You know that feeling when you’re hustling down the street to work, and then, suddenly BAM! you slip on a banana peel and fall flat on your face, only to discover that you’re late for an important meeting?
Or when your boss gives you twenty assignments at once but all of them need to be finished yesterday? Or when a co-worker who barely says hello to you in the office asks if they can stay with you while their spouse is out of town? Yeah.
Us too. In fact, at this very moment, there’s a good chance we’re sitting in our pajamas, sipping a mug full of coffee while working from our spacious home offices (and we’ve just fed our dogs).
There are lots of reasons why freelancing is better than working a “real” job so many reasons that it would be impossible to list them all here. But we’ll give it a try anyway.
| Takeaways |
|---|
| Flexibility in working hours and location |
| Ability to be your own boss and have control over projects |
| Potential for higher earning potential based on effort and skills |
| Opportunity to pursue passion and work on projects you enjoy |
| Increased autonomy and independence in decision-making |
| Possibility of a better work-life balance |
| Greater variety of work and exposure to different industries |
| Opportunity to build a diverse portfolio of clients and projects |
| Ability to continuously learn and develop new skills |
| Potential for a more fulfilling and satisfying career experience |
The Commute
Another great benefit of freelancing is that you don’t have to worry about the commute. Whether it’s driving in traffic or waiting on public transit, there are plenty of reasons why your job might be stressing you out before you even get there.
It’s a lot easier to be productive when you’re not worried about being late or sick or tired from traveling. You can just sit down and get right to work, which makes for much better productivity levels than if you had to spend time getting ready for work each day instead of doing your job.
Building a successful freelance career requires determination, flexibility, and a strong understanding of the industry. Check out our comprehensive guide on The Reasons You Should Become a Freelancer to discover why freelancing might be the perfect path for you.
Never Having To Commute
Commuting is one of the worst parts of having a traditional job. You have to get up early, and you’re stuck in traffic or on public transit for an hour each way that’s time you could be using to do something productive or relaxing.
Plus, all those potential problems can wreck your commute: train delays, bus delays, rush hour…the list goes on. But with freelance work? No more! No more stress about getting to work on time (or not). No more worrying about missing your train/bus/plane because there was an accident on I-95/the subway lines/airport security checkpoints.
There are other benefits too: no carpooling stresses (unless someone else gets stuck in traffic); no wasted gas money; no parking fees; no tolls; and even less wasted energy spent driving around aimlessly while you hate yourself (and other drivers) for being stuck behind some jerk who won’t move over faster than five miles per hour when his lane is empty. (1)
Working From Home
There are many ways in which freelancing is better than a real job. One of the best things about freelancing is that you can work from anywhere in the world, at any time of the day. No longer do you have to leave your home or even your bed!
You can wake up, roll out of bed and start working right away while still wearing your pajamas (or even less). Freelancers often wear their pajamas to work because they look cool and comfortable!
Some people might say that this sounds like a pretty lazy way of working but I disagree with them – why should I get dressed? If staying in my pajamas means getting more done and earning more money then I’m all for it!
It also means that if need be I can listen to music or watch TV as well as eat while I’m working instead of waiting until lunchtime when everyone else eats together.
This is especially important for me because I love eating breakfast cereal during my breaks in between jobs; some days it’s all I eat!
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Flexibility
One of the biggest benefits of freelancing is flexibility. It’s not for everyone, but if you’re an outdoorsy type or just enjoy variety in your routine, freelancing lets you work from anywhere. You can choose what hours you want to work and when to take breaks.
You can work from home if that’s what makes sense for your family situation, or maybe you prefer spending time with other people and find it more productive to work outside of the home. Or maybe both!
No matter where you land on this spectrum, being able to pick up and go easily at any time means that if something comes up or someone needs help with something quick then there’s no need to worry about having no way out of a situation where they might need immediate assistance (or vice versa).
The Dress Code
You can wear whatever you want to work. If your boss doesn’t like it, he can go screw himself.
You don’t have to dress in a boring uniform or an ugly suit every day at the office. You can wear pajamas if you want! You can even go as far as wearing clothes that no one else would ever think of putting together (like camouflage and sequins).
