That LinkedIn advice about quitting your job to freelance is misleading

I quit my office job in Austin last March to go full-time freelance graphic design after reading all those posts about making 6 figures. First month I made $200 total from one small gig on Fiverr. Turns out building a client base takes way longer than influencers make it sound. Has anyone else here tried going solo and hit a wall right away?

2 comments

2 Comments

logan7051mo ago

Oh man, I feel this so hard. But I gotta gently push back on something - quitting your day job first thing is almost never the right move. You gotta build the side hustle while you still have that paycheck coming in. That safety net is huge. I know the influencers make it sound like you just jump and the net will appear, but in reality you gotta weave that net yourself over months or years while still working your regular gig. Freelance is rough at first for everyone, not just you.

masonbell1mo ago

The whole "safety net first" advice from @logan705 is spot on, but the missing piece nobody talks about is that your old job skills actually matter more than your hustle. That Fiverr strategy was a trap, because it turns out the people paying real money for freelance work want someone who already acts like a professional with a track record. You basically threw away your biggest selling point when you quit, which was proving you could handle real deadlines and clients before going solo.