So you’ve made the decision to go freelance and have no clue what you should do next. Well, the first thing you should understand is uncertainty is normal but you made the decision and know what you want to do. That’s a big deal! so congratulations on making that first step. Do not expect to understand everything right away. You will learn as you go. However, one important thing to know is that from this point on, you are your own business. This means establishing and registering your company name. Decide what your company name will be and get it registered with your state as soon as possible. Being the badass paralegal you are, you know what it takes to research the best business type that fits your particular needs and lifestyle and will get yourself registered or seek the assistance and guidance of a professional.

From here on out, decisions will need to be made such as what services do you offer? what are your hours? how will clients contact you? do you have the proper tools to get started? You won’t always have the answers right away so don’t worry. Being aware is half the battle. Write all your questions down and as you ask yourself each question, write down the answers. Understand that that as you grow and lean into the freelance world more, your answers may change and again, that’s absolutely okay. You may even want to start by writing what you didn’t like as an in-house paralegal. Those answers will sometimes guide you in developing your own business model. Because there was likely a reason you wanted to go freelance and therefore, you may want to do things differently.

The next thing to be mindful of once you have decided to go freelance is you will need the proper tools. Because you will now be on your own or working with a partner you will need to have certain tools in order to effectively offer your services. So let’s go over a short checklist of items that any freelance paralegal needs to work.

1. a computer or access to one;
2. Internet;
3. Printer; (because yes sometimes you will need to print things)
4. Scanner;
5. a business email address;
6. a (quiet) location to work from; (this can be anywhere your comfortable with)
7. a way to keep up with billing;
8. Adobe;
9. Microsoft Word; and
10. Dedicated business telephone line.

This is a short list and the items listed above very much vary depending on your particular area of expertise. In another post, I will go into great detail about every little item you need including red pens and white out. I know, it seems ridiculous but having them can be lifesaver.

Additionally, be prepared to spend money. That old saying that it takes money to make money is true to an extent. You don’t need a lot to start as a freelance paralegal but understand there are fees associated with starting your own business. So whether you have some money saved or open a business line of credit, just know you will have to spend some money. So, how are feeling so far? not scared I hope. Starting your freelance paralegal career is an exciting, new and bold step. The beauty of it all is you will learn as you go and that experience will allow you to determine what works best for you. In part two of this post we will dive deeper into what every new freelance paralegal should have to get started. For now, I am so happy you have made the decision and look forward to seeing you excel in your new career.