A Simple Definition Of Freelance Work [& How It Works]

Not everyone is a team player, and not everyone likes to take orders from someone who’s supposed to be more experienced than them. There’s no shame in that, and that’s why freelancing exists.

Being a freelancer means that you’re your boss. You get to decide what to do and when you do it. However, you also have to be responsible for everything from finding work to marketing your service.

In this guide, we’ll have an in-depth look at freelancing. Let’s start with the freelance work definition.

Freelance Work Definition: What Does Freelancing Mean?

Freelance work is a job a freelancer provides to a client on a per-project basis. The work is often a specialized form of service—for example, a freelance graphic designer who offers designs, layouts, and illustrations.

You can become a freelancer if you have a particular skill you want to leverage to earn income. By then, you’re considered an independent contractor or a self-employed person who can work with multiple clients.

As a freelancer, you’ll often seek clients and market your work yourself. That makes it a bit harder to maintain a stable income if you don’t manage to find clients. Still, if done right, freelancing could be more lucrative than working as an employee.

Freelance Work vs Traditional Work

Freelance work has a few similarities and differences to full-time employment.

Similarities

Here are the similarities between freelance work and traditional work:

You Need a Certain Skill

Both employees and freelancers must possess specific skills if they want to succeed in their respective careers.

For example, an employee working at a marketing company should be knowledgeable of market trends and ad campaigns.

Meanwhile, having more specialized skills, like graphic designing or content writing, allows the worker to seek clients online and get freelancing opportunities.

You Need Commitment

Despite having different time schedules, employees and freelancers must commit to the work at hand. If the work isn’t finished on time, you risk getting your payment deducted.

You Need to Improve Yourself

Whether a freelancer or an employee, you have to get ahead of the competition to prove to your employer/client that you’re better than your peers.

If you don’t keep up with the pace, you risk losing your employer/client.

You Need to Pay Taxes

Some people may think that if you work on your own, you won’t owe any taxes, which isn’t true. Freelancers do pay taxes, but it’s a bit more complicated to pay taxes as a freelancer compared to an employee.

Differences

Here’s how freelance work is different from traditional work:

Payment

While both types of work will eventually pay, the frequency of such payments differs.

Employees can get paid weekly, biweekly, or monthly. This often depends on their contact.

Meanwhile, freelancers get paid when their project is finished. They often receive a downpayment to begin the project and get the rest of the payment by the end.

Work Hours

The difference in work hours is arguably the biggest one. While employees are required to check in their work at fixed times during workdays, freelancers can work at any time they feel like.

However, the freelancer will have a deadline. It’s up to their time management skills to finish their freelance projects before the deadline to avoid deductions.

Benefits

Employees often get insurance and entertainment benefits, which a freelancer usually doesn’t get.

However, some clients do provide some benefits to their trusted freelancers if they want them to keep working with them for a certain amount of time.

These benefits aren’t as inclusive as traditional work. They’re often in the form of a retention bonus, which is a sum of money that companies provide to a freelancer with a written contract to ensure the services of that freelancer for an agreed-upon period.

Taxes

While freelancers and employees pay taxes, the way they do so is different.

Employees get tax deductions from their salary. