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How often do you think about what your work will look like in a few years?

Will you still be freelancing?

Will your skills even be relevant?

If your skills stop being relevant, you may just find that you might not be able to continue freelancing.

It can be an unnerving thought, but it’s true.

Today I came across an article by Abdullahi Mohammad in Forbes that perfectly illustrated the point that as a freelancer, you need to keep up to date.

You can read the whole article here.

Some of the key points Mohammad explains are:

Automation is changing the way we work

Per Upwork Quarterly Skills Index, released last year, 70% of the fastest-growing freelance skills were completely new to the index.

What particularly makes it scary is that supposedly most jobs that are in demand didn’t exist five to ten years ago.

We cannot expect as writers and freelancers that we will not be affected.

In most cases though, it will be in regards to what we write about; we need to be fully aware of all the latest trends.

But it is also important in the sense that basic things can now be automated and we as writers need to take advantage of them, too.

Never stop learning, commit to it

Be committed: Block off specific times on your calendar and dedicate those to self-development. Create a learning plan and stick to it. And if you are having a hard time, find an accountability partner of a mentor that will give you that much-needed kick to keep going. 

Don’t just think of freelancing as non-stop working, you need to prepare for the future.

Invest in yourself and it will pay off over time.

It will be hard at first because you may associate working with money and personal research as something perhaps more self-indulgent.

Quality will always win over clients

To survive in the long run, freelance writers should strive for quality. The easier your work can be automated, the more likely it will happen.

But how exactly do you shift to performing higher value work? For starters, take a closer look at your personal business systems and analyze where improvements can be made. If there’s a tool that can help you streamline one of your core tasks, consider buying it. If there’s a business process eating up a good chunk of your productive time (e.g. accounting), see how you can optimize or outsource it. 

By creating unique and high quality work, writers can keep writing. Always look for ways to create more value in your work.

Conclusion?

Hone in a unique set of skills that cannot be automated and maybe you’ll be alright. But of course, nothing can be guaranteed

You can check out the whole article on Forbes here.

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