The Ups and Downs of Working Freelance

I feel quite lucky to be able to make money from home. I can work around the children, meaning working pretty much every evening, and bring in extra income for our family. It is nice to be earning my ‘own’ money again and having a bit more financial freedom. There are lots of great things about working for yourself. There are are few downsides to it too, of course. So I’m just sharing my thoughts, for anyone thinking of steeping into freelance life.

Working Wherever You Want

As I write this post, I am sat in Wales on a little family staycation to Bluestone. All you need is your laptop and wifi and you can get on with your work. Safe to say, my laptop comes everywhere with me! When Max is at school and Chloe at nursery, I might even start working outside of home for a change of scenery. My local coffee shop, here I come 😉

The Work is Varied

Some days and weeks are busier than others; some days and weeks might be a bit quieter. But the work varies from client to client. Some topics that I write about a easy and things that I know a lot about. Others involve a bit of research or crowdsourcing. Social media management is varied, from running a Facebook competition and promoting posts to holding a Twitter chat.

Chasing Payments

For me, this is pretty much the worst part about working freelance. I was let into the freelance world gently, as to start with, all clients paid me pretty much straight away. Or at least within a few days. When you have you have to wait for a few months, then it really is the worst. It is hard to rely on for certain payments, though you’ll know you’ll get the money eventually. Some freelancers might consider something like a guarantor loan, as you know you’ll be able to pay the money back when your  invoices are paid. You have the money coming in, just not right there and then.

You Set the Schedule

This is something that I need to get better at, so it can be a bit of a double edged sword. It is great that I can work when I want. If I take holiday or a day off, though, then I don’t earn any money. I could miss out on some potentially great opportunities if I don’t check my emails every few days. So it is hard to switch off completely. I can say no to work if I have a lot on, but that is something that I find hard to do! Tips on setting a better work schedule would be much appreciated!

I Enjoy It

Perhaps I am easily pleased, as I have loved a lot of my previous jobs, but I find blogging and freelance writing satisfying and enjoyable. There are some times when I just don’t want to sit down at the laptop and write. But that is usually due to other commitments and bad planning, rather than being fed up with the work. For me, the negatives outweigh the positives and I would recommend freelance life to most people!

Are you are freelancer? What are the ups and downs for you?

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