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Web Worker Daily has some advice for those who want to strike out on their own:

So you want to ditch your corporate cubicle and join the ranks of web workers? But you have a mortgage, maybe a dependent or two, and a taste for Venti Mochas from Starbucks? You can make money in the new economy, though it might not be as easy or cushy as keeping your old economy job.

I�m not talking about advertising or affiliate marketing or selling your junk on eBay. Those are so last millennium! I�m talking about the new new economy.

1. Offer your professional expertise in an online marketplace.These days, you can do more than just sell your old books via Amazon and your old Coach handbags via eBay�now you can sell your professional capabilities in a marketplace. No longer are you limited to looking for a permanent or contract job on Web 1.0 style job sites like Monster or CareerBuilder. The new breed of freelancing and project-oriented sites let companies needing help describe their projects. Then freelancers and small businesses offer bids or ideas or proposals from which those buyers can choose.

Elance covers everything from programming and writing to consulting and design, while RentACoder focuses on software, natch. If you�re a graphic designer, check out options like Design Outpost or LogoWorks�you don�t have to find the customers, they�ll come to you. Wannabe industry analysts might sign up for TechDirt�s Insight Community, a marketplace for ideas about technology marketing.

Read the whole article, there are quite a few useful links.