Time Management.
You'd be surprised at just how easy it is to find yourself running out of time when you're working from home. The problem is that it's too easy to get distracted; in the middle of working, you'll remember that you need to clean the living room, or you're almost out of clean socks. I know that I have days where it's almost impossible to resist the siren song of the PS2, or I'm tempted to sleep all day if I want to--because hey, the only one worrying about my time is me, right?
Not if I want to get paid. When a client hires you to work for them, they'd like to see it in a timely fashion; while they'll generally understand if you have multiple clients and you're juggling work loads, they'll be less forgiving if a two-day project takes two months to deliver because you kept getting distracted by all the shiny, fun things lying around your home. Even with the comforts involved, you are still working; that implies a sense of responsibility and discipline. You have to be responsible enough to set yourself a work schedule, and disciplined enough to adhere to it; otherwise your "easy vacation" of self-employment will soon run out of funding.
Building a Client Base.
When you first start off freelancing, more than likely you won't even make enough to support yourself. You may have one client, or two, but clients won't just come flooding to your doorstep. You have to build a client base; get your name out, advertise yourself, and make inquiries. Don't forget to keep in touch with existing clients; polite, periodic e-mails will serve to remind them that you're there to meet their needs without being intrusive.
As you progress, your client base will help to build itself; if you left a good impression on your first few clients, not only will they return to you on an as-needed basis, they'll also refer others, who will come to you with high expectations. But this can work both ways; if you leave too many clients dissatisfied, they can easily ruin your reputation and shrivel your client base to nearly nothing. It's true, there are some clients that are impossible to please and who will view even your most Herculean of accomplishments negatively; these are rare, however, and most clients will be happy with you if you complete the agreed requirements, give them the appropriate attention (give your smaller clients as much consideration as your larger ones), do the best job that you can, and are pleasant and professional to work with. (They don't need to know that you're sitting on your couch in your boxers, and your attitude doesn't need to reflect that. Your work attire says "naptime". The tone of your e-mails and phone calls should say "casual but professional home office".)
Slow Periods.
Oh, you're going to have them. You're going to have a lot of them. When business is good, it's booming, but when it dries up, you'll be as parched as a dust devil tumbling through an Arizona gulch. Freelance work is rarely steady; because your clients will contact you on an as-needed basis, it's hard to predict when you'll have work and when you won't. For that reason you should always budget your income; when you land that hefty $5000 contract, don't blow all of the excess on frills. Save a set amount of the non-essential excess from each lump sum or gross hourly payment to build up a substantial nest egg that can, if necessary, carry you through several months without additional income. You'll be grateful for it when things are slow.
Be Willing to Negotiate Without Caving In.
You know what you're worth, but that doesn't mean that a potential client does. Whether you're working on an hourly rate or for a set overall fee, often the final payment will be a result of negotiation. In the beginning you may end up taking jobs that pay less than you'd like. You may say you want $25 an hour, while they can only pay you $20; it's up to you if you're willing to negotiate down, though being inflexible when your client base is small can leave you with no client at all. Compromising can be good, and those clients that you compromised for may later be those whose steady work holds you up more consistently than the $50/hour clients that might fire two hours of work your way every three months.
But don’t let potential clients take advantage of you. If you've been talked down to taking $50 for a project that you know is worth at least $500, and you're slaving hours over it when your time could be better spent on clients that are paying you fairly, you may want to reconsider your position. It's hard to tell a client that they're being unfair or unreasonable, and we're all afraid of alienating clients; our position is still one of customer service atop the other responsibilities, and we do aim to please in order to bring clients back. But you also have to know when to walk away. It's a thin line to tread, and one that's at your own discretion.
