My First Freelance Gig Was a Disaster

A little story about my first paid project as a freelancer back in 2008 - 2009
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[@TraversyMedia]

The most important things I wanted to get across are: 1. Have clear requirements that you and the client agree to 2. Good communication 3. Don't get discouraged if you have a bad client experience 4. Learn from your mistakes 5. Take jobs that you can handle (Not a frigging social network before you even learn a programming language lol) Also, sorry if the lighting is too bright 😐

[@CodeWithTomi]

Thanks for the tips

[@cubedev4838]

I love this kind of inspirational story, we all start from zero, not born as a developer

[@adamsarwar]

Thank you 🙏🏼

[@turbokev3772]

Detailed instructions for freelancer: "I would like you to create a project on GitHub called x, and within that project I would like you to create a .php file called x, and I would like you to start the file with the following tag:

[@JovenAlbarida]

i've also learned this hard way, when i started freelance work.. thank you for summarizing and sharing

[@potatomaaan1757]

"I finally ended up getting a callback" thats how you know someone does a lot of javascript

[@vicklopez1470]

Then he said response and I just thought server response lol

[@elektronick88]

The thing definitely was async.

[@moretimeproductions]

But then everything was based on false promises :D

[@noaexel]

Just what i thought too..LOL

[@techthred6595]

I know Nodemon was listening

[@nikolajacques5982]

Building a social network as your first freelance job, that takes balls.

[@priyanshusharma6763]

Yup! steel balls :D

[@Forkoto]

And the less experienced the dev, the bigger they are... Speaking from experience :D

[@tamirpolyakov1122]

He also tried it years ago before all the current software and languages

[@akshayleads]

😂😂

[@akshayleads]

@@Forkoto 😅😅

[@DavidBauer38]

I believe that most of your 1.53M subscribers will agree with me when I say, "I am so glad you didn't quit!" Thank you for sharing your experiences with all of us! You've helped me gain a lot of confidence as a developer.

[@TraversyMedia]

Thanks 😊 I’m glad too because I’m honestly not very interested in anything else as far as a job goes

[@mohssinemythe1235]

Yeah 👍

[@DennisIvy]

Cool to see this kind of content form you, thanks for sharing Brad :)

[@TraversyMedia]

Yeah, it has that Dennis Ivy story time vibe 😉

[@rajawanislam3969]

love to see you here.

[@DennisIvy]

@@rajawanislam3969 😉

[@rajawanislam3969]

@@DennisIvy but unfortunately i came into a urban village. I reallu missed your live stream long video

[@pyk8075]

The story every newbie who's following you needs to listen

[@sagnickbhowmick6191]

Including you

[@CloudBroadcasts]

@@sagnickbhowmick6191 Including me :)

[@sagnickbhowmick6191]

@@CloudBroadcasts me too, mate 🙌

[@powellhabwe3014]

Happening to me right now

[@jamessullenriot]

My first freelancing gig was for my cousins business. I had not idea what I was doing and she had not idea what she wanted. That should tell you how it went. Family functions were awkward for a while after that.

[@PrakashChAwal]

lol

[@Juzzyjuzzy]

Lmao

[@johanexxxx]

Awesome vid Brad, thanks for sharing your story!

[@oussamasadiki7377]

it is so nice to hear stories like these , u really give us the courage to start and commit no matter what . thank u very much

[@joeypatrick2585]

I always enjoy the business insight videos along with the technical tutorials. They give a great perspective with valuable takeaways. Thanks Brad!

[@umershabir_]

i love you brad! thank you for sharing your valuable experience with us, you have made our lives much better with your helping videos

[@HealthierOutdoor]

I appreciate this Brad, I'm also trying to dip my feet into the freelance work style and it need lots of patience. I needed to hear this!

[@samuellennyviner]

This honest video is so helpful. We need more videos like this. Awesome job.

