Dose of Prose
In the infamous words of Kim Kardashian: people don’t want to work these days, and she is absolutely right. Many individuals are realizing now that, working face-to-face during a global pandemic, quite frankly, sucks. With the rise of virtual/remote work, and the possibility of becoming a viral sensation on the internet, the typical 9-5 corporate life is becoming less attractive. I’m sure you’ve heard the popular phrase, “The Great Resignation,” which is the rise in popularity of anti-work. Simply put, people are quitting their jobs, pursuing their passions and working on their own terms. Independent contractor, freelancer, side hustler, entrepreneur and digital nomad type roles are now the priority of career pursuits. The traditional corporate structure is steadily becoming a thing of the past.
How I Became a Freelancer
I have been freelancing for the last few years and my career journey has been challenging to say the least. I didn’t decide or choose to become a freelancer, it honestly just kind of happened. Whenever I applied to full-time corporate jobs, I would get an interview and then wouldn’t make it to the next round. I’d receive the generic, “We decided to pursue other candidates at this time…” email, or I wouldn’t hear back from anyone at all. After many rejections, redirections and frustrations, I switched up my application strategy and began applying for roles that were contractual. I finally landed one, which turned into many.
No matter how many full-time applications I would submit, I always found myself in a freelance position – I would do a specific project for a firm or startup for a contracted period of time. Sounds like this is a sign that I’m meant to be a freelancer, huh? Well, I don’t know what the future holds, but I’m trying to enjoy the journey along the way. My work is a combination of research and writing. Essentially firms (currently I work for an investment firm and a law firm) hire me to find, compile and analyze information. I write and present that information in a digestible way that anyone can understand. Sounds kind of boring from the outside looking in, but I enjoy it. Plus, some of the projects that I work on are about about pretty exciting business topics and global challenges.
The Benefits of Freelancing
Although I still want to experience the corporate 9-5 life (and I am still applying to those jobs – if you’re reading this and hiring for finance roles hit me up 😉), I love the flexibility and freedom that freelancing gives me. I create my own hours and schedule that works for me. I also consider myself to be multi-hyphenate, which basically means that I have several interests and skillsets. Freelancing allows me to pursue various professions at once, instead of fixating on a rigid specific job, which is often what people are forced to do throughout different stages of their lives (i.e. choosing a major in college). But that’s another rant for another day…
Eventhough being a freelancer kind of fell into my lap and there is so much beauty in this type of work, I would be lying to you if I said freelancing is easy. The reality is, freelancing is hard and comes with a set of risks and issues, which I feel that not enough people talk about. If you already work for yourself, but want to know ways you can make your freelance career even more financially successful, check out my blog post with tips on how to make more money monetizing your craft.
This blog post, however, includes what to consider before you start freelancing. If you want to leave your 9-5 and are curious about freelancing or currently have a side hustle that you want to turn into a full-time gig, this post is for you.
Warning: I’m not going to sugar coat anything. This post will present an unfiltered, no-fluff discussion on the truth about freelancing that you don’t want to hear, but need to know.
Truth # 1: Be prepared for inconsistent income.
When you do freelance work, you are not paid a salary in the same way as a 9-5. You are not guaranteed a bi-weekly check or direct deposit. Whatever financial security you think you have will be thrown out the window once you become a freelancer. Now I’m not saying that you won’t make a lot of money, I’m saying that the money you make will be inconsistent. For example, let’s say you do freelance work for a client or company and you invoice them after you complete that project for $5000. You may not see that $5000 until weeks, potentially months later. No matter how much you charge, each person or entity that you work with will have their own method of how they pay independent hires. This should be detailed in the contract you sign, so there shouldn’t be any surprises, but it’s something to keep in mind when you have bills to pay and a life to live.
It’s on <u>you</u> to be able to plan and budget accordingly, so that you are prepared, instead of anxiously awaiting for your next check to come in. There have been many times where I thought my money was coming to me a lot quicker than it did, and it’s not a fun feeling. I once did a project in October but wasn’t paid until December, which pushed me to work more and secure more paid gigs so that I wasn’t going almost 2 months without any money coming in. If you’re a good negotiator and reliable worker, you can land ongoing freelance jobs (meaning a longer contract and more consistent money) but that usually happens after you’ve developed some type of rapport with the client you’re doing business for. Anyway, the main takeaway here is, you’ll make money, you may not make it when you want to, so it’s essential that you plan and prepare for inconsistencies.
Truth #2: Your work-life balance will be challenged.
As a freelancer, especially if you’re a remote freelancer, the lines between when work begins and ends can easily blur. You don’t clock-in or clock-out, nobody is checking on you to make sure you’re working. You’re given a project with deliverables and you submit your work by a specific deadline. Sounds simple, right? Well, it’s easier said than done.
