If you enjoy working for yourself, a freelance job (also known as contract work) may be the ideal fit for career goals. Fortunately, the freelance job marketplace has experienced strong and steady growth over the past several years. But how do you find freelance success in such a competitive job market?

To help job seekers best position themselves to pursue freelance careers, FlexJobs teamed with PAIRIN, the trusted technology partner to today’s leading workforce programs, governments, and education systems, to identify the skills job seekers need to succeed in specific job categories.

Dr. Dan Hawthorne, Director of Industrial and Organizational Psychology and Head of Research at PAIRIN, conducted the research and analysis to identify the essential skills needed for each career category.

“At PAIRIN, our science-based skill development tools focus on measuring essential behavioral skills, also known as soft skills, because they are proven to have the most impact on someone’s ability to be successful in a career and in life,” said Dr. Hawthorne.

“For this research, we collected jobs that are representative of the career paths identified by FlexJobs as high-growth and examined the common top behavioral skills that 65% of employers say are necessary for success in those career paths and that 73% of employers say applicants are lacking,” Hawthorne concluded.

These are the top 10 career categories for freelance jobs that have grown at least 10% from January 1, 2021, through April 1, 2021. Ordered from highest to lowest growth, below each category are the most important soft skills—as identified through PAIRIN’s personalized, science-based research—that professionals need to thrive in that respective career.

Top 10 Career Fields and Soft Skills for Freelance Jobs

1. Therapy

– Supportiveness

The drive to assist, protect, and provide for others in emotional or physical need.

– Influential Leadership

The ability to positively persuade others’ choices by focusing on what is important to them and building consensus.

– Flamboyance

The drive to impress or excite—to stir others through words or actions.

– Service Orientation

The ability to anticipate, identify, and meet people’s often unspoken needs through assistance, products, or services. The drive to generate customer satisfaction and loyalty.

– Relationship Management

To use awareness of one’s own emotions and those of others to navigate interactions successfully. (Includes: Inspiration, Influence, Enriching Others, Cooperation, Change, and Conflict Management).

– Originality

The ability to invent or independently conceive of ideas, methods, or products of the first order (underived), regardless of their usefulness.

– Social Awareness

To relate and respond to the feelings, needs, and concerns of individuals or broader societal groups. (Includes: Empathy, Organizational Awareness, and Service Orientation).

2. Data Entry

– Compliance

Global tendencies to maintain self-discipline and conform to another’s plan, rules, will, or direction.

– Relationship Management

To use awareness of one’s own emotions and those of others to navigate interactions successfully. (Includes: Inspiration, Influence, Enriching Others, Cooperation, Change, and Conflict Management).

– Order

The drive to organize tasks or spaces with planning, precision, and efficiency.

– Equilibrium

The ability to maintain emotional balance through accepting, adapting, or bringing change to a troubling situation or environment.

– Productivity

To set and meet goals, even in the face of obstacles and competing pressures. To prioritize, plan, and manage work to achieve the intended results.

– Service Orientation

The ability to anticipate, identify, and meet people’s often unspoken needs through assistance, products, or services. The drive to generate customer satisfaction and loyalty.

3. Bookkeeping

– Social Awareness

To relate and respond to the feelings, needs, and concerns of individuals or broader societal groups. (Includes: Empathy, Organizational Awareness, and Service Orientation).

– Service Orientation

The ability to anticipate, identify, and meet people’s often unspoken needs through assistance, products, or services. The drive to generate customer satisfaction and loyalty.

– Supportiveness

The drive to assist, protect, and provide for others in emotional or physical need.

– Compliance

Global tendencies to maintain self-discipline and conform to another’s plan, rules, will, or direction.

– Flamboyance

The drive to impress or excite—to stir others through words or actions.

– Relationship Management

To use awareness of one’s own emotions and those of others to navigate interactions successfully. (Includes: Inspiration, Influence, Enriching Others, Cooperation, Change, and Conflict Management).

4. Medical & Health

– Service Orientation

The ability to anticipate, identify, and meet people’s often unspoken needs through assistance, products, or services. The drive to generate customer satisfaction and loyalty.

– Supportiveness

The drive to assist, protect, and provide for others in emotional or physical need.

– Social Awareness

To relate and respond to the feelings, needs, and concerns of individuals or broader societal groups. (Includes: Empathy, Organizational Awareness, and Service Orientation).

– Accountability

To be answerable. To take responsibility for outcomes through appropriate use of resources, personal integrity, and self-monitoring.

– Compliance

Global tendencies to maintain self-discipline and conform to another’s plan, rules, will, or direction.

5. Accounting & Finance

– Social Awareness

To relate and respond to the feelings, needs, and concerns of individuals or broader societal groups. (Includes: Empathy, Organizational Awareness, and Service Orientation).

