What to expect when you are looking for clients
It is widely known that looking for a job is a job in itself, especially if you work as a freelancer, since you are actually looking for jobs, not for a single one. Sending CVs, filling forms and doing assessments to enter a database become your daily routine. In doing so, you meet lots of different types of people and gather many anecdotes. But what is the result of all these efforts? Well, there is obviously a percentage of people who get back to you and hire you, thank God! But whatever happens to the rest?
As for CVs, a big amount of them get no answer at all. I guess they are immediately sent to trash the moment they reach their destination because it is one among hundreds of CVs or because the person who opens the mail does not have the time or will to read them all. Then you find the kind type, my favorite among those who will never hire you. Those people who do not need your services but bother to answer you, apologizing for not hiring you and even giving you some tips for your job search. Though I must confess I hate it when they tell you: “I keep your profile for future projects. No one knows”. There is a third type of person in this classification: the I-don’t-know-how-to-define-yet type. These people get back to you immediately after receiving your email and tell you they want to know your rates and availability and they will phone you in a few days because they have so desperately looking for someone with your profile for a long time and bla, bla… You do as you have been told and then…silence for ever and ever. I wonder if they have been kidnapped, sent on a mission to Mars or suffer from amnesia.
While looking for jobs you are often asked to fill never-ending forms in which you are asked long lists of questions which, on the other hand, I understand are necessary for the potential clients. The worst part comes when they ask you to complete and assessment. Though I love doing them because I love my job, they are time-consuming tasks. But you do them in the hope of getting a job. After that, you must wait for the answer, which can take a full month to get back to you. And then: Congratulations! You are now part of a database of thousands of people waiting for an opportunity.
The key elements to keep your motivation in your job searching adventure are patience and persistence. Don’t give up the fight!
In the next post I will talk about the wide range of opportunities you find in your searching for jobs, from those who are worth it to those who meet slavery conditions.