Jun 5, 2026 · 26 min · 10 segments
Do you tend to avoid risk or prefer to go for it? No one can build a business without taking risks, and freelancers — expecially freelance creatives — deal with specific types of risks. If we don't…
Alvalyn LundgrenHost
So five risks that you as a freelance creative will have to address if you want to build a thriving and sustainable business.
Let's start with the most obvious, especially if you've been employed by someone else and you earned a steady paycheck.
Shifting into earning profits as an independent business owner, there's a risk there.
So leaving a salaried job means you're going to give up the certainty of a regular monthly income.
The proverbial feast and famine cash flow cycle is a reality, especially early on.
And you have to learn to manage your finances so that you can sustain yourself through dry spells.
Freelancers who end up thriving and growing their businesses over time build financial buffers and price their work to account for the gaps in income.
And that basically means that they acknowledge that there's a feast or famine cycle.
And they do everything they know to do to mitigate it, means lessen its impact.
One of the things that you can do to lessen the impact is to budget for fluctuating income.
And I've written an article about that on my blog and also have an earlier podcast episode specifically dealing with how do you budget on a unsteady income.
Another strategy is to start freelancing part-time in order to build a clientele to build a consistent income before launching into freelancing on a full-time basis.
So keep your day job, keep that steady paycheck, but then also start freelancing on the side.
If you're currently employed and you want to start freelancing on the side, review your contract to know that you are able to do that.
So five risks that you as a freelance creative will have to address if you want to build a thriving and sustainable business.
Let's start with the most obvious, especially if you've been employed by someone else and you earned a steady paycheck.
Shifting into earning profits as an independent business owner, there's a risk there.
So leaving a salaried job means you're going to give up the certainty of a regular monthly income.
The proverbial feast and famine cash flow cycle is a reality, especially early on.
And you have to learn to manage your finances so that you can sustain yourself through dry spells.
Freelancers who end up thriving and growing their businesses over time build financial buffers and price their work to account for the gaps in income.
And that basically means that they acknowledge that there's a feast or famine cycle.
And they do everything they know to do to mitigate it, means lessen its impact.
One of the things that you can do to lessen the impact is to budget for fluctuating income.
And I've written an article about that on my blog and also have an earlier podcast episode specifically dealing with how do you budget on a unsteady income.
Another strategy is to start freelancing part-time in order to build a clientele to build a consistent income before launching into freelancing on a full-time basis.
So keep your day job, keep that steady paycheck, but then also start freelancing on the side.
If you're currently employed and you want to start freelancing on the side, review your contract to know that you are able to do that.
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