How to make money using Dribbble (Part 1)

It’s all a numbers game

This is going to be short and to the point — when you don’t have much built up for inbound marketing (referrals, people reaching out to you first), aggressively applying to freelance jobs is crucial.

Extrapolated into life in general, this can be boiled down to just ask. Do you want something? Ask for it. It opens opportunities that simply don’t occur if you sit quietly.

You especially want to apply for freelance jobs that you’re skeptical of getting. Postings that are in that $20k — 50k range. Thankfully the barrier to entry to be considered is a simple message and portfolio link, specialized for the specific post. 2 minutes tops.

This advice isn’t just here say either. In what seemed like a total shot in the dark, I applied for a $50k+ listing on Dribbble one Thursday night, met in person the next day, and was hired that same afternoon. It resulted in me making $1000/week at a startup which came with some equity.

Better yet, I was hired as the lead UI/UX designer where it was nearly all work from home.

I logged my hours during this time of aggressively applying, and couldn’t have spent more than 6–7 hours. Total.

I understand that this isn’t typical, but the most important thing is simply applying religiously. I know it’s cheesy, but you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.

Don’t waste your time with internships. And forget about a life of corporate work. There’s freedom out from underneath the suffocating minutia of a cookie cutter design career. The best thing? You’re the only one holding you back. Get that portfolio of yours in order and apply like a madman.