From Executive Chronicles, Noelle Ashley writes about the pros and cons of being a freelance and reports on the result of a recent survey. She writes:
“In a survey of over 200 organizations, the Aberdeen Group found nearly 22 percent of their employees would be considered freelancers by the beginning of 2015 — and the numbers are only climbing. But what exactly is freelance work, and should you, as a job seeker, become a part of this growing sector of the talent market?
Essentially, “freelance work” means one can pursue as many or as few jobs as they’d like, with as many companies as they’d like, for as long as they’d like, from the comfort of their home (or really anywhere) without having to open their own business.
The Pros and Cons of Freelancing
If this kind of work sounds interesting to you, you’ll want to consider the pros and cons of freelance work arrangements before diving right in. Some of the perks of freelancing include:
- work anywhere, anytime — while still minding deadlines, of course;
- freelancers are independent workers who manage themselves and make their own creative decisions – within the parameters of the project, that is;
- freelancers may take on as many or as few projects as they wish;
- freelancers don’t have to work on site;
- and more flexible, self-directed work schedules.
“Getting paid to do things I love in my jammies with my cat on my lap? Sign me up!” Slow down, cowboy. While freelancing can be extremely rewarding and ideal for many busy lifestyles, there are disadvantages to freelancing as well:
- no guaranteed job security;
- freelancers must handle their own tax burdens;
- freelancers are paid per project, not per hour, which can be dangerous is a freelancer takes on a time-consuming project from an especially picky client;
- no employer benefits;
- little or no collaborative work;
- and freelancing requires a highly disciplined work ethic.
Nobody said freelancing was easy! Lucky for you, you’re not alone. See what experienced freelancers wish they knew when they were starting out….”
Read the full story at Why Freelancers Rule the World
