Choosing to freelance rather than to follow a more traditional career choice is a scary thing to do. There are definitely a plethora of setbacks, fears and second-guesses involved. On the other hand, working as a freelancer can provide you with freedom, confidence and the chance to work with some seriously amazing people. Here are the top 5 benefits of freelancing that I’ve found since I started freelancing full time…
Freedom to express yourself
In recent years, corporate jobs have certainly become a little more open to hiring people who express themselves through their appearance in the form of dyed hair, tattoos and the like. There’s still a long way to go before these aspects are widely accepted though.
Being a freelancer means working for yourself. Sure, you work with clients and you should make yourself presentable when you meet with them, BUT you don’t answer to a large corporation or higher ups who have a chip on their shoulder about whether the tattoo on your arm is visible throughout the work day.
Since becoming a freelancer myself I’ve dyed my hair blue, cut it shorter, added a few more tattoos to my collection in more noticeable spots – and I’ve never been happier. It’s definitely nice to not have to stifle my personality or appearance for other people anymore.
Work with who you want to work with
This is a big one. If you work in a traditional role like a corporate office job, or even hospitality and retail jobs that require interaction, you’re bound to come across people you don’t enjoy working with – and guess what…you just have to suck it up and deal with them.
When you freelance, you have the power to say, “I’m sorry, I just don’t think this is working” and that’s that. You’re happier. They’re out of your hair. You can move on to bigger and better clients.
Experience running a small business
It’s stressful. It requires a lot of research and continual learning and improvement. Running a business is hard. It’s also an amazing opportunity to build something that’s YOURS. Whether you continue to freelance by yourself, or end up expanding and bringing others onboard, running a small business really is in a league of its own.
The skills you build while freelancing are very similar to those of a small business owner: managing finances, project management, account management, communication, time management; the list goes on! If you do decide to go back and work for someone else in future, these are great skills to add to your resume.
Work when it works for you
I’m a night owl. I do my best work between the hours of 10pm-2am. Sounds horrific, right? Well, working in a traditional role with typical 9-5 hours did make things a bit difficult. Now, as a freelancer, I work when it works for me. Granted, I try my best to fit my work into a day time schedule, so that I can have time with my partner at night when he finishes work, but I’m not restricted.
The same can be said about where you work as a freelancer. You can work from home, from a cafe, from a park, if you’ve got a good internet connection. You don’t even have to be in the same country as your clients. The world is your workspace!
You get out what you put in
You are the only thing standing between yourself and the ability to bring in an incredible amount of income. The more time and effort you put into bringing in new clients, promoting your services and building a solid reputation, the more you’ll earn and the easier it will become to make a tidy profit.
So, what do you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts and to see whether your benefits are similar or different to mine. Leave a comment below if you feel so inclined 🙂
