FREELANCE 2EUROPE
Step 9: Manage Your Career
Continuing Training
Obtaining certifications, learning new technologies, staying updated and ahead of the market will give you an edge over all other consultants in your industry. This will enable you to increase your price thanks to your expertise and experience. One should never rest on their laurels.
Motivated systems engineers manage to change careers from system engineer to becoming DevOps, for example, which is better remunerated.
The training with the most impact is continuous training, where you allocate time each week in your schedule for this purpose. Despite family and professional obligations, the best consultants find time to train every week. Efforts accumulate and after 5 years, the difference is there, with your rate being €250 per day higher than colleagues who have never taken the time to train.
Building a Network
Beyond technical skills, having excellent interpersonal skills will allow you to establish a network with your managers and colleagues. In the consultancy sector, this is crucial! Why?
Because, of course, they will contact you if an opportunity arises in their team, reducing your “bench time” between missions.
But above all, it will allow you to staff your colleagues through our platform at clients. This allows you to earn a daily commission for each consultant you refer. Having a network of clients and consultants allows some consultants to double their freelance income. In short, they earn as much through missions as through the commissions they take on other consultants.
Applying for a new mission every 2 years
As you grow professionally, it is crucial to value your work with a higher daily rate. Applying when you are on a mission will allow you to be more selective and demanding with your clients, thus increasing your chances of a significant increase in income.
Unfortunately, some clients wait for their contract to end before applying and are pressed for time to sign the next contract. This reduces their negotiation margin because their priority in this situation is not to increase their revenue but simply to avoid “bench time.”