If your client is in a different timezone than you and you have a question or need to correspond with them regarding the project, you might have to adjust and have meetings/calls really early or late at night. Some freelance projects might take several hours to do, with a quick turnaround time. Other projects may be due weeks later after they’re assigned, so you have to be organized to manage how much or little you want to work on each day. You also may be juggling multiple freelance projects at once, so it’s easy to become overwhelmed from people constantly communicating their needs to you.
One time I landed a huge freelance project where I had to research nearly 500 different potential new investments in the span of two weeks and I had to check-in every day with the client on my progress. If you’re someone who needs structure and thrives off a routine, it may be difficult to go from waking up and going to work with set hours and lunch break to waking up and have a day that is completely open where you control when you do things and how long you do them.
For more detailed and specific remote work tips, check out my blog post on how to maximize productivity from the comfort of your home. The point is, with freelancing, sometimes the hours are weird. You might have early days and late nights, you might work on weekends. Everybody wants to live a balanced lifestyle and that’s something that I personally am still striving towards. Keep in mind though, that freelancing increases the likelihood of having work-life imbalance because of its ambiguous structure. But as long as you take control of your schedule and don’t allow it to take control of you, you’ll do just fine.
Truth #3: Freelance ≠ Full Time
You can do freelance work on a full-time basis, but freelancing in of itself is not the same as a full-time job. You don’t have the same health benefits (you don’t have benefits at all really), not to mention that filing taxes is its own monster. Don’t expect a freelance, one time project to become an ongoing full time job. Sometimes people will hire you just to do one thing and then you’ll never hear from them again. It’s nothing personal, it just comes with the territory of the job. Think of each project that you do as a gig that’s temporary until you land another gig.
You also may not see how the work your hired to do fits in with the big picture or overall vision of what your client is trying to do. You don’t go into an office, get involved in the company culture or build relationships with co-workers in the same way that you would in a regular job. I’m not saying that any of this is a positive or negative, I’m just telling things as I see it.
My freelance work is remote and I mostly communicate with others via email, business communication tools (i.e. Slack, Zoom, Google Meet, etc.) and sometimes phone. Most of the projects I submit I don’t know what the ‘end-result’ is, meaning I’m basically asked to do something and I don’t really know what the client will use it for, but I just do it, invoice and that’s it. Everything I do is independent, with little direction and minimal communication.
The truth is, sometimes freelance work can feel pretty isolating, maybe even unfulfilling and very transactional. Obviously that depends on the type of project you do and who you’re working with, but the perks and community life aspects of freelancing is just not on the same level as a full-time job. Why do you think co-working spaces are so popular? Think about it.
Truth #4: You will interact with all types of personalities.
I know in the last truth I said that freelancing can be isolating, which is true, because you are working by yourself and not in a team. However, because you are not dedicating your time and loyalty to one job at a specific company, I’ve found that you actually end up interacting with a variety of people and personality types. Your client may be startup company or a well-established large firm, which often have very different cultures. Your communication style with one client may vary from another. Sometimes the projects I land are very structured and straight forward, others are more convoluted and the client doesn’t really have a specific way that they want it done, they just want me to take the reins and figure it out.
I believe this is important to consider before you start freelancing because whether you are a ‘people person’ or not, whether you prefer client-facing type roles or being behind a computer…you are going to communicate with (in some way, shape or form) all types of people. It is a special skillset in of its own to be able to work with and talk to people, especially if their personality and work style is different than yours. Of course you have to freedom to accept or define working with someone, but regardless, you need to prepare to come across some, well, characters for lack of a better term, every now and then.
Ultimately, freelancing is not for everyone, and that’s okay.
Don’t let all of this ‘Great Resignation’ talk or someone who’s TikTok video blew up one time (and now they make money on social media and tell you how easy it is) fool you. There is absolutely nothing wrong with a corporate job and working a 9-5. Freelancing is not better or worse than anything else. You like what you like. What’s meant for you, works for you. Not everybody is meant to work for themselves. Not everyone has the desire or discipline to be a freelancer, and that’s okay. I’m not trying to convince you nor scare you from building a business for yourself.
There are so many freelancers out there that are doing it and doing it well. I’m a Finance nerd, so I’ll use this analogy: there is no return without risk. Therefore, from this post, I want you to see the benefits of freelancing, but also consider the challenges and risks that exist before you decide to dabble in the freelance world. I hope this post was insightful. If you have more questions about freelancing or want me to share more of my experience, leave a comment and let me know! Do you prefer to work for yourself or work for a company? Are you part of the anti-work movement? How do you feel about remote vs. in-office? Let’s chat!
