Going freelance…

[paisley108]

I’m currently on maternity leave, due to return to work in a couple of months. My employer has always been great with flexibility, which I need as a working mum. However, since I’ve been away, new management have taken over and the flexibility is being stripped.

I’m challenging it but even if successful, it doesn’t seem like a nice place to work anymore. They’ve been rather horrible to me whilst I’ve been on mat leave. Colleagues have also kept me updated on how bad it’s become.

It’s so hard to find work that fits around childcare and school. My husband has some flexibility but due to the nature of his work, it’s limited. We have no family or support network.

I’m considering going freelance so that I have some control over the hours I work. I’d consider myself an expert in my field (project management / project support) as I’ve done it for many years in large organisations and am qualified.

It feels very risk as we’re reliant on my income to survive. My husband’s income alone isn’t enough. I’d also lose some good benefits like private health insurance. However, if it works, it could be amazing.

Has anybody ever done this? I’ve been looking at freelance websites like people per hour. I’d also update my LinkedIn and use that for networking.

I’ve got about 4/5 months wages worth of savings that could see me through. I’ve factored in having to pay back mat leave money to my employer.

I should add that I know freelancing is hard work, and that any work is restricting. I don’t expect to be able to be at home with the kids and work at the same time. But being able to manage my own hours and do school runs, or make it to school assemblies etc, would make all the difference.

Thanks for reading :)

I went freelance and eventually started my own small business. Never looked back. But you need to be prepared to work insanely long hours, at least to start with. Remember that on top of the work you're doing you'll also have to be putting considerable time into marketing yourself.

Once you're established you'll get work from word of mouth - if you're good enough. Good luck.

Thanks so much. Do you mind me asking where you got the majority of your work
from when starting out, please? Appreciate your field may be completely different though!

It'll be very industry specific as to whether it's a mad or sensible idea.

My industry has been predominantly freelance for 25 years or more, but has shrunk massively since Covid. Income and work used to be very regular, and I rather took that for granted. Now projects keep getting cancelled with no notice, fees are being driven down and down, and loads of people are getting very little work. I would never in a million years recommend anyone starting out as a freelance in my industry right now. We are being treated appallingly. The younger ones are changing career. Us oldies are hanging on by our fingertips.

Your industry may be very different. But if there's any chance that AI or other headwinds will start to mess with it, I'd be wary if you are the main earner. How easy would it be to go back in-house after a few months/years if it didn't work out?

Having said that, it's a godsend when kids are young. I was very lucky to have that flexibility as well as a satisfying career.

Re getting clients, it used to just kind of happen - an introductory email, one 'get to know you' meeting, and then lots of work. The odd email to past clients if I had a gap in the diary coming up. Now, as well as that, I have to do endless posting on LinkedIn talking about interesting projects etc to remind clients I exist. Quite time-consuming and tedious - I'm not a natural social media person, don't really like public sharing - but needs must, and not everyone hates all that stuff as much as I do.

Go back to your current employer and quietly quiet/ get managed out to avoid paying mat leave back
whilst exploring your other options

I’d look very carefully at how much work is out there. I’m not a PM but went freelance last year. I’ve gained most work so far from referrals from ex colleagues and some from LinkedIn. I use LI to share regular content and market myself. I also meet my network for coffees etc and go to industry events to meet contacts.
It does give some flexibility definitely but if you’re not working you’re not being paid, so maybe not as much as some people envisage. If I’m working for a client I don’t feel I can always pop out to school events for example.
Personal admin - invoicing and if necessary accounting for a limited company etc can also take time.
If you go back to work is there a possibility they’d make you redundant? That would give a potentially larger financial buffer.

Good luck.

I’ve run my own business for 25+ years, freelanced first. Looking out at the market right now I would 100% stay employed.

I’m creative industry and the market is flooded with freelancers who are all accidentally freelancing as they are out of work.

So to leave a paid job to join the masses of other PMs who have lost jobs all fighting for the same contracts sounds like madness to me.

Id let the dust settle and keep hold of paid work for at least the next 2-3 years and then start to scope out and research the marketplace and budgets and how much you could really earn. It’s horrid out there right now so I’d stick tight if I had a job.

I moved into freelancing a few years ago and I wouldn't change anything but I would think about it very carefully. Some things to consider.

• With a limited company you would probably pay yourself a small tax efficient salary and then take dividends. You may well have a few months of not being able to pay yourself a salary and then potentially only take dividends at the end of the year. I'd suggest having a full year of income in savings to see you through.
• Will your projects be big or small? If big you lose some of the independence and freedom you want but if small you'll have a lot more work to put in to find enough projects.
• Is your contact network big enough and can you maintain it i.e. can you go to industry events as a freelancer. Are the events expensive?
• If you are the main earner in your house what happens if you do take a hit on income. Can you reduce your outgoings or would it compromise your mortgage etc.

Overall I'd say it's a great life but it might be stressful if mortgages depended on your income. Can you save a years salary and then gove yourself a year to trial it and see if you can make it work?