6 Major Disadvantages Of Becoming A Freelancer
What is the first thing you think of when you imagine going freelance? For most, it’s one of the many advantages, such as the unlimited income potential or the flexible schedule. These benefits make going freelance an incredibly attractive idea, especially when your boss or work, in general, is getting you down.
However, like most other things in life, this venture is not without its downsides. If you’re thinking of taking the plunge, here are six disadvantages you must consider.
1. Poor Work-Life Balance
Most assume that being your own boss offers a better work-life balance than traditional work. Unfortunately, this is far from the truth. Because you tend to work at home, it becomes difficult to distinguish between your personal life and work time. This is especially true when handling inconsistent workloads. That being said, https://medium.com does offer some helpful advice.
2. The Initial Cash Investment
Like most other businesses, your freelancing venture may require an initial cash investment to get it up and running. This may be used to pay for office equipment, computer software, office supplies, insurance, and other must-haves. You’ll also need to invest in marketing to find clients. You can find funding to cover these costs, but, to avoid debt, many choose to save up instead.
3. A Lot Of Legwork
Working a traditional job means that projects are handed to you when you walk in the door. This isn’t the case for freelancers. You’ll have to find your own work, as well as wear lots of hats, including accounting and marketing. Thankfully, there are professionals out there, such as http://www.sabioit.com/ to lend a hand. They will manage your IT services, saving you the job.
4. Income Can Be Irregular
Your freelancing income depends entirely on the work that you do. This means that, if you don’t or can’t find any work for a while, you won’t get paid during this time. This inconsistency and instability can make it difficult for you to pay bills or prepare for the future. To boost your financial security, you should start to build an emergency fund to cover expenses when you’re out of work.
5. Lack Of Employee Benefits
Working for an employer means that you’ll receive certain benefits. Depending on the company, these could include paid days off, health insurance, overtime pay, and more. When you work for yourself, however, you’ll receive none of these, which can increase your living costs. With that in mind, you should aim to earn more than your previous income to combat these expenses.
6. Always Working By Yourself
Most freelancers work at home, which means that you’ll spend your working days completely alone. Although this does have its advantages, it can also get quite lonely, leaving you feeling isolated. To remedy this, you should make more of an effort to get out of the house each day. Head to the gym, grab a coffee, or just go for a walk, and try to speak to people along the way.
Freelancing is great, but it definitely isn’t easy. Before you jump into the life, you need to decide whether the positives truly outweigh the negatives.
