What Is Freelance Freedom Like?
One of the most interesting things about creating my book, Make Freelancing REALLY Pay, has been taking a look at my journey over the past five years. When I started out, I didn’t know what this career would entail on a day-to-day basis or over the long term. That’s not surprising. Freelance writing is a “job” that most people find difficult to comprehend on a practical level—because it isn’t like any traditional job they’ve ever had. If I tell someone what I do for a living, they pepper me with a dozen questions, trying to figure out what my life is like. Here are three of the many “freelance freedoms” that make this career so enjoyable.
#1 Freedom to Be Choosy
I freely admit that I’m picky about my projects and about my clients. These days, I’m able to choose projects that interest me rather than just accepting whatever’s available. That’s a freedom that comes with time and experience. But the option to say “No” to bad business relationships is one that every freelancer can claim from the start.
As a freelancer, I don’t have to work with an awful boss, an annoying coworker, or an unpleasant customer. I can and do expect to be treated as I treat others. For me, the worst case scenario of losing a job would only mean forgoing a single project with a particular client. There are plenty more.
#2 Freedom from Income Limitations
Have you ever looked at your current salary and done that depressing calculation that tells you how much money you can expect to make 10 years from now assuming an x percent increase per year? Did you find it completely demotivating? As a freelancer, I don’t have to accept any assumptions about how much money I can make.
I’ve more than quadrupled my minimum rates in five years and I still haven’t hit any kind of ceiling on my earning potential. That’s not because I’m an enormously gifted or famous writer. It’s because I realized I am free to raise my rates as I please. There are no rules about how much I can charge—the only limits are related to how well I can communicate the value of my services.
#3 Freedom to Say “Enough”
In corporate America, you’re either climbing the ladder or serving as a stepping stone for someone else to clamber over you in the race to the top. The cycle of working more and more hours or paying for more and more education to try to reach a higher career level is difficult to stop. There’s no time to slow down and wonder if it’s all worth it in the end.
Contrary to popular beliefs, working as a freelancer can make work/life balance easier to achieve—not harder. I don’t have to worry about losing career momentum if I scale back my workload. Right now, I work 20-25 hours per week (and still make twice as much as I did at my last 9-5 job). I could make more money by working longer hours, but I get to decide how much is enough.
Learn More about the Freelance Lifestyle
The preface to my book, Make Freelancing REALLY Pay, provides more detail about what freelance success means to me. The rest of the book takes readers step by step through practical strategies for reaching a similar point in their businesses. My hope is that this resource will motivate and inspire other freelancers to dream big, make it happen, and refuse to settle for less in their own careers.
Title: Make Freelancing REALLY Pay: Communication and Negotiation Strategies That Take You to the Top
Genre: Nonfiction/Business/Entrepreneurship
Author: Daisy McCarty
Publisher: Daisy McCarty
Pages: 114
Language: English
Purchase at AMAZON
“Make Freelancing REALLY Pay” helps new and struggling freelancers dramatically improve their business with expert communication and negotiation strategies. This book is a collection of real-life guidelines, tips, and tactics for overcoming common challenges. Readers learn how to select the best clients, expand their business, raise their rates, stabilize their income, and much more.
ABOUT DAISY MCCARTY
Daisy McCartyDaisy McCarty is a self-educated writer and co-founder of Freelance Text, a professional services firm that specializes in web content creation. Since transitioning out of a seven year career in Corporate Procurement in 2008, Daisy has been using her negotiating skills to navigate to the higher levels of the online writing industry. Today, she mentors informally at Professional Freelancers Network, and offers formal one-on-one consulting services to freelancers who are ready to increase their income.
Her latest book is Make Freelancing REALLY Pay: Communication and Negotiation Strategies That Take You to the Top.
You can read Daisy’s blog and get more great freelancing advice at http://makefreelancingpay.com.
Connect & Socialize with Daisy!
TWITTER * FACEBOOK
What freedoms make your freelance life totally worthwhile? Were there any unexpected "bonus" freedoms? Share what you love about freelancing here.
ReplyDelete