1. Learn to Be a Referee
You need to become an excellent setter of boundaries when you work as your own boss - boundaries for others, and for yourself. Make sure you formulate rules about how you spend your time, including your night and weekend hours. Give yourself time for vacations too.
It is also important to clearly define certain boundaries for those who would use your services:

-You're Worth the Money. Freelancing is the land of low-ball offers. An offer of $5 for an hour-long gig is ridiculous - don't take it. You're worth the money, and if you've taken the risk of going out on your own, you deserve the reward of a decent payment.
-Don't Work Hours You're Not Paid For. Once again, bill for everything. If a potential client suggests that you forgo billing for certain aspects of a job or wants a substantial amount of meeting time "off the clock," you need to say no.
-Don't Answer Your Phone and Email All the Time. Once you set limits on when you do and do not work, you need to feel comfortable telling your clients no. Enforce your no-call times. If you're a good enough worker, your clients cannot begrudge you for abiding by your own rules.





2. Build Your Support Team
Freelancing can prove to be lonely at times, especially if you work from home. You need to build a solid support team and make time for friends during the week so you don't burn out. The people you rely on ideally should be able to offer different perspectives on your work and help with managing your daily tasks.

-Count on Outsourcing. Don't waste any of your valuable time with tasks you aren't very good at or that is the least relevant to your work. Equally, if you have more jobs than you can handle, outsource. You may lose a few bucks but in the end you make more from doing more work. For instance, if you offer article writing services, and you have bulk articles, you can outsource to good websites like scribesbay.com that offer good writing services. In the end, you make more delivering more value. Focus on how you can increase supply. Remember, your goal is to move up the chain.
-Connect With Other Freelancers. Freelance work can feel isolating and confusing, especially when income ebbs and flows and you're not always sure what to do. Join a support network, such as Freelancer's Union, for advice, assistance, and additional networking opportunities. You can also find local help on Meetup.com, and answers to your tax- and employment-related questions on the government's Small Business Administration website.
-Consider Coworking. If your main challenge with freelancing is the sense of isolation, consider coworking as an alternative to working from home. A coworking arrangement allows you to rent office space for a small fee so you can mingle with other freelancers, share ideas, and go through the motions of traditional work life.




3. Provide Yourself With Benefits
You need to have a plan for benefits. As a freelance worker, you won't have access to health insurance, disability insurance, or life insurance through any of your clients. You also won't be able to count on the security of regular paychecks. Each of these challenges is surmountable, however, as long as you plan ahead.

-Provide an Income Buffer. First of all, account for the ebbs and flows of income by having between three and six months' worth of savings in your bank account. This buffer can help in months that work is scarce, and you can build it back up when the work pours in again. Additionally, you should start and build up an emergency fund.
-Insurance Coverage. Insurance should be considered part of the cost of doing business. It's wise to seek out medical, short-term disability, and long-term disability plans as a bare minimum of coverage. Depending on your age and health, it may also be prudent to purchase dental and vision insurance. 
-Retirement Benefits. Finally, make sure to plan for your future. In addition to your own research, a financial advisor can help you make retirement decisions, and an accountant can help you understand the tax implications of any avenues you're considering.





Final word
If you're thinking about making the leap to a freelance career, don't look at it as an escape from the rat race of traditional employment. Freelancing comes with significant risks and challenges, and you need to be sure you're prepared for the inevitable difficulties that arise. However, with an independent personality, a little planning, and a lot of creativity, you may find that freelance work is the perfect mixture of flexibility and self-fulfillment for your career path.

What additional tips can you suggest to thrive as a freelancer?

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/312694

One of the problems Nigeria freelancers have that stops them from being successful is that they do not work towards getting up the freelancing ladder. If you began with articles, the next step is to figure out how to outsource, so you buy time and supply more.

OP nice post. Emm that your facts about Bill and Carlos Slim.. mad ohh!!!!!

Parmzhelp:
OP nice post. Emm that your facts about Bill and Carlos Slim.. mad ohh!!!!!

LOL! Real mad stuff. What am I doing with my life Lord!

Thanks OP for the post. As Nigerians it time for us to grow from our small mindset of being a part of every detail of our business. That's how big organizations roll.

I read this article on warriorforum about this guy who got a big freelance job. By the time he was done with the contract two years later, he had hired over 40 people to work with him, he also had partner with about 4 agency of which he outsource some part of the work to. All of this happened online. The guy wrote this himself and dropped some nuggets. He spoke about how you should quickly think of outsourcing some part of your work so you're able to deliver more.

