It’s a Catch-22 faced by freelancers and traditional job seekers alike—potential employers and clients want to see relevant samples or previous work you’ve done, but if you’re new to whatever biz you’re getting into, your portfolio is probably pretty thin. They want experience, and even though you may have every qualification on their bullet list, if they don’t have anything tangible to read or view, you’re nothing but words on paper. But if you can’t get a job without experience, and you can’t get experience without a job … well … it’s not as hopeless as it sounds.

Be Your Best Client

If you’re a freelancer in the very early stages of your career, why not kill the proverbial two birds with one stone and treat yourself as if you are your own client? If you’re a Web designer, make yourself a site. If press releases are your forte, don’t just write one up announcing your new business, figure out how to get it submitted and noticed with the top companies. Create your own brochures, your own Web copy, your own sales letters—launch your career, and in the process, you’ll gain both the experience of a wide variety of tasks and some samples to show off to move you on to the next level.

Use Your Friends

That’s right—use your friends. Somewhere in your circle, there has to be at least one entrepreneur, one small business owner, one dentist with a practice that needs some exposure. Just like when you made yourself your new client, provide the same services for your friends in need. Actually, they don’t even have to be in need, but if they do or sell something that could in any way make use of your unique skills and expertise, create for them the same types of things you made for yourself—Web site and/or content, brochures, press releases, etc. They may or may not actually use your services, but you’ll have more samples to show REAL clients, and they won’t be only about you.

Volunteer

Chances are, your town is crawling with non-profits and charities. These are, as you might expect from their names, organizations with little to offer in the way of budget, but plenty to give when it comes to providing you with portfolio experience. Most non-profits and charities are thrilled with any help you give them, and you’ll feel good about the work.

Make It Up

Just because you may not have the experience to snag certain jobs just yet, that doesn’t mean you can’t do them anyway. If you see a particular project you think would be fun, go ahead and do it! What better way to show a client you’re interested in working with them than to show them what you have in mind (not the ENTIRE project, mind you, or they might just take your brilliance and run). Same goes for blogging—don’t wait for someone to hire you to write their blog; instead, start up your own and keep it current. Prove to the world that you’re serious and committed to this new career of yours.

What it comes down to is this—for most clients, it’s not the WHO of who you’ve worked for, it’s proving that you can excel in the particular task or subject for which they’re hiring. Show them you can do the job even better than those people with all the experience, and pretty soon, you’ll have to weed things OUT of your portfolio.