Even if it makes no sense, as long as there is no chance of harming anyone or yourself, then go ahead and wear whatever the hell it is that makes your heart sing!
Making Your Hours
You can indeed work from anywhere in the world if you want to. But what I mean is that freelancing gives you the freedom to work when you want to and how much time you have available.
If a client wants something done by Monday afternoon but it’s Sunday night, there’s no reason not to get started on it immediately or even finish up while everyone else is sleeping!
If your client wants something changed on their website during normal business hours (9 am – 5 pm), they won’t mind if they get an email or call at 8:30 am letting them know there’s been an update made.
And whether or not clients are open for business during those hours isn’t necessarily relevant either: sometimes my clients have offices outside of North America and need me at times that don’t fit into my day job schedule (for example New Zealand).
Getting Paid More Money
The first reason is that you’ll get paid more money.
In a regular job, you may be making $15 an hour, but you could make that much in one day as a freelancer. Even if it takes longer than a day and you only earn $20 per hour instead of $30 per hour, working freelance will still net more cash in the long run.
The pay rate for most jobs has remained stagnant over time while the cost of living has increased. This means that jobs are no longer paying what they used to pay for the same work done by their employees or even less than they used to!
Tired of the traditional 9-to-5 grind? Discover the freedom and fulfillment of freelancing. Find out why many individuals are choosing the freelance lifestyle over a traditional job in our thought-provoking piece on Why I Would Rather Freelance Than Have a Job.
The Bathroom Rules
When you work for someone else, it’s not always so easy. You know that feeling when you have to go pee but can’t because your boss is watching? Or worse, that feeling when you’re in a meeting and can’t tell if the person next to you thinks it’s weird that your legs are crossed?
Well, freelancing offers a refreshing lack of bathroom anxiety just goes whenever! (You can also take naps whenever.)
If you’re ever feeling stressed out or overwhelmed by your job, freelancing will give you more time to relax and unwind. Take some deep breaths on your lunch break and listen to some music while eating at your desk—you deserve it!
Office Politics
Office politics can be stressful and frustrating. An office is a place where you spend most of your time, so it’s important to be able to get along with everyone there. Sometimes that can be difficult if there are people who cause tension or conflict. These issues may distract you from focusing on the work at hand, which makes things more difficult for everyone involved.
When I was working in an office, I remember having coworkers who were very competitive with each other.
They would often try to one-up each other in front of others and make themselves look better than others by pointing out their mistakes or weaknesses (which is never something I recommend doing). This kind of behavior doesn’t create a positive atmosphere for anyone involved!
In addition to these workplace conflicts causing stress and frustration within an office environment, they also lead employees away from their primary tasks as well which means less productivity overall throughout the day.
And this could ultimately hurt morale among those who are trying hard but aren’t receiving recognition for their efforts because they’ve been overshadowed by someone else’s accomplishments.”
Succeeding as a freelancer requires more than just talent; it also demands a set of critical skills. Discover the key skills you need to thrive in the freelance world by reading our comprehensive guide on Critical Freelancing Skills for Success. Enhance your abilities and set yourself up for long-term success in your freelance career.
Not Having To Answer To Anyone But Yourself
When you work for a company, there are a lot of people who can tell you what to do. Whether your boss is telling you how many hours or tasks to complete this week or your manager is telling you what time to start and leave each day, being told what to do isn’t always fun.
That’s why going freelance is so much better than working for an employer: because when it comes down to it, freelancers only have one person who tells them what to do: themselves!
It’s not just about having the freedom of choosing where and when they want their work done it’s also about being able to decide everything else in their lives too.
A freelancer doesn’t have anyone telling them what they can wear while working (as long as they’re dressed professionally), how many cups of coffee they should drink during the day (as long as they don’t fall asleep at their desks), or even how they should word emails with clients (as long as they’re polite).
Freelancing Offers You The Opportunity To Make Your Schedule And Be Your Boss
When you’re not working, you get to do whatever you want. It’s often more fun because freelancing allows you to make your own rules and follow your career path. You can decide when and where to work, which means that there are no hours or days off as long as the job gets done.