[@dmays67]

Appreciate your taking the time to be straight up honest about your experience and how you felt and learning outcomes. Refreshing and welcome 😊

[@jlesseyp]

Great video Brad! Failure experiences can have a very positive impact in the long run if we know how to see the mistakes we made, which is also a skill we need to develop.

[@bradycunningham]

Thank you for sharing this story! My first didn't go so well either. Very encouraging :)

[@Lisaiceland]

Brad love ALL your courses, content, deep insights and honesty. Really appreciated. You are one of us! Bless

[@10-minrelaxationvibes31]

Brad you are the best on KZbin for any tutorial and it really is humbling to hear your beginnings. Thank you for this.

[@donfoumare]

Thank you so much for sharing this story. This is so encouraging!

[@elkhanhamet2561]

thanks Brad, a lot of important information!!! This is something anyone who’s going into freelance should hear and know. Take care buddy!!!

[@CloudBroadcasts]

Unique and informative topic. Eye opening to hear about these things, as I plan to one day follow a similar career course. As for now, I’m learning everything I can!! Thanks for continually sharing your perspective and experiences with us all.

[@bekindrewind4232]

Thanks Brad, this was a really great video and gives me some confidence as I still struggle to obtain my first freelance gig.

[@kayderl]

I'm just starting out freelancing. Appreciate this timely video. Thanks Brad.

[@sustainablewww6715]

Thank you for sharing your story! I am not good with people either, and hearing your story inspires me to get better at talking and dealing with people. I really want my own company one day, but dealing with clients is what scares me off.

[@evergreen7781]

Love you Brad, The way you impact our lives with best courses, tutorials, guidance & latest techs is second to none ❤️❤️❤️

[@davidgriffiths6540]

Also Brad, thx for all the tutorials they are honest and genuinely useful. The personal reflections you do are brave and raw and I salute you.

[@koketsommusi8374]

Hey Brad. I'm all the way from South Africa 🌍 and I have to thank you so much for changing my life and learning development. You are a blessing to the world 🙂

[@novailoveyou]

Brad, thanks for sharing this! I also have a story similar to yours with my first project for a client, learned a lot from it 😅

[@TheNerdyDev]

Thanks for sharing your experience, Brad. Your story is an inspiration - "Giving up is not an option, just keep at it".

[@SamzehGFX]

Great video, really cool to hear about your previous experience with this

[@davidquiroga6534]

Very Humble of you Brad. Been a follower for a while, got nothing but respect.Keep Up the great job, you are helping me in changing careers

[@mohiu.shafak6758]

falling love with you and your content. This video is encouraged me a lot. Thank you so much so for making such kind of video. Love you bro.

[@orionh5535]

Hey brad, I started freelancing 2 years ago, it was hard, but I watched your video on how you got started and it inspired me to keep going.

[@cristianb.8495]

You are an inspiration, Brad. I just got my first interview in full-stack, and most of my knowledge is from you. I still use your projects as a reference when doing new ones. Thank you and all the best

[@amlife180]

Thanks for sharing, we need more videos like this, tell us more stories!

[@sahankodagi2963]

Hey Brad can you please do more videos like this. As a new freelancer stories like this make me feel like less of an idiot. When someone like you also went through issues like this it makes me like less of failure when I am starting out. Thank you so much and keep up the great work you rock

[@Nasir_Haidari]

Thanks for the advice !! exactly what I needed now !! 🙏🙏🙏

[@hemanthkotagiri8865]

I literally just completed a couple of first freelancing projects for my clients a week ago and whatever you've said - I literally can relate to it all.

[@sunjonesltd]

Great vid, Brad! As always 😊

[@JohnKomarnicki]

Thanks for sharing! Always cool to hear about others experience/journey :)

[@deepaksemwal1934]

Hey Brad Thanks for sharing this stuff, I have also started my freelancing career with quite the same story. Where I was not aware of project management. I think that it is very crucial part, knowing your potential at the beginning and put client and yourself at the same page. Try to bring some more tales Brad 👀👈👉

[@Tripp111]

You are a good man, Brad. Thank you for this. What a brilliant example. Thank you.

