On May 19, at 12.15 at the Queen Street Commons 224 Queen Street, we start a short lunchtime series on Living the Freelance Life. I thought that this week I would talk a bit about the issues that I confronted.
Back in 1994, I had only ever had a job. That was true for most people. I could have no idea what working on my own might be like. Only one person I knew did that. I could not imagine what not having a job would be like.
Well I think Freelancing is moving from being rare to common. Not having a job will be the new normal for many. But what is it really like to Freelance? There can be no manual for being a Freelancer is different in detail for all of us. We hope that our stories will ring a bell for you - show you that pattern - answer your questions.
To set up our meetings, I will talk a bit about these issues this week. But I would like to begin with what being a Freelancer means to me now. I can sum it up with one word - Freedom.
Yes I worry about money sometimes, about where the next gig will come from. But I could never go back to having a job. I used to worry then about losing my job anyway and I had cause to fear, because I did not know then how to live without one.
What is Freedom?
Freedom for me is having control over my time and hence my life. I almost never have to go some place as a matter of routine. My commute, to the room next to my bedroom. Office hours, when I want them to be. Yes some times I am very busy, but that is about a project not my daily life. Freedom means that not only can I be here when the plumber comes, but also when my kids come or off to see them when I want.
Freedom is that I live my life with my wife and family. I walk the dogs, mow the lawn, go shopping, start, finish when I want. I dress as I want. I eat when I want.
These days, I choose the work I want. I only do work that is stimulating. I only work with people that I like. I only attend meetings that are going to help the work get done or that will hep me get to know people better. I never worry about where I am in the organization. Is my star rising or falling?
I chose where I live. I live in rural Prince Edward Island. I don't have to be close to the people that I work with. I don't need endless face time with my clients. But I do have deep friendships with my clients and with my freelance colleagues. Often my work is like an adventure story. We don't know how it will end up. In my field of exploring how the web will affect the world, we cannot know the answers. Like explorers we go on expeditions.
The feelings are very intense. Real friendships are the outcome and are the larger reward than the money. Talking about money...
Being self employed I have a lot of flexibility about how I manage money. More of it stays in my pocket. We run several little businesses. We don't put all our eggs in one basket. I also have a core of close clients that are in a sort of rotation. Every few years, there is more work to do. So structurally I am more secure than if I had a job with one pay check.
Even the worry about will I get a gig is diminished over time. I have set my costs up so that I need very little money anyway. 15 years of experience tell me that, like a hunter, the game will come and the plants will grow berries.
Having a very low costs base is crucial to my sense of freedom. Col John Boyd said that the only way to be free was either to be very rich or not to need money. It is of course much easier to design your life to not need a lot. I will talk more about this later.
I could never go back to being dependent on one person or one organization. So this is where I have landed. It did not happen overnight and I made a lot of mistakes before I found the best approach for me. Mine is also not the only way. It is my way. On May 19 you will hear of several others as well.
So tomorrow I will talk about how to leave a job well and how to set your self up as a new Freelancer
Here are the dates and the deal - all sessions are at 12.15 and last for an hour. They are at the Queen Street Commons - 224 Queen Street - The cost is $10 per session or $25 for the 4 sessions and a 1 month trial membership of the Commons
- Tuesday May 19 - How do get started?
- Tuesday June 2 - How do I afford to have a team - how does my support system work?
- Tuesday June 16 - Marketing and Pricing
- Tuesday June 30 - Managing your clients and your life
You can book by sending an email here info@queenstreetcommons.org
