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Freelancing. You’ve seen it all over Pinterest. People ditching their day job to work on either a freelance career or side hustle biz. You have always been interested in dipping your toes in but are not convinced it’s for you. Don’t worry, I’ve got some reasons for you to consider when weighing your options.
I’m working my way towards entering the freelancing space. I love writing my blog and am about to start pitching freelance writing jobs. I have always loved reading and writing so I naturally drifted towards freelance writing and blogging. There are a ton of options out there though when you are considering a freelance side hustle.
Maybe you really love designing graphics or making pretty things. Or you get lost in color palettes and fabric designs. Whatever the case may be, if you’re miserable in your day job, freelancing is an option. But you have to go about smartly.
If you’re still teetering on the fence about whether you want to try freelancing here are 5 reasons why you need to start freelancing.
1. You Hate Your Day Job
Picture this, small-town girl moves to the big city. She takes a job a law firm as a low-level office staffer while she’s going through college. While she’s going to classes, she’s excelling at her job. Before the girl knows it she’s moved up. Then she moves on to the next firm to be able to keep moving up. She wasn’t exactly sure what she wanted to do so she kept it simple and basic.
Once she finished her general AA degree she’s burned out by working full time and going to school full time. She likes what she does enough and decides to stay in the legal field. She takes a lucrative job as a legal assistant and receives a lot of praise and a nice salary to go with it. Now she’s 6 years into a career she doesn’t love and is bored to tears at her day job.
Does this sound like you? Or is it similar? Well, it’s me. I love the people I work for and with but I hate the work. I felt so stuck in my day job. Then I found this online community of bloggers and freelancers who are kicking ass in what they do.
I want to do that. Helping people and writing creatively have always been on the things I want I want to help people and write creatively. I want to be flexible so I don’t feel guilty for asking for time off even though I hadn’t taken a vacation in over a year and I work my ass off. I want my name to be on the front of what I’m doing.
Does that sound like something you want? Good. Freelancing can be the gateway to getting there. Don’t have the skills? Do the work and learn them. Get out there and start freelancing on the side to gain experience.
2. Make More Money
I’m considered to be middle class in the US. I have a decent paying job for a 26-year-old with only an AA degree. And for the longest time, I chased the money. I’ll be happy when I make X per year. Well, I got there. Still not happy. It’s more about what I am doing than how much I make.
To be completely honest, if I could afford to, I’d give up 50% of my income if it meant that I could do something I love every day. But unfortunately, my bills would pile up. If you start freelancing, you have the opportunity to make more and do something you love.
When you’re a freelancer, you set your rate and how many hours you want to work. So if you want to make more, you can either work more hours or raise your rate.
3. Work When You Want and from Anywhere
Freelancing offers a very unique way of life. Do you want to go to the gym during the day? No problem. Schedule your work around this. Have a last minute appointment you need to schedule? Do it.
Around 2:00 p.m. every day, I crash. And I’m also up at 6 am each morning. I would be so much more productive if I could log in and work from 6:30 or 7 through noon. Then take an hour or two breaks and log back in for a couple hours. But for most of us, that’s not how the corporate world works. When you choose to pursue a freelancing business, you can work how you want.
But, yes there is a but, if you don’t do the work, you won’t make the money. Only pursue a freelancing gig if your super serious about and don’t quit your job without some sort of safety net or plan in place.
All you need is a laptop and internet connection. Want to take that trip to Bali? Buy your plane ticket. Want to visit family at the holidays? Go for it. Pack up your laptop and your good to go.
For me, sometimes I need to get out of my home office. I work in an office for my 9-5 so the last thing I want to do is sit down at another desk in an office and work. Even if that office is in my house. This past weekend I took my car to get an oil change and went to a local Starbucks to wait for it to get done. It was great. I got out of my head and super focused on my blog.
4. No More Office Drama
Working in small offices, I’ve had my fair share of office drama and politics. The one corporate office I worked in was a nightmare of immature 50 years old who acted like they were 15. The pettiness was insane. Which is part of why I went back into the legal field and kept to small firms.
When freelancing, you’ll likely be working on your own unless you hire subcontractors. But even then they will more than likely be remote too. So you don’t have to hear about Sally’s annoying neighbor for the hundredth time.
5. Job Security
In today’s market, there is no such thing as job security. Wouldn’t you rather bet on yourself anyway? This 2017 study shows that freelancing is on the rise and it predict’s that 50% of the US workforce will be freelancing by 2027.
Now getting clients or finding people to buy your products is no easy feat. You have to hustle and work your ass off to get to the level you want. It’s going to take time and sacrifice to get there. But I promise it will be worth it when you prevail.
Get Started Already
So you’ve decided you want to give freelancing a go. Now what? Just get started. Want to start a blog? Start writing. Want to start offering graphic design services? Create some samples or gather your portfolio and start pitching.
Trust me. I know you’re scared. I was scared shitless too. But you’ve got to push your fear aside and do it already. Provide value to your target audience, work hard and just get started.