[@tomcolvin4298]

I just came across your channel. You're awesome, Sir. I'd love to have been a fly on the way hearing the conversation between a Red Sox fan and an Aussie. Keep it up, man, you're rocking it!!

[@codersujit5427]

That really helped me clear my thoughts! thanks brad.

[@saifuddin395]

Thanks Brad for sharing your experience...that will help the beginners like me. thanks a lot

[@husseindhooma5816]

Brad, thanks for always giving us such professional and amazing content. Whoever does not learn from your videos is crazy. Thank you sir for always sharing your experiences and giving us something to think about. Well done. Wish I could give you a Five Star rating now but a Like will have to do. Take care.

[@sajidshaikh3155]

From this to the most popular KZbin technical content creator is a journey Man. Hats off👍

[@pranavgupta6671]

Relatable...thank you Brad for sharing your experience

[@abnoco]

Thanks for sharing. Walking into a fist always sucks. Everyone in IT has this story. I even know hardware guys with similar stories, where a favor turns into a 3-day nightmare. The first client may not have been an ahole. He may have been confused too, not even knowing what he was asking for or how much work he was asking for. It was probably his first purchase of a service like that and the spend probably freaked him out because he was buying an intangible "machine" he knew he wouldn't be able to operate. I can tell from the story he knew less about what he was doing than you did. In my opinion, you did the right thing taking that job because the lesson was so valuable.

[@mindfulengineer]

Thank you for sharing, it meant a lot. We need to hear the negatives as much as the positives so we don't quit, thinking it's just us and we aren't meant to do this. Perseverance, learning from/through mistakes and knowing that even those ahead of us just had more failures than us but still fought through it.

[@MotM200]

Actually, it is awesome to see someone who learnt a lot from his mistakes. Mr. Brad, at that time, you only had experience with HTML and CSS and really basic PHP but now, just wow, god bless you and thank you so much!!

[@bretts7740]

Thanks, Brad. This video is a great example of why you're the best of them out there.

[@sarahjeannexd]

Just started a WebDev bootcamp and I can tell I'm going to have to dive into this headfirst and essentially learn most everything completely on my own, haha. I'm excited, though, have the IT support background, so that helps. Thanks for your vids, they have been extremely helpful!

[@vishwajeetraj11]

So many awesome instructors just taught me a lot and it ended up me having an awesome 1st Freelancer Experience.

[@malikmnr]

Wow. Feeling calm after listening your start. Now I can imagine that I can also be Brad. That is really great. I also got client when I was finding work right after finishing my short course, who need social media. but i refused him. But definitely I'm still making mistakes. Thanks for sharing your experience it boost up my energy level. Thank you

[@liteninkiran]

Excellent video Brad. Thanks for sharing. My opinion is to challenge and document non-functional requirements. Manage customer expectations from day 1. They often have some very strange expectations.

[@StevenHoodlebrink]

Listening to you talk about your mistakes only reminded me of mine and how they were similar. I started freelancing around the same time with HTML and CSS knowledge but not much else and then formed a company in 2010. I remember doing eight-page WordPress websites for $2-300. We(have 6 staff members now) still have some clients from those early days and have done 3-4 re-designs for them since the early days and have charged more(50-100% increase) each time with not much complaint. That workflow you create and those templates you mentioned help tremendously with production accuracy and efficiency. We've had a few run off with the website and had to eat it. I recommend that every developer include a copyright section in your contracts where you own the copyright until it is paid in full. Makes it easier to do DMCA claims and at the very least get their site shut down at their hosting if they bail on payment. Progressive payments are a great idea too on larger projects. Have a lawyer look at any contracts you pull off the web to use because some sections are invalid in certain states but there are a lot of great examples to use out there.

[@chrisjaycle8924]

Thanks for sharing, it's gold for newcomers!

