Why freelancing is the future

The global economy and work structure has gone under so much transposition, that it has become unrecognizable to what the structure of employment, labour and working was even as near to as 50 years ago. Previously, companies used to hire an employee who would work for them for nearly 25 to 30 years before retiring from the company as well as their work life completely. Now this scenario has become very uncommon. On an average, a worker may generally have worked at, at least 5 to 10 places before they come towards their retirement phase. The shift in the trend is really phenomenal.

With the onset of a worldwide pandemic, it surely turned the economy and working trends of the whole planet even more upside down. Pandemic forced us to replace our office cubicles with our dining tables at home, or even the bed for a lot of us! The work style took a drastic shift from being on site to now working from a remote location. And as the days passed, what felt like a very new and temporary change in working style, has now become an accepted and recognized form of working - Working from Home. During this eventual shift, there was a sudden yet foreseeable increase in a relatively new type of employment that we have known as Freelancers.

Freelancers, or as many media houses like to refer to it as - ‘gig economy’ has started gaining momentum over these past few months. As per a few reports, two million Americans and almost 1.5 million Indians have started freelancing in the past 15 months. “Freelancing in the United States has gone up 8% in the last three years and statistics show that by 2027, over half the workforce is going to be either independent consultants or freelancers” said a Forbes study. This shift in the working landscape has impacted almost all the industries including retail, manufacturing, etc. None of the industry was anticipating it, but everyone seems to be well receiving it. So much that it would not be wrong to call Freelancing - the new normal.

Benefits of working as a Freelancer :

1. Flexibility.

Right from choosing the clients and companies you want to work for, to even deciding your working hours, is the range of flexibility you have at your disposal. Work when you feel the most productive and take a break when you feel like it. You define and decide everything.

2. More volume in opportunities

Have you ever felt bored of working on the same kind of project or doing the same kinds of tasks assigned to you? If yes, then freelancing could be the perfect getaway for you, because here you get to choose which kinds of clientele and projects you want to work with, belonging to which domain, and field of the industry. The ball is always in your court to choose the projects or the field you want to work in. Having not only limited jobs in your city but doors are open for any place. if you want to stop working with a certain client or are bored of working in a particular field.

3. Gain more experience and broaden your skill set

When you get to choose your work and category of work, you basically can make a full fledged fruit basket for yourself, that comprises different types and varieties of fruits. You do not have to stick to eating apples only, you could eat a banana, a mango, a pineapple, whatever you feel like. Freelancing with different companies of different sectors allows you to explore that sector as you are involved in it practically. This helps you gain more exposure and broaden your range of skills over the period of time, as there is a variety. A lot of young professionals use freelancing as a medium to work on their passion and satisfy their creative instincts, without it being a burden. As you get to define your workload and working hours.

4. Financial freedom

If you are a student and have a particular skill, you could freelance and take up work gigs and contracts in their particular domain. It not only helps you explore and polish your skills, but also earn you money, thus leading to financial freedom at a young age. For individuals already working, freelancing could be a sound source of side income. Having multiple sources of income is always beneficial and a good personal financial goal. You have no upper limit to the number of projects you can undertake, thus earning via freelancing is limitless. A source of income apart from your primary gives a good financial cushion.

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