[BjoernKW]

Please see this previous comment of mine and the resources it refers to: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15910781

The gist is: If you want your business to be independent, sustainable and profitable in the long run building a network to draw upon is essential.

Don't put all your eggs in one basket by exclusively relying on recruiters or - worse - sites like Upwork.

Have a professional online presence, i.e. website, that's controlled by you. It probably won't immediately help you with getting projects through organic search traffic but if executed well a professional website can help convince potential clients that you're the right person for the job.

[artfed1]

Thanks for the advice, not sure that I want to run it more like a business, maybe find one-two clients on side 'cause I have a day job and I'm good with it.

[BjoernKW]

Freelancing always is a business. It doesn't matter if it's run on the side.

While you can outsource aspects such as marketing and sales you should be aware that in that case not only will you be leaving a lot of money on the table (because someone else higher up the value chain will capture that value for you) but you'll be dependent on third parties other than your clients, which means that your freelancing income can dry up at any time.