[@stevenclark1973]

Love the honesty and tips... great video.

[@lardosian]

That's really helpful Brad, I'm kind of in a bit over my head in a project but certainly going to learn from it, thanks.

[@tifking73]

If you charged enough for the project, you might be able to outsource the difficult aspects on fiverr; find someone with a solid rating that doesn't charge too much. That way you can get your project done and learn from it too. Hope this helps!

[@emreozgun3846]

@@tifking73 hmm, cheesy but I like it.

[@karlispokkers5040]

Thanx man! I have similar way. Because of your videos i am still on my way and now have a hudge progress..

[@aymenhmida9953]

5 years freelancing and still struggeling with this one, thanks for the content :)

[@akshayleads]

Brad, thanks for sharing your experience.

[@one_punch_puritan4696]

I'm glad you didn't quit because you taught me how to build a plugin, also glad to see a fellow New Englander!

[@amos660]

Hey man, I read your book. It was pretty good, I really enjoyed it.Thanks!

[@umarbabajidda9664]

:D Very nice video. Resonates so much with my personal experience. Next to not being able to figure out a bug; vague and unclear requirements have to be the most pain that you can experience as a developer

[@jaimearriola1495]

Wow 😯 I really loved this video😁 Thanks so much for this awesome content 😎

[@jamesbond-lb7se]

Thanks Brad for making this video. Knowing this gives me some sort of confidence.

[@Recovering_Californian]

Great customer service will give you a lot of rope to play with. With great customer service your client will be much more forgiving of your mistakes. Be honest and upfront with your mistakes with the clients. Too many companies default to public relations BS when they screw up. You can have a good product/service but if your customer service sucks it's going to cast a shadow over it all.

[@zeljkostevanovic6051]

Thank you for your honesty.👍👏

[@titan9223]

Brad really love you , it will be very helpful if you share some more of your freelance/professional life experiences

[@realjackofall]

I like how you keep things simple and honest. That's what makes me like your content and I'm sure it's the same for many others too.

[@TraversyMedia]

Thanks :)

[@davidgriffiths6540]

One of my best friends put me through the same thing. Vague brief with the assumption that all the bells and whistles would be included as standard. I threw in a CRM and SEO which he never even noticed or used. You're absolutely spot on Brad. Most important thing is to help clients work out out what they need, or else they'll all end up being ass holes. We are the devs, we shouldn't expect clients to know what they want/need and we need to coach them through their journey to understand how much time and effort extra features require - especially when adding a 'simple extra' requires a complete redesign. I wish I'd met someone as straight to the point as you when I first moved from personal projects to commercial contracts.

[@john_wick_v2gamer361]

Thanks for sharing the experience... you should share more....

[@Ryan-ff2db]

As a building contractor I can say this is good advice regardless of what industry a person may work in. Much of this is having the confidence in knowing what you can and cannot do and making it clear in written(contract) form what you are and are not responsible for.

[@xXfirekik123]

Really informativ and helpfull story. Thank you for sharing this :D

[@francescociulla]

Thanks for sharing this with us🔥

[@pz3328]

I very like your voice and style of yourself! Ofc I learnt a lot of from your courses ;)

[@Mubbs99]

Thanks Brad, you are a legend in the education space for sure.

[@mpho438]

Thank you for sharing this. My first gig I didn't get paid either, it was few months ago, the guy had me create a site for him but never paid me till this day. I realized that I should have had a contract agreement between me and him, and a certain % of the down-payment for the work I was going to do, so that even if he does not pay me at the end I should not work for free. It's always frustrating, and honestly I partially gave up on that, but recently got a Job as a Software Dev, I'm planning to go back again to freelancing and starting my own Software Dev consultancy once I have a lot more experience working as a Developer, Thank you for this.

[@vegetathe4th376]

Thank you ..This is very helpful I’m a newbie planning to try freelance work

[@cjaym5671]

I just went through the same thing, after a month of work the client loved the site and then I never heard from them again before I was paid. Now I've made an agreement for half down as a deposit so I know they are serious about a site.

