A lot of incoming freelancers have some preconceived notions about freelancing which, if overlooked, can doom your plans. I will be soon throwing some light on what exactly is freelancing but before that here is a list of reasons for not being a freelancer.

Don’t be a freelancer if:

1. You hate your boss
It sounds a little absurd but this is a very common reason for people to leave their jobs and become a freelancer. People hate their boss, quit their jobs in frustration and plan to be a freelancer. Hating your boss has nothing to do with freelancing. Simply putting, the skills you need to hate your boss are not the ones you need to freelance. If you hate your boss then you need to think over it. Why do you hate your boss? Try to find an alternative approach towards things at your workplace. Or better find another job. But, don’t rush and quit your job just because you hate your boss. It doesn’t really quite justifies your choice to be a freelancer.

2. You think you will be your own boss
It is a common mistake to think that once you become a freelancer you will become your own boss. Remember there is nothing like being your own boss. Rather, when you get into any kind of freelancing, business or entrepreneurship, you will not have one boss but many bosses. Your every client is your boss. You are answerable and responsible to each of them. A basic rule of any business is that the Customer is the king. For you, the client is your customer. The more clients you have, the more bosses you will have. Still think you can be your own boss? Think again.

3. You are not self disciplined
Freelancing needs a lot of self discipline. Since there is no one looking over you all the time and asking you to come to the meeting room just as you are going for a cup of coffee, you are free to work at will. On the micro level it is all up to you how you want to work, where you want to work and, to a lot of extent, when you want to work. If you are not self disciplined, your are like a free beast. If you don’t put a leash on it, it will destroy your dreams. You will have to plan your actions, control your attitude and be professional.

4. You are not good at networking
As a freelancer you will have the sole responsibility to look for potential clients, interact with them, market yourself and network with people. If you are not good at networking then freelancing is not your cup of tea. If you want to grow and succeed as a freelancer you will need to network a lot. If you are not good at it then you should learn how to network. It is a slow but fruitful process. Over the time you will realize and reap the benefits of networking with people. Remember, networking is an important component of any successful business.

5. You think freelancers live a very comfortable life
I have often heard people talking to me about how comfortable I should be working as a freelancer since there are no job like boundations. People feel that freelancers are the lazy bums who don’t want to do a job and they sit at home having a very comfortable working life. Well, this is far from truth. You cannot be comfortable and successful at the same time. You have to be on your toes managing your own set of problems that are unforeseen by anyone else. You have to manage your clients, your work, your abrupt schedules, expand your market and be successful. It is not easy by any standards. Don’t be a freelancer if you want to have a comfortable life. Freelancers don’t live a comfortable life. They live a satisfied one.

6. You thought it was all about doing projects
This might be well another surprise entry in this list but it actually is a big thing that people overlook. From my personal experience there are lot of things people don’t think over before becoming a freelancer. Quite honestly, I didn’t thought about them too. But later on, you start wondering what you thought was just a small part of the whole thing. When I was doing my job I thought it is quite simple. Just go to online bidding sites or email companies that you provide xyz services, you will hear back, you do the job and get paid. But, this is just the action part. What we always overlook is the planning part. How will you get clients? How will you get projects? How will you do several projects at the same time? How will you manage your time? And moreover, you don’t want to remain just a freelancer all your life. Do you? So, how will you grow? Where will you grow? What will you grow into? What next after becoming a freelancer? And, there is a huge list of questions that you should think over before you become a freelancer.

7. You thought a Business Plan is meant for Businesses only
There is no reason why a freelancer should not have a business plan. You should have a business plan before you start your freelancing career. Freelancing is a one man business. You carry on nearly all the activities involved in any big business – Planning your target clients, reach them, make a sales pitch, manage the project, meet deadlines, delivering  the deliverables, take care of your clients, manage the finances, hire people (to lend you a helping hand), market yourself and be successful. You need to do all these as a freelancer too. So, why should you not have a business plan? You should know what are your short term and long objectives, how you plan to achieve them, how you plan to sustain yourself and how you plan to grow & succeed. And, a well thought over business plan will answer all these questions for you.

Freelancing is not easy. But, it surely is satisfying. If you want to be  freelancer for any above of the given reasons then think over it again. It is great to be a freelancer but if you have not done your homework then you will be learning things the hard way. Remember, a hasty decision to be a freelancer is a failed plan waiting to be implemented.

Filed in Freelancing on Wednesday, December 9, 2009 · 1 Comment »