Freelancing - Putting the Free back into working hours!

After working for 3 years in the web industry under the security of a full-time job, I decided it was time to take the plunge into the uncertain waters of freelancing. More and more people are taking this option, and as such more SME’s are outsourcing their work rather than employing people in-house on a full-time basis.

This means that, at the moment, it bodes well for people who decide to freelance. Because the freelancer spreads himself over various companies, and typically charges a not-so-modest hourly rate, the earning potential is much higher than that of an employed person. This also has its benefits to the hiring company because the freelancer is employed on a temporary basis to perform a specific task, thus they aren’t shelling out on full-time staff.

Ask any freelancer what the best element of being self-employed is and they will tell you that it’s because they can pick their hours and work from any location they desire. This, for the main part is true. You may occasionally be asked to contract in office or you may have a project that doesn’t let you sleep, but these tasks go hand-in-hand with the nature of freelancing and ultimately, you are in control of the success (or failure) of the project.
Personally, I feel a massive sense of achievement when I win a contract, or complete a project as a freelancer by comparison to the work I produced as an employee. I also particularly enjoy other elements of the job, such as meeting new people and travelling to new places.

It’s probably important to mention that not anybody can become a freelancer. You do need considerable experience within your industry and you need to be relatively easy going. If you’re the kind of person that relies on structure and needs to have a monthly salary paid in on the same date each month, you will probably struggle to adjust.
For me, that’s all part of the fun

This post was written by Matt Saunders, who trades under Northern Web offering web design services in and around Leeds. Matt Saunders is at Digital Week 09's Freelance Fair, Leeds, 10 November 2009.