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silverwolf87
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20 Sep 2017, 3:26 pm

I wonder if anyone else here has had good results selling professional services online. I recall failing miserably at job interviews despite having a good academic background (Electrical Engineer + MBA, graduated with honors from both). I also failed at two business attempts and was very depressed but then came upon online freelancing sites and gave it a shot. Taking my nonverbal communication out of the equation I managed to go from slightly above minimum wage income to around 12x minimum wage. I believe that increase was possible because I live in a third world country.

I wonder why NTs give so much importance to nonverbal language. I've seen people who are liars and backstabbers get good jobs with their top-level nonverbal communication. It applies for relationships as well... Many girls will tolerate cheating and abuse from a boyfriend with strong NT skills but will get creeped out by a non-NT at the first conversation attempt.



Sonikku
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20 Sep 2017, 4:06 pm

I am about to go down this route because as sure as I sit here I cannot deal with working at a company.
Too much social interaction, too much noise, too many subtle unwritten social rules.
And then there's me telling it like it is... my mouth gets me into trouble every time.


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silverwolf87
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16 Oct 2017, 7:53 am

You should definitely try it. The Internet gives us a chance to compete with NTs on even terms, taking nonverbal language out. Normal office jobs are hell if you are in the spectrum, much more unwritten rules than in normal social gatherings.



Embla
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16 Oct 2017, 8:48 am

Working online has improved my life so much.
I can hold down a regular job, but they get me so exhausted that I do nothing but work and sleep, which makes me depressed and even suicidal if it goes too far.
But working online I don't have to deal with other people or commuting, I can decide my own schedule, and even work with something that I enjoy doing. I have energy enough to see other people when I want to, and I can spend a lot of time on my interests.
There are a few downsides to it. For example you have to be able to motivate yourself on days when you don't feel like it. As a freelancer, my biggest problems are marketing and negotiating. In the beginning, it led me to work for less than $1/hour, because I couldn't ask for a fair price. I couldn't negotiate with the client because they were the only one I had, and I wasn't even sure if my work was good enough to even get paid for.
I'm still pretty underpaid, but it's gradually getting better. The more jobs I finish, the better I get at my job and the more confident I get, and the more clients I get the more I dare to ask for a higher salary.

Any client you have may come back with more work, or they might direct new clients to you. So relationships are actually even more important when you're freelancing, and your reputation is the most important thing you've got. But at least it's way easier to maintain when all the conversation is in writing.

I would say, definitely try it. I see no reason not to.



starkid
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18 Oct 2017, 7:51 pm

A lot of what Embla posted applies to me. Regular employment tired me out (to the point that I'm unable to hold down a full-time job), but I have much more energy now that I work freelance from home and don't have to deal with other people in person.

Even though I am self-taught and relatively inexperienced at my freelance job, I make much more money than I could make as an employee. There is no way I could hold down a typical job related to my college degree.

It's true, reputation and negotiation skills are important for getting, maintaining, and managing clients, but communicating through text makes that much easier than it would otherwise be. Still, they are the hardest parts, but I've created scripts for myself to type to clients and I simply express myself with confidence and focus on doing my best when I feel anxious about the impression I'm making. I have also gradually raised my fees.

Vocational Rehab helped a lot by getting me a nice computer. Now they are paying for a professional certificate.



C2V
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22 Oct 2017, 4:12 am

Online freelancing doing what?
Do you already have to have a digitally-friendly professional skill?
This strongly appeals to me for nomadic reasons. I've dreamed of becoming a true digital nomad, but always seem to get told the catch - that you have to have the right skills first, usually gained through a degree in formal education and several years in the job in order to make contacts in the real world, before you can "move it online."
Hell of a catch. Is that the case here? How does one go about getting involved? Reads too good to be true, like those ads that claim things like "stay at home mum makes three times her old salary working online!"
Which basically screams "SCAM!"


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Embla
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22 Oct 2017, 5:03 am

C2V wrote:
Online freelancing doing what?
Do you already have to have a digitally-friendly professional skill?
This strongly appeals to me for nomadic reasons. I've dreamed of becoming a true digital nomad, but always seem to get told the catch - that you have to have the right skills first, usually gained through a degree in formal education and several years in the job in order to make contacts in the real world, before you can "move it online."
Hell of a catch. Is that the case here? How does one go about getting involved? Reads too good to be true, like those ads that claim things like "stay at home mum makes three times her old salary working online!"
Which basically screams "SCAM!"



I think that depends on what profession you're aiming at. I was really lucky, because I'm an illustrator, so I basically just started showing my art online and then jobs started coming.
But I guess that won't work if you can't market your services that easily.
There's always those freelance websites that you can start out on. They have a bad reputation, and the chance for earning a decent salary on there is very small. BUT they can work well if you're just starting out. I used them for a while, and looked at them as an educational platform. Instead of paying for a degree that isn't good for anything, I got paid while learning how the business works, gaining a few valuable contacts and improving my skills.
If you have no idea at all where to start, those websites could be an option.