What is a freelancer? Is freelancing for me? 

Ok, so you’re fed up with your boss. You have way too many things on your to-do list. You can do this work with your eyes shut. 

I hear you. But do other people? 

Are you daydreaming about starting up your own business, but wake up to the shattering reality that you don’t know if you can do it? 

I’m here to tell you… YES YOU CAN!!! 

Becoming a freelancer was the best thing I’ve done in my career. 

I’m no expert. This is all new to me. I’m learning as I go here. 

And so can you.

So, if you’re thinking “Is freelancing for me?”, here are a few things I found about being a freelancer, things I wish I had known beforehand; the benefits of being a freelancer; and how much I really don’t want to have a boss again. Soz

*for reference, I will be talking about being a freelance copywriter. I understand there are many freelancing jobs in various industries available. I’m aware that maybe some of the things I cover here may not be applicable to all freelancers.   

Why become a freelancer?

My word, where do I start?

Maybe the best place to start is to tell you a bit about my background. I’ve had many a job, but I’m trained and qualified as a primary school teacher, worked as a teaching assistant then specified in additional learning needs. And I loved it. 

Because of circumstances, I had to give that up (we moved to another country). I wanted something to do, and kind of accidentally fell into copywriting. 

A friend of mine needed to outsource some work, which I offered to do. Fast forward 8 months, I now have my own website set up; have a few clients on my books and have very exciting plans in place to grow the business. 

What are the benefits of becoming a freelancer?

These are a few I’ve come across so far:

• No boss: I can work when I want, with who I want.
• Work from anywhere: Home office. Cafe. Shared workspace. Car garage. Bathroom (yep!) The world is literally your oyster. If you work with your laptop, you can simply pick it up, and go. 
• Finding a niche: If there’s something you are very passionate about, that get’s you revved up with excitement; and you can do it all the time – there’s your niche.  
• Other commitments: I can arrange my work around my family and childcare. 
• The sky is your limit: No cap on your income. Yes, you’ll need to work for it, you could outsource work if needed. As a freelancer, working more actually means more pay. 
• Have goals and ambition: I’ve got so many ideas in my head of what I’d like to do in my business, and no one can stop me! Hit that play button – “Don’t stop me now, I’m having such a good time” I can set my own goals and create a structured plan to achieve them, I don’t have to put it passed my boss for approval. 

Love/Hate relationship?

Not really. 

I did question at the beginning “is freelancing for me?” It turns out yes it totally is!

There are a few tough things I have to deal with, like being disciplined with my working times; and finding the right system that works for me with income and managing finances. 

For a few of these, it’s possible to ask for support on the things you don’t like doing. There are virtual assistants that can manage your diary, schedule work commitments etc so you have more time to do what you do best. 

There are bookkeepers, accountants and even apps that can give you advice or take care of the finances for you. Whatever your needs are, there is someone out there that can help. 

The big love part…I love the freedom it gives me.

I can work as much (or as little) as I want – yes the money reflects that, but that’s my choice. 

The freedom of working where I want. Most of the time I do work from my office at home. Sometimes (maybe once a fortnight) I will sit in a cafe in the city for a few hours – the change of scenery helps me with my ideas and inspiration. 

The best example of the freedom to work from anywhere is when I booked a flight, had my mum watch the kids, and went away for a few nights on a ‘working holiday’. It was heaven! Totally recommend going on holiday on your own! 

Being a freelancer I get to dream up the goals and plans that I want, not what my boss wants. I can set goals and plans; business-wise, personally; and family-wise.  

I don’t need to work hard for someone else to get paid and I get a small cut of that. I determine my prices (which is so scary to start with – setting your prices), and I get all of that money – well, some needs to go to the tax man. 

So there you have it. A quick run-through of my life as a freelancer. Overall thought…I love it!

I hope, if you began reading this blog with the question “is freelancing for me?”, you now have the answer YES!!

Hit the subscribe button if you’d like to hear more about life as a freelancer – I will be posting more blog posts to help budding freelancers in their journey.