[Side Hustle Diary] Breaking Down Why I Got 1 Job Out of 11 Applications
I want to be able to work at my own pace a little more as I approach retirement.
With that in mind, I started taking on side hustles at age 50.
Last time, I shared the story of how I applied for 11 jobs for the first time and managed to land one.
After actually doing it, there was one thing that bothered me.
"Why was I able to land that one job?"
From applying to submitting the work, I was just desperately trying to get it done, so
I didn't have the luxury of thinking about the reasons at the time.
Also, I had no idea what criteria the clients were using to choose someone.
What was the deciding factor that made them choose me instead of other experienced writers?
In the end, I don't know the exact deciding factor, but
I would like to look back on what went well in achieving that 0 to 1 breakthrough.
🪄What you will get from this article
・How to think about the reasons for landing a job even as a beginner with zero experience
・Criteria for the types of jobs beginners should choose
・Things I was conscious of when applying
・The realistic sense of accomplishment and anxiety I felt after trying it
・Why I only landed one job
・Things I was conscious of when choosing jobs
・What I did in my proposal
・Things I stopped doing so I wouldn't get lost
・Things I realized after trying it
・The anxiety I still feel
📍Why I only landed one job
At the time, I didn't have the luxury of analyzing the jobs,
and I wasn't able to think about what went well.
The truth is, I just tried to do things that looked right based on what I saw on YouTube and elsewhere.
Looking back now, rather than skill, I just tidied up my "method" a little.
The method consists of these three things:
① How to choose jobs
② How to write a proposal
③ Number of applications
📍Things I was conscious of when choosing jobs
Applying the lesson I learned from when there were too many jobs and I didn't know where to start, I tried to focus on "selection" and "concentration" when choosing jobs.
Specifically, I decided to narrow it down to just writing, which I studied at school.
CrowdWorks has so many jobs,
and when looking at the postings, there are some that seem difficult,
and the more I look, the less I know what is good.
With that in mind, I set some criteria.
・Jobs open to beginners (Guideline: 0.5 yen per character or more)
・Content I can write based on experience (mainly column-style)
・Jobs where the requirements are specific and easy to visualize
What was especially significant was
choosing based on "whether I can write it from my own experience."
As a beginner, articles that require research are a high hurdle,
so I first narrowed it down to only "things I can write even as I am now."
Having this mindset made choosing jobs much simpler.
📍What I did in my proposal
Regarding the proposal, I didn't use any special techniques.
However, there was one thing I decided.
That was "not to copy and paste."
Other than that,
・Write according to the job requirements
・Base it on my own experience
・Always answer what is being asked
I did this for each one.
It takes time.
However, I had learned that copy-and-paste proposals don't get chosen,
so I was conscious of incorporating my own experiences according to the job requirements.
Dozens of people apply for a single job on CrowdWorks.
Among them, I think you can tell just by looking
whether a text was written after properly reading the requirements.
📍 Increasing the number of applications
Another important factor was the number of applications.
Since I didn't expect things to go well from the start,
I decided to submit at least 10 applications first.
Choosing a project, writing a proposal, and moving on to the next.
It's a repetitive and mundane task,
but I still believe that a certain number of applications is necessary for a beginner to land a job.
📍 Things I stopped doing to avoid getting lost
The reason I failed last time was "hesitation."
So this time, I decided what not to do as well.
・Don't apply for just anything
・Don't choose projects that seem impossible
・Don't do things I feel I can't continue
By deciding what not to do instead of adding more things to do,
I felt much more at ease.
📍 What I realized after trying it out
The biggest thing I felt this time was that
if you organize your approach, you can land at least one job.
I have a long history as a corporate employee,
but I really knew nothing about web-based work.
I have no skills.
I also just started learning writing.
Even so,
I realized that just by being a little conscious of "how to choose" and "how to write,"
the results change.
📍 To those who read this far and thought, "So, how is it really?"
Here are the details of my first project:
・Reward: 500 yen (tax included)
・Payout: approx. 390 yen
・Rate per character: 0.5 yen
・Work time: approx. 2.5 hours
Honestly, I don't want to think about the hourly wage 💦
Even so,
・Landing a job
・Delivering the work
・Receiving feedback
I feel that experiencing this entire flow
was worth more than that.
📍 The anxiety I still feel
However, it's not like things have been smooth sailing since then.
Sometimes I apply and get no response at all.
Also, even when I get a reply, it often leads to an interview,
and I end up not getting the writing job.
"Was that one job just a fluke?"
I sometimes think things like that.
Back then, I was happy about the fact that I "landed it,"
but now the anxiety of "can I land another one?" is greater.
Things really don't go as planned... do they?
If you are currently feeling,
"I don't know what to do"
"I'm scared to apply"
then that is a normal feeling.
I was exactly in that state and couldn't move.
Even in that state, I gathered the courage to move forward little by little:
・Narrowing down to only projects I can write
・Writing proposals one by one
・Applying to 10 projects
By doing this much,
I was able to experience through my own efforts this time that there is a possibility of landing at least one job.
Now that I am unable to steadily accumulate projects, the reason I can keep going is because of the fact that I 'landed one job'.
It is no longer zero.
Just that alone has changed the view a little.
By doing what I believe is good little by little, results will come.
Because I know that, I will continue.
However, there is still room for improvement, so
I would like to keep trying a little longer while reviewing my methods.
🎗️Summary
This is the result of working on it while thinking for myself
from a state of knowing nothing.
Even though I have experience as a company employee,
I was a complete beginner at web work.
Even someone like me was able to achieve 0 to 1.
Even without special skills,
there is a possibility of reaching that first job depending on how you do things and how you choose them.
But it is tougher from here on than I thought.
Next time, I will write about
how things stopped going well after landing that first job.
I will continue to write about my real experiences of taking on a side hustle at 50.
I would be happy if it could be of any reference to those who are struggling in the same way.
What kind of ingenuity did you use to break through the 0 to 1 barrier?
And have you been able to steadily accumulate projects since then?
If you would like, please let me know in the comments.
Likes and follows are also very encouraging.