Why I Freelance

So why I freelance, I discuss this in the introduction to my book, Freelancing by Design, which is available from my website at alvalincreative.com slash bookstore or on Amazon.

It's currently in paperback and the ebook will be available soon.

The risk of working a full-time day job, and there is a risk to that, it feels secure.

but it is a risk.

Everyone who works for someone else, everyone who works for a company, an institution, even for the government, for an organization, is taking a risk to do so.

And that risk goes unrecognized.

Now, I've talked about the risks that freelancers take in a previous podcast.

but employees also risk.

One of the things that took me from part-time freelancing while being full-time employed into full-time freelancing was the fact that I was laid off suddenly without notice.

So employment is not necessarily secure.

One of the most obvious risks of working a full-time day job or a full-time job and only that is that one person is controlling your income source.

One person can sever ties with you.

They can fire you.

And suddenly, as happened with me, you end up with no income and you have to scramble and figure out what to do.

When you run your own business, when you freelance, you have to develop several sources of income, whether that's multiple clients or you're diversifying, doing a variety of different things.

When you have more than one source of income, you're more stable and less vulnerable.

It's less risky if you think about it.

Another thing about being employed, so let me take a quick moment to differentiate between employment and freelancing.

If you receive a regular salary, a regular paycheck on a specific predetermined schedule, and you are actually receiving net income rather than gross income because deductions are removed from your pay before it gets to you, and you receive a W-2 statement for annual income earnings for tax purposes, you are employed.

And this includes those who are gaining clients through talent agencies such as 24-7 or TopTal.

If you're receiving a W-2, you're employed.

You work for somebody else.

Freelancers receive 1099s from their clients and only under certain circumstances.

So when you are earning W-2 income, you do have a regular paycheck, you probably have benefits, and your employer is removing taxes before you even see your money.

You trade your time to earn money but some employers expect you to be available 24 7. that can interrupt your personal life and can deplete your creative energy another detriment about working a w-2 job and this is based on your employer is that you may not be able to fully express yourself because speech might be limited.