These days more and more people are making a living as freelancers. The rise of the internet has been a great boon for this type of employment. If the trend continues there will likely be a lot more people with this type of employment in the future; it is generally agreed that there are both advantages and disadvantages to this way of working.
So what is a Freelancer?
A freelancer is an individual who is self employed and will offer their services to others. There are many forms of freelancing but the most common types include; writers, photographers, computer programmers, graphic designers, and editors. When a business hires a freelancer they don’t employ them as a member of their staff, but instead just pay for a temporary service. In recent years there has been a huge increase in the number of companies that outsource a lot of their work to these kinds of worker.
The Advantages of Freelancing
A business can benefit in many ways by choosing freelancers to do certain types of tasks. It is particularly useful if a service is only needed for a short amount of time; it just would not make sense to employ a photographer if you only need this type of service a few times a year. The other great advantage of freelancing is that it means that businesses can save a lot of money; they just have to pay for the service without having to worry about employee benefits.
Freelancers choose this type of employment because it is viewed as providing many advantages over other types of employment. They can more or less choose their own hours and there is no boss looking over their shoulder. The individual is also usually able to set their own rates and may earn a lot more money than somebody who is employed directly by a company. The other nice thing about freelance work is that it is usually possible to work from home.
The Disadvantages of Freelancing
As well as the many advantages there are also some disadvantages associated with freelance work. The fact that the business is relying on outside help means that they are going to probably going to expect less loyalty from the freelancer. It is also likely that the freelancer will lack a lot of knowledge about the way the management likes things done as they are not members of the team.
Doing this type of work means it is less secure than an employee in a company because there is no obligation to keep on providing them with work. As a freelancer you have to work to eat and there are no employee benefits to fall back on. The fact that there is no boss for motivation means that they rely on self-motivation where this is lacking there can be problems making a living. The fact that there are quite a few drawbacks to freelancing means that it is probably not a good option for everyone. A lot of people seem to thrive better in an environment where their employment is more secure and regimented.