Want to Know Why We Freelance?

Social media platforms like Instagram help me connect with so many people from various backgrounds, including freelancers & designers like me.

Once we break the ice and began engaging in each other's posts, I won't waste time asking why some of them start freelancing.

After some interesting conversations, here are some of the reasons why people freelance!

1. Medical Reasons

I have some of them say that they need to see the doctors weekly or monthly due to chronic long-term diseases and that really makes it hard for them to maintain a full-time job.

Freelancing offers freedom with working time, thus perfect for their situation. They can just work while waiting for their doctor's appointment, or take a break when they don't feel 100%.

2. Being Laid Off

Pandemic was a make-or-break time for many people. Luckily, many were able to turn side hustles into full-time freelancing jobs due to being laid off from work.

Thanks to the internet, this was possible to do from home during the quarantine!

I myself was jobless and was desperate for an income.

Armed with business and design knowledge, I indulged myself in months of YouTube videos and online courses and then pursued freelancing as a graphic designer.

3. Side Income

Some of my acquaintances online are full-time employees in in-house companies. So they spend their weekends freelancing.

Being young, this group of people has the time and energy to execute this kind of working style. I salute them for the effort.

Me being near my 30s, I admit that that is quite hard to pull!

4. Commute Stress

Another interesting answer I got from my freelancing friend is, that they are too lazy to go through the morning commute to get to an office full of people.

It totally makes sense and I also enjoy this part of the benefit as a freelancer. I wake up, do my morning routine, and just get straight to work within the hour in peace. Such a pleasure!

In fact, depending on the type of your hustle, you can work in coffee shops, libraries, parks, near the beach, during a vacation and so much more.

Office drama? None! This brings me to my next point...

5. Office Politics

As an introvert, this is totally a huge plus. I can avoid small talks altogether, and most importantly, avoid office politics that only degrade employees' morale. As freelancers, we simply say goodbye to this toxic culture.

We are our own boss, we are the employee, and we do everything from marketing, customer services, accounting & the business task itself. There is literally no time for any drama due to the number of things we need to do!

6. Family

Some solopreneurs now entrepreneurs(with a team of staff) used to start their businesses because they quit their job to focus on taking care of their kids.

Apparently, this situation is very common among women around the world! (hats off, ladies!)

Thank goodness for the internet, online hustles make it easier for stay-at-home moms to freelance.

Bottom line

Everyone's path is different, and many of my friends think I am very brave to pursue freelancing. To be honest, I am very lucky that I have survived so far and am able to do this full-time. My friends badly want to freelance, but due to the instability of income of this working style, they can't really do it since they are the breadwinner in the family. They just can't risk the income flow for survivability.

Anyways, I hope this input sheds some light on you, to know more about freelancing. Stay tuned, and leave some comments so I can create more posts like this.