That deal made him over $2m.

Interesting! I have heard similar stories and I know quite a few people personally who have achieved such feat. I know a guy who built his business from ground up from freelancing. His company does about $500k yearly turn-over. He's based in Nigeria, just incase people are wondering..

CrustandSea:
I read this article on warriorforum about this guy who got a big freelance job. By the time he was done with the contract two years later, he had hired over 40 people to work with him, he also had partner with about 4 agency of which he outsource some part of the work to. All of this happened online. The guy wrote this himself and dropped some nuggets. He spoke about how you should quickly think of outsourcing some part of your work so you're able to deliver more.

That deal made him over $2m.

Speak2klein:

1. Learn to Be a Referee
You need to become an excellent setter of boundaries when you work as your own boss - boundaries for others, and for yourself. Make sure you formulate rules about how you spend your time, including your night and weekend hours. Give yourself time for vacations too.
It is also important to clearly define certain boundaries for those who would use your services:

-You're Worth the Money. Freelancing is the land of low-ball offers. An offer of $5 for an hour-long gig is ridiculous - don't take it. You're worth the money, and if you've taken the risk of going out on your own, you deserve the reward of a decent payment.
-Don't Work Hours You're Not Paid For. Once again, bill for everything. If a potential client suggests that you forgo billing for certain aspects of a job or wants a substantial amount of meeting time "off the clock," you need to say no.
-Don't Answer Your Phone and Email All the Time. Once you set limits on when you do and do not work, you need to feel comfortable telling your clients no. Enforce your no-call times. If you're a good enough worker, your clients cannot begrudge you for abiding by your own rules.





2. Build Your Support Team
Freelancing can prove to be lonely at times, especially if you work from home. You need to build a solid support team and make time for friends during the week so you don't burn out. The people you rely on ideally should be able to offer different perspectives on your work and help with managing your daily tasks.

-Count on Outsourcing. Don't waste any of your valuable time with tasks you aren't very good at or that is the least relevant to your work. Equally, if you have more jobs than you can handle, outsource. You may lose a few bucks but in the end you make more from doing more work. For instance, if you offer article writing services, and you have bulk articles, you can outsource to good websites like scribesbay.com that offer good writing services. In the end, you make more delivering more value. Focus on how you can increase supply. Remember, your goal is to move up the chain.
-Connect With Other Freelancers. Freelance work can feel isolating and confusing, especially when income ebbs and flows and you're not always sure what to do. Join a support network, such as Freelancer's Union, for advice, assistance, and additional networking opportunities. You can also find local help on Meetup.com, and answers to your tax- and employment-related questions on the government's Small Business Administration website.
-Consider Coworking. If your main challenge with freelancing is the sense of isolation, consider coworking as an alternative to working from home. A coworking arrangement allows you to rent office space for a small fee so you can mingle with other freelancers, share ideas, and go through the motions of traditional work life.




3. Provide Yourself With Benefits
You need to have a plan for benefits. As a freelance worker, you won't have access to health insurance, disability insurance, or life insurance through any of your clients. You also won't be able to count on the security of regular paychecks. Each of these challenges is surmountable, however, as long as you plan ahead.

-Provide an Income Buffer. First of all, account for the ebbs and flows of income by having between three and six months' worth of savings in your bank account. This buffer can help in months that work is scarce, and you can build it back up when the work pours in again. Additionally, you should start and build up an emergency fund.
-Insurance Coverage. Insurance should be considered part of the cost of doing business. It's wise to seek out medical, short-term disability, and long-term disability plans as a bare minimum of coverage. Depending on your age and health, it may also be prudent to purchase dental and vision insurance. 
-Retirement Benefits. Finally, make sure to plan for your future. In addition to your own research, a financial advisor can help you make retirement decisions, and an accountant can help you understand the tax implications of any avenues you're considering.





Final word
If you're thinking about making the leap to a freelance career, don't look at it as an escape from the rat race of traditional employment. Freelancing comes with significant risks and challenges, and you need to be sure you're prepared for the inevitable difficulties that arise. However, with an independent personality, a little planning, and a lot of creativity, you may find that freelance work is the perfect mixture of flexibility and self-fulfillment for your career path.

What additional tips can you suggest to thrive as a freelancer?

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/312694

Nice article....I would love to contact you.
I just sent a mail.