Dear Freelancer, good to hear that you are on the way forward! I congratulate you for your achievements so far and eagerness to continue the struggle.
I hear what you are saying, and actually just a while ago wrote about this same phenomena. I have been entrepreneur 10 years already, of those about two years mainly here in UpWork. To be honest with you, I think the quality of project offerings here is somewhat equal to the real life, at least when it comes to the ratio of "good to bad ones". Naturally, online the quality could be assumed be to still worse, due ot the lack of tradition, lack of political support and recognition in many countries as a legitimate way of earning living.
Many protective market areas, such as old territorial markets, are distributing their projects and workload among providers on the grounds of social agreement, tradition and because they feel that they want to purchase things from "owns" in order to contribute to the society of theirs as well. Indeed, some might even think that it was somehow immoral to do international trade – a type of trade that was only recently liberated, if it still is, from being sole property of the State. Now, in cyberspace, everyone can do international trade. That makes a lot of difference.
I hope you good luck. I am living, barely, example of a freelancer who has been able to grow turnover here every year. It is possible, but not easy. And I think you are right, by taking new customers and the risk that comes along, will definitely contribute for further market interest as well as own capabilities. As some point you might attract some major clients here too – there are a few, yet they might not too visible for recent entrants. Many of them would not even accept a proposal from freelancer who have no track record of history working here, but some of them might.
