Dear readers,

In this issue of freelancer.international news, we present to you the top freelancer cities around the world. Paris ranked second while New York city defended its position as the top location for freelancers. The report further analyses what makes New York City a great place for freelance work.

Moreover, we have eight tips for freelancers who are determined to tell the world what they can do and further focus their goals to gain new clients.

In our freelancer article, an accountant will give you tips on how to set up a full-fledged controlling system and finally, the freelancer joke of the month is about a smart engineer who is not taken seriously by management.

Despite the Corona crisis, I wish you a lot of fun reading and of course, as always, success in business!

Rainer Kurz

You may be the most talented freelancer in the world. However, if you just sit at home and let no one know you exist and how great your work is, you will struggle to land jobs and secure contracts.

The truly successful freelancers are not actually the most talented ones. More often than not, it is the people who tell the world what they can do and therefore consistently gain new clients. After all, being a freelancer is largely a people´s business. Even in times of COVID-19, the best jobs come from contacts in your own network. So if you want to advance your career as a freelancer, you should learn to network. Our eight tips are a good place to start:

1) Choose the right event: Especially at the beginning of their freelancer career, many make the following mistake. They attend almost every online and offline event in the hope of acquiring customers for their own projects. Finding the right customers that suit you and your skills is not equally likely at every single event. The chance to find exactly the right customers at events that really suit you is not the same everywhere. Especially if the event is mainly attended by colleagues who are looking for customers just like you. To seriously win over good customers, it is better to choose an event where you meet people who are already where you want to go and also companies that have the resources to hire you.

2) Do not necessarily think of it as 'networking': If you force yourself to network before visiting a get-together, it can create quite a bit of pressure and make your appearance appear cheesy from nerves. Instead, tell yourself that you are going to an event to get out and make interesting contacts or to get support from other freelancers. After all, nobody wants to give a job to someone who is practically begging for it! Leave the salesperson routine at home and just be yourself.

3) Pursue a clear goal in networking: It may sound strange to set goals for networking, but this approach can be extremely helpful. Once you know where you want to go it is much easier to meet people who can help you along the way. These goals could be, for example, finding a supportive network to share goals and questions, a mentor or other assignments. Do not be afraid to communicate your goals clearly.

4) Stay in touch: To get the most out of networking, stay in touch after you´ve shared your information. It is best not to wait too long for this, but send a short message the next day, in which you can continue the conversation and possibly arrange the first meeting. So-called follow-ups are often more effective than you might think! You will be remembered as a professional network expert while showing your fellow participant that you are serious.

5) Work in a coworking space: In coworking spaces, you will meet many interesting people from different industries. By sharing an office with other freelancers, your network often organically expands.

6) Keep in touch with former colleagues and clients: When you start freelancing, it is advisable to keep in touch with former colleagues from employment relationships. Your ex-colleagues already know you and your professional qualifications, which can be a great advantage for you. Invite your former colleagues to become part of your LinkedIn network and follow what they are up to.

7) Be prepared for opportunities: Perhaps you know the saying 'Happiness happens when preparation meets opportunity'. If you get an opportunity to spend some time with someone who could positively influence your career, you shouldn´t skip it. Always be clear about your goals and prepare a summary of what you do and why you are so good at it. Then, if you get the chance to impress someone, you can do so.

8) Give speeches and run workshops: Prove your authority and professional competence by giving lectures and workshops on topics that you master. This is the best way to gradually build up a positive reputation as an expert in your field, thereby increasing your chances of attracting new clients. Do not be afraid to post articles and share posts on LinkedIn.

According to research recently released by Small Business Prices, 32 cities were investigated to see how they performed in terms of the opportunities available and affordability for the rising freelance workforce.

In the report, the ranking was determined by an index score which rated economies according to nine factors. These factors covered a variety of topics ranging from the number of freelance jobs available to the average price of rent in the city centre. The ranking showed that New York, with an index score of 6.58, was the best place in the world to become a freelancer or work remotely.

For comparison, we listed here the top five cities of the list with a breakdown of each aspect as follows:

New York had relatively good scores when it came to factors such as broadband speed, free WiFi spots, coworking spaces available and average monthly salary.

To further improve New York’s ranking, the New York government can address matters such as decreasing rent prices in the city centre and the average working hours per week.

In addition to this, Paris seems promising with low rent dues and high available freelance jobs.

In any case, it is up to you to select wherever you want to live, after all, you are a freelancer!

Registered service providers can present themselves with a short article in the freelancer.international news. In this issue, we present you a freelancer who is expertise in financial and also a certified accountant.
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My focus is on sustainable profitability increase in small and medium-sized enterprises. In the course of more than twenty years of independent work as an accountant, I have specialized in cost monitoring, cost reduction and thus increasing the profitability of small and medium-sized companies in connection with the preparation of accounts.

By setting up a full-fledged controlling system and integrating it into the processing system of the accounting (strategic accounting), I can save you the otherwise usual additional costs for independent controlling systems, since the necessary controlling data is provided directly via the accounting. The running costs for such a 'strategic accounting' system require only a small additional expense compared to conventional accounting.
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The management of a company had a flagpole erected in front of the company building. They are very proud of it and want to write about it in the company newsletter. However, nobody knows how high the pole is. Therefore the managers try to measure the height with a yardstick. However, none of the managers can reach the top. Even though they try different methods, like standing on each other’s shoulders, nobody is able to measure the length of this impressive flagpole.

A freelance engineer comes along, takes down the flagpole, puts it on the meadow, measures, says: “The flagpole is exactly 7.58 meters long” and walks away.

As soon as he has disappeared, one of the managers says: “Typical of an engineer! We wanted to know how high the pole is and he told us the length! Such a person could never rise to the top management like us”.