“Is freelancing right for me?”
“I could never freelance full-time”
“Freelancing is hard… how does anyone live that way??”
Those are the exact questions I asked myself before committing.
Before I found Ramit’s program I had picked up a few hours here and there in various freelance gigs but had never considered going full-time. I had some incredibly frustrating client interactions that I just didn’t know how to handle and ended up convinced that freelancing was a pipe dream.
BUT every single time I had to wake up to an alarm set by someone else, the possibility of being my own boss nagged at me.
Now I have 10 freelance clients, am doing work that I enjoy thoroughly and am working with people that are WAY cooler than the folks at my day job.
At first sending out invoices felt strange but then seeing three and four digit paychecks from on-the-side work more than made up for it.
Now my friends are jealous of the work that I’m doing and constantly ask me about how they can get involved. I’ve started to turn work down (a far cry from my days of pleading for work!) and I’ve got a heck of a lot more $$$ coming in than before the program.
Here are some of the best benefits of freelancing:
You get to:
- Set your own hours
- Work with whoever YOU want
- Do meaningful and fulfilling work
- Live wherever you want
- Have the freedom to live life on your own terms
- Set the bar for achievement
- Get paid what you’re WORTH
Freelance downsides:
You must:
- Find new clients / upsell old ones / get referrals
- Have a financial buffer – There’s no “reliable” paycheck once you go full-time freelance
- Wrangle your own insurance
- Deal with quarterly taxes
So, how do you decide when to go full-time freelance? Here’s the best part – you don’t need to decide right now.
You can start freelancing on the side and when you get enough momentum you can take the leap to full-time. Heck, I’ve still got a part-time day job for insurance purposes and use the rest of my time to work for my 10 freelance clients! [update: 8/12/2010 – gone full time freelance – working from home!!]
So here’s the breakdown – if you’re ready to work for yourself, go sign up for Ramit’s course. There is so much amazing information in the free 7-day trial that I made $1000 before I even started the program!
What would you do with an extra $1000 right now?
Written by Andrew Baber+
