Like with Haves and the Have Nots, I see a trend that divides online freelancers. A trend that does no one justice. Like in the story of Wolf of Wallstreet (you must watch the movie by Di Caprio et al or read the real story of Jordan Belfort), online freelancing is driven by ignorance and expertise of the players. The same players can bring down this hustle to its knees. It is in the best interest of everyone to understand the side of the newbies as well as that of the veterans. Understanding and working on the relationship between the players is beneficial to individuals and the industry at large. Otherwise, we will have some people working hard (foolishly or otherwise) to ruin the platforms on which everyone benefits, and in the end, there will be working restrictions or no jobs for everyone.

Shall we first demystify what/ who a NEWBIE; and on the same note what/ who a VETERAN freelancer is?

A NEWBIE is a beginner at something. It can also be a mental status; a belief/ status of not having as much information about something as one would hope. This last point does not hedge on the duration that the person has been in the field; a person can still be a newbie weeks, months or years into something.

A VETERAN is an experienced freelancer. A reigning veteran-mentality is that a veteran freelancer is perfect, but this is not always the case. A veteran online freelancer has a relatively high percentage of knowledge and skills in something(s). Veterans might need to learn new stuff overtime or refresh their knowledge and skills.

Now:

Why do we – on average – have a strained relationship between newbies and veterans?

Does any of these statements explain the strain?

• Some veterans are too busy to give guidance.
• Some newbies want to be spoon-fed instead of doing due diligence themselves.
• Some veterans only want to work with experienced freelancers.
• Some newbies refuse to leave the newbie syndrome; they want quick bucks instead of putting in the extra work.
• Some veterans want to siphon energy and other resources from newbies.
• Some newbies want unrealistically big bucks without any input from their side.

I could go on and on (leave additional points in the comments sections and let us all address them), but let us address the above first.

Newbies, Middle-bies, and Veterans

Are veterans are too busy to give newbies guidance? Do veterans only want to work with experienced freelancers

Let us all acknowledge that some of these veteran freelancers have perfected their skills and knowledge on some niches and not others. Other veterans have the knowledge and skills in most niches but not enough knowledge and skills in any specific niche. As such, your perceived veteran may not always have the solutions you need; they may have knowledge and skills in a field that is different from the one you seek their assistance. I will leave this up to you to define who represents a veteran online freelancer to you. To each and his/ her own.

Truth be told, these veterans are pushing the wheel of life just like everyone else. Living their lives. Trying to make a living. Keeping their hustle afloat. Some of them probably do not have enough hours in their days to complete all their tasks let alone see what others are doing. Some have personal, familial, and other stuff that consume their energy and time. If you are having difficulty understanding this, you ought to read this article.

That said, not all veterans lack the time to assist newbies.  Some veteran online freelancers, despite their busy schedules, make the time to share information on multiple platforms. They find the time to mentor newbies the best way they can. They might not respond to any and all messages, instantly or personally, but they do the best they can.

Do all newbies want to be spoon-fed? Do they all want instant big bucks? Do they use ‘newbie’ as a cover to be lazy?

One side of the coin

No. Not all newbies want to be spoonfed.

Some newbies are amazing and committed to learning and practising every bit they learn. They check out provided resources and do their due diligence. Some pay for their training/ mentorship whereas some receive such training and mentorship free. Either way, a great newbie has an above-average positive attitude. It is easy to work with these ones.

Some newbies understand that not everything is lottery and that they need to work for it. They start with the tasks they can handle and advance gradually to better paying tasks. They take every learning opportunity they can get to learn about more online ventures, best practises, etc. Their mentality is: ‘Today I am here, tomorrow I want to be there’.

The other side of the coin

And then there are those newbies who want to try your patience as a fellow newbie or veteran. Imagine trying to make something of yourself while assisting someone who does not have the desire, the patience, or the commitment to try. I totally understand that we are at different financial levels but this does not warrant the absurd belief that someone demands you show them how to make $3000 per day without their investing a second to learn the ropes. I am yet to see someone who makes that much money daily without having laid out the foundation. I have seen some mean and hilarious responses to people who insist they want to make $3000 per day in their sleep – but this is a nice blog and I won’t post those responses here.

Even with the tried and tested authentic online jobs, some newbies want a cocktail of information in an ‘smoothie’ kind of form; instant knowledge. Some jobs require you to master a few skills or something like that. If your trainer or mentor sends you a resource, at least make an effort of checking it out so you can ask relevant questions.

Allow me to illustrate:

In article writing, you might need to understand the structure of your requested article, maybe a few writing improvement guidelines from your requester/ company, etc. In academia you must know the structure, the referencing, the research, etc. In transcription or video captioning, you must understand the guidelines for your scripts. Now, if someone offers to give you the reference materials for all of these but you cannot be bothered to check out the resources, how can you be helped?

Seriously though, everyone should read this post about the lies that fake freelancers tell about online jobs. Newbies should be wary of extremely gold-polished enticements. On the same breath, newbies who are in such a rush may end up taking half classes when pushed, and when they fail they want to tell everyone that all online ventures are scams. Or they try to recruit those who are ignorant about online jobs with absurd promises. Just in case you are new to online freelancing check this incomplete list of authentic online jobs and tell me if any of them involve you making money without doing anything. Granted that some tasks are more difficult than others and the pay varies, but PLEASE do your due diligence before you are duped into a scheme of making the insane money in your sleep. Consider yourself advised.

Do veterans want to siphon energy/ money from newbies?

Now now, most of us have been conned or we know of someone who was conned; conned by a veteran, or a middlebie, or a fellow newbie freelancer. That said, there have been instances in multiple social media platforms where some big shots have been listed as cons. I believe it is great that there are some platforms where the accused persons have been called to some of these platforms to respond to the allegations.

Different people employ different measures to ensure that their cons pay for their sins. People should come out to name and shame the cons so that others can stay off people with scrupulous business dealings. Those who have been verified cons should rethink their ethics. And everyone should take caution when dealing with people whose business dealings are unverified.

With the existence of cons, however, no one should conclude that all veterans or all freelancers are cons. In fact, everyone should be careful when spreading news about cons. Some people are in the business of branding others cons; not because they have been conned or know of someone who has been conned but because they have real or imagined issues with the people whose names they want to tarnish.

Dishonest clients

Some products buyers or service sellers want to rob others? Don’t believe this? Have you seen people who claim they can accomplish this or that task within an agreed time but they do not deliver on any of their promises? Have you seen such people hike their payment rates, even though they did not deliver in the first place, and then when the people who hired them refuse to be bullied they (the service providers) tarnish their names? I have met a few which is why I have a hard time outsourcing; the last thing I need is to pay for tasks that I will end up doing after enough stress to take me to my grave.

Parting Shot

I call upon all of us to be careful in our dealings with newbies, and middlebies, and veterans.

I call upon all of us to be respectful of other people’s hustle.

I call upon each of us to do our due diligence on everything and everyone.

Free Resources

If you do not get any of the concepts above, and you just want to focus on staying safe in this field and succeeding in your online jobs:

•  Read this article or just watch video clip below.
• See a list of freelancers here; freelancers who have diverse online freelancing skills and who can be consulted if you are ever in doubt.
• See a list of online freelancers’ virtual groups where you can always consult about anything online, plus reasons why you should belong in those groups
• Fast ways of capturing information without wasting time on the social media groups (the above groups) you belong

Feel free to leave your comments below

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5-2HUL1bxY