At a stage in my career where i am seriously considering freelancing (I.T. business analyst background)
Just curious to see if any members here have gone down this path, and their thoughts and feedback
One of the main considerations for me is weighing up a steady constant salary pay cheque vs potentially sporadic contract work pay cheques.
Excellent reply, thank you
My current situation is I am employed FT but am getting a lot of chatter from previous colleagues that the company they currently work in is lacking in systems and procedures, and they really need someone like me to come in and help
So my thoughts are, rather than being FT to just one company, I can freelance to several. I don't want to be in conflict at the moment by being FT to one company weekdays, and then doing work for other companies in the same industry, on the weekends.
What field are you in?
Construction b.a.
Was asking @EspressoDan, actually. But good luck! :)
I started at the end of last year. Here's what I learned:
1 - Have good contacts. At least one person who wants to throw work your way to keep the wolf from the door.
2 - Don't price too low. If you're good at what you do then you're saving a company from the expense of a full time employee and saving them a ton of time/mistakes along the way. If you take weekends, public holidays and reasonable personal holidays off a year there are a surprisingly low number of days available. If you're working half of these then the hourly/daily rate is surprisingly high. Own it and don't work for less than you're worth.
3 - If you sub-contract, only try to please one master at a time. Don't subcontract for multiple agencies, it always ends in tears.
4 - Don't be surprised to be offered permanent contracts out of freelancing. It's the best interview going. If you like a company and fancy taking the offer than go for it, but you also have the luxury of seeing if the culture/conditions of a company are right for you.
5 - If a contract seems like a pain in the ass, don't be afraid to walk away if you don't think the client has the resources to see it through - ideally just say no in the first place.
6 - With the above said, don't turn down small jobs on the off-chance that a big job might come along. Clients are actually usually happy to wait for a good freelancer. They understand what you bring and will change schedules to suit you. You have more power as a freelancer then you might think if a client wants you and appreciates what you do.