This week, in Winton’s AI Lab:
AI News That Matters to Your Freelance Business

Stay Ahead of the Curve!

Join Winton and Bruce this Saturday for the exclusive AI Members-Only Live Q&A, where they’ll break down the most game-changing AI developments and how they directly impact freelancers and portable income earners.

With AI evolving faster than ever, this session will focus on the most relevant breakthroughs—not just tech theory, but real-world applications you can use to boost your freelancing success.

This month, they'll cover a groundbreaking AI rival that’s shaking up the industry, plus other key updates that could change the way you work and compete in the digital landscape.

If you want to stay ahead of the AI revolution and get answers to your most pressing questions in real-time, this LIVE interactive Q&A is where you need to be.

💡 This Q+A for AI Program Members Only

Join the membership now and get instant access to the latest AI insights that help you work smarter, earn more, and future-proof your freelance career!💥

Smart Job Selection: How to Stand Out & Win Better Projects

Niche Down, and Bid Against a Smaller Pool

One of the biggest mistakes freelancers make is applying for jobs simply because they can do them—without considering whether they should.

The key to success is differentiation. To stand out in a competitive marketplace, freelancers must focus on projects that align with their unique skills, industry experience, and personal expertise.

A general proofreader, for example, competes with thousands of others, but a proofreader specializing in coin collecting or medical research has a far smaller talent pool to compete against.

Identifying and marketing these niche strengths is what turns an average freelancer into a highly sought-after specialist.

Strategic Searching with Keywords

Finding high-quality jobs also requires strategic search techniques. Using 3-5 strong profile keywords in job searches helps surface the most relevant opportunities.

Smart filtering can eliminate low-paying projects, clients with no hiring history, or jobs that lack clarity.

Additionally, well-structured job descriptions with clear expectations often indicate a client who values professionalism and long-term relationships.

Prioritizing these projects increases the chances of securing repeat clients and building a sustainable, predictable freelance business.

By leveraging these techniques, freelancers can move beyond just "finding work" and start building profitable, fulfilling foundations.

Using Upwork’s Heart & Thumbs Down Icons to Optimize Your Job Feed

Upwork’s heart and thumbs down icons are powerful tools that help freelancers refine their job searches and train the platform’s algorithm to show more relevant opportunities over time.

• Heart Icon: Clicking the heart on a job post saves it for later review. This is useful for quickly scanning available jobs and marking ones that seem promising before diving into details like client history, budget, and project scope.

• Thumbs Down Icon: Clicking thumbs down removes the job from your feed and prompts you to select a reason (e.g., low budget, not your skill set, poorly written post). Each time you do this, Upwork learns what types of jobs you prefer and adjusts your future job recommendations accordingly.

How This Helps You

• Over time (typically 3-6 months), the algorithm fine-tunes your job feed to better match your interests and skills.

• By consistently using these tools, you can reduce clutter in your job feed, focusing only on high-quality, relevant opportunities.

• While filtering out low-paying jobs is an option, Winton suggests caution—sometimes these jobs are stepping stones to long-term client relationships or could be new clients testing the platform.

Can You Retrain the Algorithm?

Not directly—there’s no way to “reset” your job feed. The only way to adjust it is by engaging with different types of job listings and selecting different reasons when rejecting jobs.

By using these simple tools daily, freelancers can streamline their search process, improve job relevance, and ultimately land better opportunities with less effort.

DEAL OF THE WEEK🚀 
4 Proposal Reviews for the Price of 3!

Struggling to write winning proposals? This week only, our expert coaches will craft 4 high-impact proposal templates with you—at the price of 3! 

They’ll review your proposals and help you turn them into templates. Your finished products will be customized, reusable, and designed to help you land more jobs with less effort.

✅ Proven strategies to make your proposals stand out
✅ Time-saving templates you can tweak and reuse
✅ Expert guidance to refine your approach

If you want to stop second-guessing your proposals and start winning more projects, this is the deal to grab!⏳

🌎 Your Global Journey Starts Here:
Join Us at an International Living Conference! ✈️

Step into 2025 with a bold new vision for your future!

Whether you're dreaming of a sun-soaked escape, a fresh start abroad, or the freedom of a location-independent lifestyle, International Living’s upcoming conferences are your gateway to making it happen.

This isn’t just another conference — it’s an eye-opening, action-packed experience that could change your future. The world is waiting. Are you ready? 🌏🚀