Here is my story...
I was created my odesk account on 2011 for exchange my money from paypal to MB. Once the y stop supporting it i never thought about odesk until i see your thread. In 2011 i was a student and i didn't had enough skills to advertise on odesk but now its different. So, after reading your thread i thought about giving it a shot. I passed that readiness test, PHP5 Skill test and ID Verification.They raised my application quota for 25.
Then i knew that the real trick is to make a good profile and getting the first job. I made a fair profile and start applying for jobs. First i applied for small jobs. 6 days later. I got my first job and it was a hourly job for design a personal website which payed me 5$/hour.
It took me 3 days to finish the site and upon delivery the contractor hired me for another 4 hours to make some adjustments. Lucky me..when it ends he left me 5/5 rating with a good comment.
Its been exactly 2 months since i started on odesk. i have completed 15 jobs and having 5/5 rating. All thanks to you. Thank you for giving me a motivation.
I am not a full time freelancer. I have a daytime job and i'm doing this only during night for 3-4 hours. So i am happy with what i earned.
If anyone needs my help, i am happy to help you.