ODesk.Com Provides New and Experienced Freelancers Options

If you're looking to freelance and you don't quite have the professional network or experience to confidently jump into your own consultancy yet, check out oDesk.

I started freelancing part time about 4 months after I graduated from college in December 2006. The first project I got was doing market research for a sustainable economic development conference in Houston, Texas. I worked about 15 hours a week for a few months. It was really exhilarating to get hired for something I'm actually good at and passionate about. I would leave my then 9-5 job with huge excitement because I knew the next few hours would involved me holed up at a local coffee shop doing work that was rewarding, rather than draining and stressful.

After the researching job dried up, I found myself yearning to stay busy after work. Having freelance projects waiting for me at 5:00 PM every day kept my days interesting and frankly, it kept me out of trouble and thinking creatively.

Through lots of research and trial and error I discovered sights that allowed me to generate small bits of income and residual cash from my writing, but I never quite found the day to day projects I was looking for to pad my pockets and build my portfolio. Not until I gathered a hefty network of freelancing professionals through websites like Twitter and Facebook, did I discover oDesk.

oDesk operates on a similar platform as a lot of social networking, or even dating websites. A user who feels they have some sort of marketable skills to offer on a contractual basis set up a profile describing their professional skills and try to match themselves to employers, or "buyers" needs.

oDesk offers an ingenious and convenient user interface that has both web based and computer run application software which analyzes the user's time on the clock. In return for a fairly stringent measurement of the freelancers activities while under contract, the freelancer is guaranteed payment for completed services if an hourly rate has been previously agreed upon. There are other lump-sum payment options available for buyers who do not wish to be as interactive or supervisory, however the flat rate, or lump sum payments are not guaranteed by oDesk. Whichever rate the service provider sets for their products or services, oDesk gets a small 10% cut up front.

While few, if any freelancing websites can provide a legal full-time income, oDesk seems to have the makings of a great place to find consistent, paying jobs where one can set his or her own rate and negotiate with the client or buyer, just as if they would on their own. Odesk has allowed me to consistently work freelance on top of my day job which has kept my writing and editing skills sharp. For people who have a bit of knowledge in computers, writing or general office administration, oDesk is definitely something I would recommend trying out.