These days, the phrase " I'm a freelancer" is often mentioned when someone is asked about his profession . It could be a friend, a colleague, or even your family member who gave up his regular 9-to-5 job to become a freelancer.
Many reasons lead to a sudden shift in how people think about work itself, leading them to turn to freelancing.
But why would they do this?
Can a freelancer be without a job for a long time?
What exactly do these "freelancers" do?
Here's a comprehensive guide to answer all your questions.
Content display
1 What is a freelancer?
2 Who is a freelancer?
3 Freelancers
4 How to become a freelancer?
4.1 Next step
4.2 Take care of your finances
5 Takeaway
What is freelancing?
Freelance is a contract-based occupation where the person is not recruited in an organization, but uses his skills and experience to serve many clients.
In simple terms, freelancing is when you use your skills, education, and experience to work with multiple clients and undertake a variety of tasks without committing to a single employer. The number of assignments or tasks you can take on comes down to your ability to deliver as they ask.
Freelancing usually involves jobs (called gigs) that allow you to work from home. But don't associate freelancing with working from home.
Freelancing doesn't always mean you'll be working from home. Depending on the type of work and the client's requirements, you may also have to work in the client's office.
A work-from-home job involves a contract between you and a single employer that provides you with a salary, while a freelancer does not.
It's just that many jobs performed by freelancers can be delivered over the internet without requiring them to be at the company or the client's location.
Freelancers or freelancers are self-employed people who make money by serving multiple clients. These services are related to the skills of individuals and are not necessarily only available to businesses.
Freelancers either use third-party platforms like Fiverr, 99designs, etc. to get business, or use their network to get more business and serve clients directly.
But is it a good choice for a career? Can you maintain a lavish life while freelancing? How do you start freelancing?
Well, when 11% of the U.S. adult population works primarily as a full-time freelancer, there must be some upside to this industry.
Freelancer
The rise of freelancers has spawned a new concept - the gig economy. In the gig economy, instead of working full-time for one employer and getting a fixed salary in return, a person works for multiple clients on his own terms and at a price he thinks his job deserves.
Freelancing is a tempting career. It solves almost all the problems of ordinary service level personnel. According to Upwork, Americans work an average of 47 hours a week. Freelancers work an average of 11 hours less per week than full-time employees. This totals approximately 550 hours or 23 days per year.
Full-time traditional employees spend nearly a month a year behind a keyboard (or wherever they work).
freelancing salary
All these plus advantages like freelancing to work anywhere at the time of your choosing, being your own boss, keeping all your profits, and lower operating costs are sure to attract a lot of people to freelancing as a career.
But not many people end up pursuing it full-time.
why do you ask?
Well, the answer is basically embedded in our human psyche.
Seeking assurance is ingrained in our minds. Regular work gives us the assurance of a career that pays you at a specified time. You have a convention to follow. The job also offers guaranteed benefits such as insurance, retirement benefits, provident funds, raises and pay raises to perform well.
When you choose to freelance, you lose the guarantee of either. There's no guarantee you'll get recurring customers. There is no guarantee that you will be able to maintain this lifestyle until retirement, or even that your income will increase forever.
Plus, you can handle tax deductions, insurance, and other financial matters yourself.
Freelancers have other disadvantages such as –
Work-life balance: Freelancing can be harder than a regular 9-to-5 job if you don't know how to separate your personal life from your work.
No Benefits: Freelancers are responsible for their own vacations, sick days, vacations, and must be good financial and time management planners.
Difficult clients: You may find some clients that are extremely difficult to manage. They may not be able to provide the correct instructions and information to complete the job, or may not be able to clear any doubts. This can be frustrating and can lead to wasting your time.
There are always pros and cons to each career, and you can balance it appropriately to gain a healthy footing. If you think freelancing might be good for you, the disadvantages don't matter. Read on to learn how to become a freelancer.
How to become a freelancer?
Becoming a freelancer is as easy as ordering things over the internet. You visit websites that offer freelance jobs and assignments and accept them. This is a great way to get started and get your name out there.
Here are some sites where you can try freelancing:
Fiverr: The world's largest freelance marketplace. Just create an account post what you can do, add a few links and you're done.
99Designs: If you are a designer, this is the perfect place to find freelancers.
Upwork: Upwork is a more professional looking freelance marketplace where you can find more business clients.
Freelancer.com : Freelancer.com is one of the oldest freelance job marketplaces and is an option for you in your first year when you have little or no freelancing experience.
(If you want to see more options, we have a full list of the best outsourcing sites here)
Doing a few gigs on these sites can help you see how your freelance work is going and help you get the hang of it.
But before heading to these freelance sites, you need to build a freelance brand for yourself. Follow the steps below -
Decide which services you will provide
Identify your target market
Find the platform (freelance site) you will serve. Choose a unified username for all users. It can help you build your brand image.
Determine your rate
Create an online portfolio on your specific niche portfolio platform; GitHub for developers, Behance for designers, and more. We also recommend that you create a personal portfolio website to showcase your skills and talents.
Market your services: pitch on social media, offer something for free or at a very low cost (helps get more traction), seek referrals, and use email marketing.
We do not recommend that you leave your current source of income and go straight to freelancing. Try it as a part-time startup and see how it works for you in the first few months.
There is absolutely no need for you to be a full-time freelancer. It's up to you whether to work full-time or keep your current job and earn money in your free time.
If you feel like you really like the way things are going, it's time to move on to the next step.
Next step
Once you feel like you can support yourself and work that way, the next move is to multitask for multiple sources of income. This should include your own use of the above methods as well as gigs you get from freelance sites.
Another possibility is that you can make it a full-time gig. Freelancing full-time also means you can generate multiple forms of income. You can:
Negotiate monthly hires
Negotiating commissions for sales items
Create a referral system to reward customers who send you new ones
Sell Yourself Directly: Here's a helpful guide on marketing and creating the perfect personal brand for yourself.
take care of your finances
At work, most of the "money" goes to the company you work for. You don't have to ask to get a regular salary; your taxes are automatically deducted, and insurance may also be covered by your employer.
Things are different when you are alone and you have to deal with the following things yourself:
Getting paid: This is considered the hardest part to manage, both for veterans and newbies of freelancing. Properly negotiating and communicating with your clients to get them to pay for your services at the designated time can prove to be quite a challenge. Get this right and you can do well in the freelance world. Check out this guide on how to negotiate like a pro to help you gain more tips and insights.
Taxes: You'll need to handle the complexities of personal and professional taxation on your own.
Insurance and retirement benefits: You need to find the best insurance policies and plans for yourself.
At the end of the day, being a freelancer and working in the gig economy means taking a lot of responsibility for your finances, whether it's negotiating wages, finding insurance, or paying taxes. However, if you like the freedom, flexibility, and earning potential that independence brings, then freelancing is the ideal situation.
takeout
The positivity and negativity of freelancers are equal. You just have to decide if you're willing to take the risk that almost always comes with it. Freelancing means professional freedom, but also the risk of instability and failure. This may not be what you need in your career. However, if you risk stability by doing something that is more aligned with your career goals than a traditional job, you have the opportunity to build your name and reputation and achieve your career goals.
