that you can’t possibly be good at all of them. But as entrepreneurs of ourselves, this is an exciting self-development ideal.
If freelancing is hard, this model is god mode.
Making good product decisions is almost diagonally opposite to making good consulting decisions. You need the ability to switch on/off the right parts of the brain easily. It's hard! That's why it's *hyper* freelancing: it's eclectic and intensely demanding.
Why anyone can call themselves hyper freelancers:
The hyper specialization and individualization of modern capitalism is a breeding ground for creating new types of jobs.
In fact, we give ourselves the job names we want, it's as easy as changing your twitter bio.
The hyper specialization and individualization of modern capitalism is a breeding ground for creating new types of jobs.
In fact, we give ourselves the job names we want, it's as easy as changing your twitter bio.
We work more jobs, with different identities, leading multiple lives simultaneously. Today this model might seem extreme. Tomorrow it will be obvious.
One of the dangers of this model is being unfocused and scattered. You'd probably be better off just choosing one activity that you enjoy and doubling down on that.
This model is fantastic in theory. In practice, it's extremely hard to work out.
This model is fantastic in theory. In practice, it's extremely hard to work out.
So I started a list of all the individuals that fit this model of hyper freelancer, combining consulting, education and having their own products.
Studying what made them successful is a good time investment. Here's the link to the full table: https://www.notion.so/supercreativeclub/3ddc0f52df4745fda12116d8c788c37b?v=f3d40d1f500146a2b7eedd4996e0d4e4
Studying what made them successful is a good time investment. Here's the link to the full table: https://www.notion.so/supercreativeclub/3ddc0f52df4745fda12116d8c788c37b?v=f3d40d1f500146a2b7eedd4996e0d4e4
I think individuals on the quest to reach this model (the grail!), can also learn from companies who have been following a similar hybrid. I love the examples of 37Signals (Basecamp), Fog Creek (StackOverflow, Trello) or Metalab (Flow). If you know any other, tweet them at me!
This thread was inspired by @patio11's thoughts on productization ( https://www.kalzumeus.com/2013/07/17/kalzumeus-podcast-5-quitting-consulting-via-productization/), @ezyjules's thoughts on the digital product studio ( https://blog.marvelapp.com/state-of-the-digital-nation-2016/#the-wrap) and @dvassallo's recent thread on self-employment income developers ( https://twitter.com/dvassallo/status/1262251147135340544?s=20).
Thank you for reading. Let me know if you consider yourself a hyper freelancer, or are considering becoming one like me.
To learn more about hyper freelancing, read @patio11's thoughts on productization, @ezyjules's thoughts on the digital product studio and @dvassallo's recent thread on self-employment income for developers.
