Freelancing is always two sides of the coin: the joy of the freedom to choose projects, customers, and geographic location, and the fear of instability and unfixed income. More and more people are switching to freelancing, finding in it the advantages and coping with the disadvantages of this format of work.
What is freelancing?
Freelancing is project work. The freelancer cooperates with different customers, he does not have one permanent employer. Analysts identify benefits of freelance three key characteristics of self-employed people that distinguish them from employees:
- a high degree of independence. Freelancers themselves determine their working hours and workload, and also decide to work with a particular client;
- project payment. Unlike salaried employees, freelancers do not have an hourly wage or a fixed monthly salary. They receive money for the completed task;
- short-term relationship between employee and client. Freelancers, as a rule, are not bound by permanent employment in one company. After the completion of the project, the working relationship with the customer ends.
Who is suitable and who is not suitable for such work
Pros and cons of freelance:
Purposefulness. 97% of those who have chosen freelancing as their main occupation prefer to purposefully lead one project.
The ability to keep everything under control. Freelancers decide when, where and how much to work. In addition, they have to look for clients themselves, negotiate with them and distribute finances.
Understanding that a hobby does not necessarily become a good job. Creative people – musicians, writers, designers – are the least satisfied with the transition to freelancing, although they earn the most money per hour, working “for themselves”. So perhaps a passion should be left as a hobby.
Focus on long-term work. Freelancing is most enjoyed by people who value stability over the long term and are comfortable with the need to take risks here and now. People who take on part-time jobs end up with fatigue and burnout.
The main advantages of work
Let’s start with the pleasant and consider the benefits of freelance.
Possibility to combine. You don’t have to leave your main job and completely give up stability to go freelancing. As a freelancer, you decide what schedule to work on and how many projects to take on in order to be on time on all fronts and not burn out.
No need to travel to the office. You reduce the cost of public transport, maintenance of a private car and gasoline, you no longer have to spend time on the road. You will feel relieved when you wake up in the morning and look out the window to see snow-covered roads there and realize that you don’t have to go anywhere today. And even if necessary, you can afford to change your mind and reschedule plans. But in the summer, when you want to get out of the stuffy office as soon as possible, you can comfortably endure the heat at home or in a shady park, because freelancers decide when and where they work and make appointments.
No need to conform to corporate standards. Forget about the office dress code, tight work schedule, long meetings and not always interesting corporate events, the presence of which is optional, but desirable. At home, you yourself choose what clothes to wear, when to start work and how much time to spend on it, and you need to report mainly to yourself and your customers.
You make your own work schedule. You yourself will be able to plan a working day and decide which hours to allocate to work, and which ones to personal affairs and leisure. Perhaps it’s more convenient for you to work at night, or you want to spend a rare sunny day walking in the park, and transfer work to the morning and evening – plan your schedule for the day as you like. In addition, you no longer need to take time off from work in order to be in time for a dentist or government agencies, which, with rare exceptions, work until 18:00.
You are not dependent on other people’s work. As a freelancer, you are only responsible for the part of the work that you do yourself. You do not need to wait for a response from different departments of the company, you do not depend on another employee and are not responsible for other people’s mistakes. Freelancers are professionals in their field, the result of the work is directly related to their skills and experience, which can be confirmed by a portfolio or a test task.
Disadvantages of freelance work
Of course, a freelancer also faces the negative aspects of working for himself – let’s talk about freelancing cons.
No more welfare package. Freelancers are rarely offered to conclude a contract, and you can forget about an entry in a work book. In addition, you will have to take care of your pension savings on your own. You can set up your activity as self-employed and make monthly contributions to your retirement account if you see fit.
The prejudice of others. Many mistakenly think that a freelancer is a slacker. People do not believe that working from home can earn money for an apartment and pay bills – as if this is just a side job, and not the main source of income. It’s a shame that often it is close people who are skeptical about your choice and do not take freelancers seriously. But you will cope with this and over time, by your own example, you will prove that you can fully and adequately earn money from home, doing what you love.
Fight against procrastination. Those who have recently switched to freelancing and are used to the office lifestyle sometimes take a long time to get used to working from home. Newbies often procrastinate until later – tonight, tomorrow, Friday – and find themselves having to finish a project on the last day, working all night. In the morning, you promise yourself not to delay the deadlines anymore, but soon procrastination takes over and history repeats itself. Therefore, freelancing is suitable for responsible, hardworking and organized people who have an understanding of personal discipline.