Another week, and another step closer to publishing “Fighting Alligators: Job Search Strategy For The New Normal.” The artwork for the cover has been finalized. Actually, I hired a freelancer through Upwork to complete this task. Upwork is one of a number of on-line resources that connect freelancers to the market. Fiverr is another widely used service. I posted my job on Thursday afternoon, and by 10:00 a.m. Friday I had a finished product. Upwork operates like any other job board where employers post jobs for permanent hires with some notable differences. The service is menu driven, which is similar to Job Boards, but the overall feel is much more like a community. Think of Monster meets Facebook. UpWork is very interactive, unlike your typical job board.
Thursday afternoon I posted my job. The posting included a description of my need, my budget for this task, and my contact information. My project was open to all freelancers registered with Upwork. However, Upwork also provided me a list of highly qualified freelancers to consider. I sent those people a personal invitation to bid on my work. Within a few hours, 16 interested respondents had expressed interest in my job. These folks came from the four corners of the planet. The biggest concentration of applicants came from the U.S., the Philippines, Pakistan, and Eastern Europe. By clicking on their name, I was able to view their recent projects and references. Upwork helped the process by allowing me to archive people who were not a good fit and “like” candidates who I wanted to consider. I sent thank you notes to everyone I could. For those I considered serious contenders I sent a more detailed message and directed them to my web page. Imagery with an Alligator seemed obvious, but the cover still needed to be conservative, appropriate for my target audience. I also wanted a subtle reference to the digital age.
Friday morning I was in a text conversation with Vanessa, a highly recommended freelancer from The UK. Upwork provides for instant messaging and video conferencing through their portal. While we were chatting it up, so to speak, Vanessa offered a few mock ups that were most impressive. It was her responsiveness and speed of service that made the difference. I made her an offer and she accepted. Working with Vanessa was fast and effortless. After we had arrived at the basic layout and the correct species of reptile, we worked on my need for a subtle reference to the digital age. Within minutes, she provided three more mock ups with a bit of a digital feel. I settled on the least obtrusive of the three, and the project was complete. I am very pleased with Vanessa’s work, and so far, all of the critiques have been positive.
Completing this task is a great example of employment options in the New Normal. In a brief period of time, I evaluated the work of potential vendors from all over the globe. I chose my preferred freelancer, and we worked together in real time, arriving at a finished project within an hour. As soon as I was satisfied with the end result, I notified Upwork that the contract was complete and authorized payment to Vanessa. With the project completed, we provided each other with references.
While evaluating the freelancers interested in my project I learned that many of these folks are gainfully employed, earning extra money on the side via Upwork. Others are full-time freelancers who are active over a number of platforms. This is the “Gig Economy” sector of the New Normal.
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Jim Weber, President
Author of: Fighting Alligators: Job Search Strategy For The New Normal
New Century Dynamics Executive Search
www.newcenturydynamics.com