– Compliance

Global tendencies to maintain self-discipline and conform to another’s plan, rules, will, or direction.

– Relationship

The drive to draw close and remain loyal to another person or people—to truly connect and enjoyably engage with them.

– Conflict Management

The ability to effectively negotiate and resolve disagreements.

– Critical Thinking

To gather and objectively assess key information as a guide to belief or action. An intellectual process that uses analysis, conceptualization, synthesis, and evaluation.

6. Education & Training

– Cooperative-Practical

The moderation of reason and feeling resulting in calm, commonsense thinking—upbeat, attentive, and realistic.

– Creativity

The desire to think, do, and express in ways that are different from the norm. This includes personal elaborations or variations on known or existing techniques.

– Social Awareness

To relate and respond to the feelings, needs, and concerns of individuals or broader societal groups. (Includes: Empathy, Organizational Awareness, and Service Orientation).

– Originality

The ability to invent or independently conceive of ideas, methods, or products of the first order (underived), regardless of their usefulness.

– Perspective

The ability to understand broadly, coordinate knowledge and experience, and provide clear-sighted and meaningful counsel to others. An aspect of wisdom.

7. Marketing

– Flamboyance

The drive to impress or excite—to stir others through words or actions.

– Influential Leadership

The ability to positively persuade others’ choices by focusing on what is important to them and building consensus.

– Assertiveness

Global tendencies to express and interact with boldness, enthusiasm, and confidence.

– Inspirational Leadership

The ability to uplift, enliven, fill, and empower people with a compelling vision.

– Relationship

The drive to draw close and remain loyal to another person or people—to truly connect and enjoyably engage with them.

8. Customer Service

– Supportiveness

The drive to assist, protect, and provide for others in emotional or physical need.

– Service Orientation

The ability to anticipate, identify, and meet people’s often unspoken needs through assistance, products, or services. The drive to generate customer satisfaction and loyalty.

– Conflict Management

The ability to effectively negotiate and resolve disagreements.

– Stress Tolerance

To endure pressure and uncertainty without becoming negative (e.g., hopeless, bitter, or hostile) toward self or others.

– Assertiveness

Global tendencies to express and interact with boldness, enthusiasm, and confidence.

9. Project Management

– Relationship Management

To use awareness of one’s own emotions and those of others to navigate interactions successfully. (Includes: Inspiration, Influence, Enriching Others, Cooperation, Change, and Conflict Management).

– Collaboration & Teamwork

To combine efforts and resources with others toward a common goal. To work effectively and respectfully with diverse teams.

– Dynamism

Global tendencies to generate results through intentional, resourceful, energetic mindsets and behaviors.

– Productivity

To set and meet goals, even in the face of obstacles and competing pressures. To prioritize, plan, and manage work to achieve the intended results.

– Stress Tolerance

To endure pressure or uncertainty without becoming negative (e.g., hopeless, bitter, or hostile) toward self or others.

10. Writing

– Assertiveness

Global tendencies to express and interact with boldness, enthusiasm, and confidence.

– Cooperative-Practical

The moderation of reason and feeling resulting in calm, commonsense thinking—upbeat, attentive, and realistic.

– Intuitive-Conceptual

The emphasis and synthesis of both instinct and rationale, suggesting versatility, unconventionality, and individuality.

– Order

The drive to organize tasks or spaces with planning, precision, and efficiency.

– Originality

The ability to invent or independently conceive of ideas, methods, or products of the first order (underived), regardless of their usefulness.

– Creativity

The desire to think, do, and express in ways that are different from the norm. This includes personal elaborations or variations on known or existing techniques.

– Problem Solving

To discover, analyze, and solve a range of unfamiliar problems in both conventional and creative ways.

It’s All About the Skills

According to a recent FlexJobs survey, most freelance workers are committed to building their skill sets to stay competitive in the freelance marketplace.

In fact, the overwhelming majority (89%) of freelancers took actionable steps to boost their skills during the pandemic. Freelancers reported engaging in the following skill development activities:

• 53% took online courses for professional development (vs. 44% of non-freelance professionals)
• 52% learned new professional skills (vs. 37% of non-freelancers)
• 50% learned new remote working tools (vs. 37% of non-freelancers)
• 41% attended virtual professional development events (vs. 35% of non-freelancers)
• 35% studied for or earned a new certification (vs. 26% of non-freelancers)
• 30% did volunteer work, internships, projects, or side jobs to strengthen skills and experience (vs. 21% of non-freelancers)
• 9% studied for or earned a new degree (vs. 7% of non-freelancers)

Lead With Your Skills

When you’re searching for a freelance job or figuring out how to become a freelancer, committing to professional development and knowing which soft skills to focus on can help you stand out from the crowd.

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