So you're ready to join the freelancer's lifestyle, landing your own projects, setting your own hours, billing the clients. There can be a lot of overhead, planning, and stress involved in this process.

Take a deep breath - it doesn't have to be so frightening. Just set yourself some ground rules and you'll be fine.

Today we're going to discuss taking projects and setting prices.

If you're accepting your first project, make sure you put in 100% effort as far as communication, quality, and deadlines - this first client is crucial for getting honest recommendations and referrals. Make sure to get the recommendation and post it prominently for all to see.

You may be tempted to under-price in the beginning. While this can distinguish you from others in the field who may have more experience, make sure that the client knows that this is an "Introductory Price", and future projects will cost them more. Otherwise, you may have to reject future clients, even those who are willing to pay you more, because you've forged this on-going relationship that underpays you.

As far as rejecting clients goes, recognize that saying 'No' is vital for your business and personal life. If you over-extend yourself, you may be forced to miss deadlines or worse, miss your kid's recital. Unless you're facing eviction, don't let business keep you from the important things in life. This article, 8 Essential Strategies to Saying “No”, provides useful information for sugar-coating rejections and preventing loss of work. Make sure you don't become a freelance pushover.

When setting a price, you can follow the advice here:

• "take your [full-time] hourly pay and multiply it by 2.5 or even 3.0 to arrive at a more realistic hourly rate." This accounts for overhead expenses and down-time.
• Look at your clients and competition, so see how much people are willing to pay, and how much others are charging.
• Don't feel "locked-in" to your rates and clients. As you change, your rates can reflect that.

If possible, I suggest setting yourself apart from your competition. If you can be the "Rolls Royce" of your industry (Tag-line:Trusted to deliver excellence) and deliver something that no one else can, such as lifetime support guaranteed. Price yourself as such, and you may be surprised by how much more business you receive than by underpricing.

Good luck!