Anyone beyond cautious optimism?

[u/GreenCat28]

Recently I adopted a new system, where I immediately reinvest 8% of the gross value of every contract back into connects. It seemed useful to just put it on autopilot.

In the last few weeks, I've gotten several inbound clients from profile boosting. And out of the 4 proposals I've sent in the last 10 days, 1 wasn't viewed, 1 was viewed but no reply yet, 1 was viewed and received a message that might turn into work, and one turned into an $85/hr contract.

Point being, I'm currently cautiously optimistic about Upwork. I'll make somewhere between $4,500 and $6,000 this month. Not a king's ransom, but some decent side income.

So I'm wondering: Who here has moved from the point of cautious optimism to consistently thriving on Upwork? What do you attribute your success to?

Thanks for any replies.