DATE: 4-9-2021
Welcome and Prayer (Greg)
Greg welcomed the group to the meeting and prayed.
Importance of Prayer (Greg)
It is important to pray. When we pray, we are asking God to use his power. In my business, I pray for my current customers, for new customers, for my employees. I pray that God would give me the words to speak to my clients. Karen and I are praying that God would use you. We pray that God would provide for you.
Sharing Experience on Upwork:
Greg: We want to hear about your experience on Upwork.
Augustin: (added after the meeting)
- The job on Upwork is about what you are really able to do, and not what you think you can do. And sometimes the title mentioned by the client can intimidate but we’d better read details and interact with the client if necessary.
- Before, I was hesitant to apply for jobs before having a bank account, but thanks to your assignments, I have learned that you can gain your money and open the bank account even later…
- To gain much money on Upwork, you need to start with small jobs but try to work for may clients, not just one.
Legrand: I have experienced two things. Upwork would send me messages saying that I should stop and would not let me continuing working. The other thing experience is about the payment. I received a message is that I got paid. I got money, but I had to wait 3-4 days. We should be patient with the payment.
Lusambya: This was my first week to receive an invitation. I am waiting for a reply from the client. I have not yet responded to the second invitation, because I
have a question. My question is, “Is it possible to respond 2 or 3 invitations at the same time?”
Greg: Yes. You have to respond to 10 invitations to get 1 job.
Issa: I would like to share my experience. It was my first experience. The plan was not quite clear about expectations. I had to listen to the audio and hear what he said. It was not quite clear, because in the audio a lot of people were speaking. They had a hard time knowing because five people were speaking.
Greg: There will be frustration. But we have Jesus Christ to help us.
Joseph: I liked the job, because he learned a lot about business. At first, it looked complicated due to the instruction. There was confusion between the speakers. Listening to audio helped us to see who was the main speaker.
Iragi: I have already done three jobs on Upwork. I had two jobs transcription. From my side, the job was easy. Since I was communicating with Karen, she said to use common sense. Looking at the script, the audio helped.
Augustin: Something else I could mention is about Karen’s instructions on the job. They clear for me and helpful, even the audio as others mentioned….
Iragi: There is another experience I want to share. Yesterday, i was invited to do another job. As I was connected at the time, I tried to see if I could do the job. And I applied right away. I applied and I am waiting to hear back from the client. On my side, it was because of the feedback Karen gave me. To finish, I want to thank the team. by giving us the opportunity, giving clear instructions, I am able to get job invitations.
Greg: What work did you get invited to do?
Iragi: It was from Western Union to collect data about their location.
Legrand: I have a suggestion to give to Karen. I know it is good to invited to jobs in order to collect connects. Could Karen send more invitations to us?
Karen: What do you think, Greg?
Greg: Yes, whatever helps them on Upwork.
Karen: Okay, yes. I will send more invitations. That is a good idea.
Greg: That is great feedback for us. You are learning, and we are learning too.
Jeff: My question is how much time should I pick to complete the job? One month is the shortest amount of time. I can do it in shorter amount of time, should I still select one month?
Karen: Yes, pick the shortest amount of time. In your proposal, specify how much time you think it will take for you to complete the job.
Greg: Americans are always in a hurry. You want to under promise and over deliver.
Philemon: I completed a certificate on Upwork. I would like to encourage my mates, because it gives more connects.
Greg: We will meet in another month. We have more projects (jobs) for you to do.
We will continue to pray. We want you to win.
What you are doing is very difficult. Expect it to be difficult. Know that we will walk with you in this journey.
Any questions?
Iragi: Sometime one applies for a job on Upwork. The client does not respond, and the job expires. What do we do in this situation?
Greg: The client will not respond unless they accept you.
Iragi: I would like to come back to the payment issue. When one is finished working and he gets the notification of getting paid. As for me, I already filled the form to withdraw money. But every time, they ask me to fill the form. Joseph, since you have experience, could you tell me how to withdraw money?
Joseph explains in French to Iragi how to withdraw from Payoneer.
Greg: This is a great example of why we meet as a team. We want you to help each other.
Legrand had great suggestions for Karen.
Jeff just helped Iragi how to withdraw his money.
So, there is power in a group helping each other.
And you have just seen two examples of that power.
There is an African proverb: If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far go with others.
We are trying to go far.