How to be a successful freelancer in any career

I’ve started coding since 1982 (Basic and Cobol programming languages) to today, and since that day, I had to reinvent myself many times to keep on track.

In my opinion:

Tech comes and goes, but the underlying concepts still remain the same 

Now, as a freelancer, there are a lot of additional topics that I need to address (pre-sales, sales, post-sales, support, accounting, taxing)

But, none of the topics above would exist if I am not a reliable professional and if I'm not ready to surf new waves of technology.

Unlike some "Top Developer tips" type of blog posts, this makes a lot of sense and can be applied to anything you do.

To have a long career (or "the chance of it" at last):

• Show empathy
• Be flexible
• Honor your word and deliver what you promise.
• Don't hesitate to give more than you get
• If any problem arises, don't talk the problem away.
• Build communication skills
• Improve your learning skills
• Continuously improve through challenges, practice, and feedback
• Enjoy what you do

And never forget:

You are a professional service provider

Even being an IT professional, this list would apply to any other career.

I think it's worth to have this list printed out as a reminder each day :)