You aren’t tied down by a 9-to-5 schedule but can instead choose how many hours per day or week suits your lifestyle best.
If you need some extra money for Christmas shopping one year, why not take on a few extra projects? Or if a friend needs help with their business plan over the weekend, there’s no reason why they should have to wait until Monday morning for an answer!
The world of work is changing, and freelancing is at the forefront of this transformation. Dive into the future of work and explore the rise of the freelance economy with our insightful article, Freelancing: The Future of Work, and gain a deeper understanding of the evolving landscape.
Conclusion
The biggest difference between freelancing and a traditional job is being able to work from home or wherever you like, as opposed to having to set up your desk at the office every day. On top of that, because you’re not restricted by time, you can take on as many clients as you have time for.
You’ll also have more freedom over what projects you choose, and when you can work on them. This means that your days are much more in your control than they would be at an office job with an assigned schedule.
And this isn’t just about the flexibility you get paid more for it! Freelancers can set their rates, so they can make sure their income is completely separate from their cost of living.
This means that if the economy were to take a downturn or the side effects of Brexit left people struggling financially, freelancers would still be able to make a decent wage without much impact on their lifestyle in the long-run.
Freelancing also involves spending less time networking than most other jobs do but there are also fewer obstacles in the way during this process. You don’t need any particular contacts or know anyone professionally just let yourself work with whoever comes along!
The trick is simply making sure they’re good enough and keeping them engaged through solid communication and helpful feedback throughout the project. Only after this does it become necessary for them to contact someone else who might have further contacts (think: referrals).
As long as both parties are happy with the relationship (and don’t end up working together again), everything is fine!
Freelancers spend less time performing administrative tasks such as paperwork filing too; it’s all online these days anyway, so there’s never too much admin involved anyway!
And finally as was already stated above it allows for greater flexibility than a normal
Further Reading
Here are some additional resources to explore the topic of freelancing and its advantages:
Why Freelancing Is Better Than a Job: Top 5 Reasons: Discover the top five reasons why freelancing can offer a better alternative to traditional employment.
Why Freelancing Is a Smarter Option Than Traditional Employment Today: Learn why freelancing is considered a smarter choice in today’s ever-changing job market.
Reasons Freelancing Is the Future of the Work Industry: Explore the reasons why freelancing is seen as the future of the work industry and how it’s shaping the way we work.
FAQs
Here are some frequently asked questions about freelancing:
Q: What are the advantages of freelancing over traditional employment?
A: Freelancing offers benefits such as flexibility in working hours, being your own boss, and the potential to earn more based on your efforts.
Q: Is freelancing a viable career option?
A: Yes, freelancing can be a viable career option for those who have the necessary skills, self-discipline, and ability to find clients or projects consistently.
Q: How do freelancers find clients or projects?
A: Freelancers can find clients or projects through various means, including networking, online freelancing platforms, referrals, and establishing an online presence through a portfolio or website.
Q: What challenges do freelancers face?
A: Freelancers may face challenges such as inconsistent income, self-motivation, managing multiple clients or projects, and securing long-term contracts or clients.
Q: How can freelancers manage their finances and taxes?
A: Freelancers should keep track of their income and expenses, set aside money for taxes, and consider consulting with an accountant or tax professional to ensure compliance with tax regulations and maximize deductions.
What kind of jobs are out there?
The possibilities are limitless! You can work as a writer, editor, translator, designer, developer, and even virtual assistant (VA). The best part is that all of these jobs can be done online from anywhere in the world.
How Do I Get Started?
A: First, you’ll need to sign up for an account on Upwork or Freelancer (or both). From there, you can search for jobs that interest you and apply accordingly. You can also post your job posting if you want to hire other freelancers.
Do I Need Any Special Skills?
Not necessarily but it depends on what type of work you want to do. If you’re looking for web development work or graphic design work, then yes you’ll need some skills in those areas. However, if all you want to do is write articles or blog posts, then no experience is necessary at all!
Costantine Edward is a digital marketing expert, freelance writer, and entrepreneur who helps people attain financial freedom. I’ve been working in marketing since I was 18 years old and have managed to build a successful career doing what I love.