[@ashishprajapati5746]

Your videos were inspiring man, salute

[@ahmad-murery]

This is very relate to me, Thanks Brad,

[@Saad_Hamad]

your experiment motivated me, thanks all respect to you.

[@rpals5412]

My first freelance gig was a massive success. I built a full stack IT system for a company single handed, and they are still using it today, 4 years later and they have had around 1000 users in total. I would not have been able to do so if it wasn't for your 6 hours MEAN stack course that I watched back in 2017. I went along and built the boilerplate they you walked me through, and by the end of the course I was able to extend with features that the company needed. I got paid and they were happy, and I even think that I got hired at my current job because I was able to include this freelance gig in my portfolio. So many thanks to you Brad!

[@Jeremy-wf7qm]

Thank you for sharing Brad.

[@austinevick]

I had the same experience too after working for more than 3 months the client didn't pay until I still have the project on my repo.

[@KylePrinsloo]

Man this video is so good and helpful. Just highlights a key thing: starting and improving - you don't have to know everything perfectly to start. Another takeaway: you don't need to know the 13,000 JS Frameworks to make money freelancing 😂and I can't believe the $250 budget... 😂

[@rolandpierrelouis4013]

Kyle..The freelancing master ! well said !

[@KylePrinsloo]

@@rolandpierrelouis4013 haha thanks Roland!

[@alirezashiasi]

"You're gonna have clients that are assholes, you're gonna run into them ... But you have to maintain your composure!" I like what you said, and I think we have to always remind these kind of things to ourselves! One thing I noticed that the more we behave professionally the less jerks we encounter in our career. They won't disappear completely but definitely they will diminish. I don't know the reason why their number decrease when we act more professionally, but it's a relief. Perhaps it's because they are lurking on the amateur zone to grab their prey so when you act professionally they step back. Or there are professional assholes which are yet to discover:) Thanks Brad, this is a really good video. I wish you make more of these. Cheers!

[@adiptvrecord]

this is good content Brad , i will never forget my first contact with laravel was with you Brad , was so hard and i toght always to give Up but now am able to do things 2 years ago was not possible to me doing .....Keep it up!! we are tecnology lovers we apreciate everthing you do in this Channel..when i listen to ur story i gt expire.. i live in third 3 world and now i know if you want work,work hard and have patience you will achieve greatness.By de way i live in Angola and english is not my strong language Thank just kwnow we are !!!!!

[@yahwehsown]

Thank you so much for sharing. 🤝

[@programmingwithnick]

Thanks Brad for sharing your experience. One can get valuable lessons from this video.

[@StaticBlaster]

Yeah. It definitely lifts up my spirit. It's not too late, I guess, to learn web dev at 32 .

[@dylanm7638]

you are encouraging me ,all the time, thanks, thanks a lot

[@linxx1184]

Great video and useful content as usual, thank you! As a newbie I struggle with project organization and defining all requirements prior to working on a project. Would you be able to refer a standard workflow/checklist to follow?

[@AIPerformant]

Thank you for sharing your experience

[@webtraveler6654]

You are a good guy Brad, thank you for sharing

[@sarthakkalpande6486]

Thanks for Sharing it'll help me get shit done as I'm also going through similar thing now

[@jondyason336]

Thank you for your content Brad.

[@chikwandaacademy]

One thing I really like about Traversy is his honesty. It's really discouraging when newbies like myself are getting into the system and all you encounter are men that only talk about the highs of their journey. However, I do appreciate it when we get to hear the lows of a man who has achieved alot and one that we learn from. Thank you. 😂 I started a KZbin channel and wanted to quit. I heard him say 'the key is consistency and commitment. You will get discouraged when you see a few views because you have invested time and energy. However, keep at it." See! That's encouraging. Thank you once again this advice on freelancing is just the motivation we need to keep going.