As a freelancer, you get to be your own boss and say goodbye to the dreaded commute—what could be better? Well, a whole lot. Behind the facade of freedom & flexibility, many freelancers struggle with a number of challenges that just don’t get talked about. Here are 13 reasons why freelancing isn’t as freeing as it looks.
Featured Image Credit: EYECAN /Depositphotos.com.
No Paid Time Off
Many people think freelancing allows you to take a two-week vacation in Hawaii whenever you want — and sure, you can take a break if you feel like it. However, if you’re not working, you’re not earning—that means no paid sick days & no paid vacation. It’s all on you to save up for when you need a break and good luck asking the boss for some time off!
Isolation
You’ll likely feel quite lonely when you’re working from home — there’s no water cooler conversation or colleagues to grab lunch with. Instead, it’s just you and your computer—day in & day out. Such isolation can take a toll on your mental health as it makes you feel disconnected from the world. Eventually, this leads to burnout.
Difficulty in Disconnecting
When you’re freelancing, the line between work & personal life is blurred. Your home is your office so you’re tempted to answer just one more email or finish up a project late into the night. This makes it hard to truly relax & recharge—you just can’t stop going. Say goodbye to your work-life balance and social life.
Client Dependence
While it’s nice to choose who you work with, freelancers rely heavily on a few key clients and if they lose one, they’re in big trouble. This dependence creates a power imbalance that makes it hard to negotiate rates or push back on unreasonable demands. Think of it like having multiple bosses. But it’s worse because each one has their own set of expectations & deadlines.
No Employer Benefits
As a freelancer, retirement plans or professional development opportunities are practically non-existent. You’re on your own to save for retirement & invest in your own growth—it’s part of the package of being your own boss. You need to be extra disciplined about setting aside money for the future. Nobody’s going to do it for you.
Time Spent on Non-Billable Tasks
For every hour you spend doing the work you love, you’ll spend another hour on tasks you can’t bill for – like marketing yourself & invoicing. Even chasing payments is time-consuming! This rather unglamorous side of freelancing eats into your productive time and, ultimately, your earnings.
Overhead Costs
Speaking of costs, running your own freelance business forces you to cover those overheads — including office space & equipment, among other things. These expenses can be quite high—but that’s not all. Even once you’ve bought everything you need, you’re still responsible for any maintenance work & upgrades.
Payment Delays
Waiting for clients to pay invoices is never fun. Sure, some clients are great & pay on time—but others can take forever and this causes cash flow issues. When bills are due but the money’s not in yet, you’re only ever going to feel stressed — which means you’re too distracted to focus on your work.
Lack of Job Security
There’s no such thing as job security as a freelancer. Why? Because projects can end, clients can change their minds—leaving you scrambling for work. It’s quite stressful since you’re not able to truly plan for the future with any certainty. If that wasn’t bad enough, there’s also a lot of competition to deal with and you’re under pressure to stand out.
Difficulty in Scaling
Growing a freelance business is hard because you can only work so many hours in a day—and raising your rates has its limits. While a traditional business can expand by hiring more staff, freelancers usually hit a growth ceiling that’s hard to break through. There’s only so much one person can do.
Keeping Up With Industry Changes
Staying on top of industry trends & updates is all on you since there are no assigned training sessions. Instead, you have to make a conscious effort to keep your skills up-to-date. This means dedicating time (and sometimes money) to learning new tools or techniques while you’re managing your clients’ work.
Dealing With Scope Creep
Scope creep is when a project starts to grow beyond its original boundaries and it’s all too common for freelancers. For example, a client might ask for “just one more small thing”—until those small things add up to a lot of extra work. The hard part is addressing these requests without damaging the client relationship or selling yourself short.
The Challenge of Setting Rates
Another challenge is working out how much to charge. Charge too much and you might scare away potential clients—but charge too little & you’re undervaluing your work. You might even set yourself up for an unsustainable workload. Once you’ve figured out your rate, you’ll need to adjust it as you gain more experience or as the market changes. It never ends!
Disclaimer: This list is solely the author’s opinion based on research and publicly available information.
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