10 Things I Love About Freelancing

I spent a total of 7 years at someone else’s job. While there are some benefits to working outside the home - like health benefits, paid vacation, paid sick days - I would much rather freelance. Here are 10 of the things I love most about freelance writing.

The flexible work schedule. You can set work hours if you want to make your day more structured, but when and how long you work is totally up to you. You can work 5 hours a day, 20 hours a week if you want to.

Freedom to choose my own work. One of the things I liked least about having a boss was being given assignments I didn’t feel were good fits for me. Well, not anymore. I choose the work I do and if I get stuck with a gig I don’t like, it’s my own fault.

There’s room for all my creativity and imagination. When I started freelancing fulltime, there was a noticeable change in my thinking and writing. My vocabulary improved. I came up with tons more ideas. Hey, I even got Writer’s Brew back up and running.

I have the ability to break any income ceilings. At a 9-5, you wait for a performance review to get a raise and even then your income will only go up so much each year. As a freelance writer, I set my rates and I can increase them anytime. I have the freedom to additional revenue streams to maximize my income.

I don’t have to get up and go to work every morning. I am not a morning person. Thanks to the flexibility of freelance writing, I don’t have to force myself to be one.

I don’t have to buy “work” clothes. I still keep business casual clothing my closet because I never know when I’ll be meeting clients face to face. Maybe one day I’ll get brave enough to do some cold visits.

It’s challenging. Working for yourself isn’t the easiest thing to do, but I’m no stranger to hard work. In fact, hard work is a friend of mine. I have always loved a challenge and freelancing definitely keeps me on my toes.

It’s rewarding. There’s nothing better than getting compliments from a satisfied client. Doing work for some many people, I can easily see that my efforts are appreciated. You may get shown appreciation for your work at a 9-5, but it’s far less often.

People are impressed to find out I’m my own boss. Sometimes I’m hesitant to tell people that I’m a freelance writer because I’ve already assumed they have certain perceptions of me. When I do talk about what I do, most people are intrigued. It makes me more comfortable discussing my job.

I am location free. I can pretty much work anywhere there’s an internet connection. Sometimes, I don’t even need that. As long as I have my laptop, I can work outline some articles or blog posts

What things do you love about freelance writing?