Perfect Timing: Knowing When You’re Ready to Freelance Full Time
I could tell you that if you’re thinking about freelancing full time, then you’re already ready! Jump in! Sink or swim! Give it your best shot!
That would be not only super annoying, but incredibly unhelpful advice.
When I was weighing up the decision to dedicate more of my time to my freelance work, I read a lot of articles and found a lot of cringey advice which didn’t merit very much. Things along the above and also along the lines of:
‘There’s never a good time, you just have to go all in.’
‘If you work harder you’ll make it work.’
And my personal favourite:
‘You have to really want it.’
I’m sorry but no to all of that. The truth is, there will be a good time to go freelance full time, but it’s not a mystical universe-handing-it-to-you-on-a-plate scenario. It’s a preparation scenario. You do have to work hard but there are other variables to success too. And you can want to freelance and still hate it sometimes - it’s allowed, you have my full permission.
I’m not an advocate for sink or swim scenarios when it comes to freelancing, but I do think you have to be prepared to take measured risks. Committing to doing this full time, and doing it successfully, requires planning and preparation. I worked full-time my entire life, and did little bits of freelance on the side here and there. For the past 18 months, I’ve worked part-time and continued to build my freelance projects and clients.
Next month, I’ll be doing it full time. I’m not scared, unsure or uncertain. I’ve prepped as much as I can and now I’m actively excited about my next steps.
With a little bit of work, you can be too.
Knowing You’re Ready
Below are the three key things, I believe it’s really important to be clear on in order to be ready for full-time freelancing. They do require some work from you, but it’s valuable work, that will steer you well in the long-term.
You’re Financially Literate
The biggest concern for freelancers is making their financial ends meet. In a freelancer’s work life, it’s normal to have a feast-and-famine cycle. Certain times you will have loads of work, and other times there will be little or no work at all.
You need a clear understanding of your minimum monthly outgoings. This includes rent, bills, food and travel, but also what percentage of your income you need to put away for tax and your pension/superannuation. Then there are all the little financial things that add up. Your Spotify subscription, gym membership, credit card repayments, pet bills (if you have one, such as food and insurance), website costs, and socialising.
Drill down to what you need to earn as a minimum each month - and then save at least 6 months (more if you can) and put it aside. Use this time while you save to get sharp on budgeting, saving, and tax. Pay off as much of your debt as you can. Be honest with yourself if finance is not a strength (it isn’t for many of us) and then educate yourself.
Once you hit your savings goal, you’ll have a great safety buffer financially. Trust me on this one, knowing you can survive financially for at least 6 months removes a heap of stress.
Know Your Clients
It’s exciting to finally come to the decision that this is what you want to do with your life, but it’s also important to know how you’re going to do it - and who you’re going to do it for.
Over the years, I honed and developed my own tried and tested ways to find new clients. Through this, I have a selection of clients I’ve been working with regularly for years, a selection of new clients I work with short term, and a selection of sites I pitch one-off pieces to.
When preparing to go full time, I reviewed my client lists and made decisions about who could help me earn my minimum income per month and how I could add value to their business. Then I reached out to them and made an offer - essentially I offered a discount on the services I know they need regularly, if they made a 12month commitment to working with me.
Four of my key clients jumped at the opportunity, and now I have my minimum income covered and regular work for (hopefully!) at least 12 months. My plan is to continue pitching work to my coveted publications and any extra income will top up my savings or go into a holiday fund!
Accept the Reality
If you’ve been freelancing part time for a while, you will hopefully have a solid understanding of what to expect.
When committing full time, you need to make sure you’re not entering with rose-tinted glasses. The more realistic you are, the more resilient you’ll be when a client rejects you, doesn’t pay you, drops you, or when things go quiet. If you can reflect on the ‘worst case scenarios’ of freelancing, still feel positive and know realistically how you’ll overcome them rather than feeling scared or anxious - you’re ready for full time.
There are other variables too, of course. If you have a partner and/or children, you need to factor this in and make sure you have their support. If you’re studying, you need to think about time commitments and not over-stretching yourself.
And it’s important to remember, if you’ve got a good thing going by freelancing part-time - you don’t have to change it. The ‘hustle’ culture we’ve gotten used to consuming isn’t great for everyone and there’s no requirement to follow suite if it doesn’t you.
But, if you’ve nodded along to all of the above, and the prospect of full time freelancing actively excites you, I’d say you owe it to yourself to see where it takes you.
