Photo by Lina Kivaka

Graduating design school can leave you with many uncertainties: What are my next steps? Why are job opportunities so limited? How the hell am I supposed to communicate experience with just a student portfolio?

These issues are widely recognized, and freelancing—or “going into business for myself”—is often seen as the easy solution. But it’s not as straightforward as declaring yourself open for business.

It requires more than a laptop and social media presence; it can be a difficult transition without proper business knowledge and a consistent client base.

That’s why I often advise designers entering the workforce to give full-time employment and freelancing as a side hustle a shot; try them both on for a while to see which feels right.

This allows you to enjoy the comfort of full-time employment (also known as a steady paycheck and health insurance) while building a personal client base to test the waters before jumping to freelancing full-time.

In some cases, combining full-time employment with freelance work may even prove to be a sustainable long-term solution. It worked for me, and here’s what I learned.

Be open to anything, and take time to find something you love

When I first started freelancing, I tried to stay open to most any opportunity. Everything from designing T-shirts to programs for local arts organizations; designing and developing mobile apps and websites to publishing children’s books. Of course, some of these experiences I enjoyed more than others, and they all came with various levels of success.

But I found my stride when I started working with entrepreneurs. I got really excited about helping people launch their ideas, and brochure websites (in particular) were a service space that became a niche for me in helping those ideas come to life. For a time, I was the guy in my business circle that could get a quality site up and running in a short time frame, at a reasonable price. And referrals followed each completed project because of the way I delivered on the expectations and timelines I set with my clients (high value drivers when someone needs a website quickly).

I defined a price and a timeline, and delivered within that expectation. Period. I wasn’t always producing award-winning or top-of-my-portfolio work, but that wasn’t necessarily the goal. The goal was to help someone make their idea, or business, or prototype a reality.

Repeat business came because my clients knew they could trust me to do what I promised, and do it well. But it took a lot of patience to find this niche, and I made a lot of mistakes along the way.

But there are two reasons I was able to find and maintain a steady stream of freelance opportunities so that I could keep moving and learning: I got out of my comfort zone and networked, and I took a lot of pride in client satisfaction. Those things are important when you’re trying to grow an expertise, a client base, a portfolio, and so on.

That’s how I learned the importance of building trust with clients, and how that trust can lead to some excellent word-of-mouth advertising.

I wasn’t always producing award-winning or top-of-my-portfolio work, but that wasn’t necessarily the goal. The goal was to help someone make their idea, or business, or prototype a reality.

In fact, I never made a cent off of a project that ended up being one of my favorite freelance experiences. I got to work with a team publishing a children’s book — the connection made through a mutual contact — who flew me out to work from Manhattan for a few days. So I guess you could say I got paid with a free trip.

More importantly, it happened to be the right opportunity at the right time. My wife and I had just learned that we were going to have a daughter, and the book’s narrative had a very empowering message for young girls.

I saw it as an opportunity to have a thing I could show her when she was old enough and say, “Daddy made this for you,” so no lack of budget was gonna cause me to turn that one down. And that’s exactly what I did.

Now, I’m certainly not a proponent of working for free, but that project has paid off tenfold over the years in the joy I get from sharing that book with her.

So stay open to the opportunities that come your way when you’re out hustling in the freelance world. You may just find something you love, and something that helps you share that love with others.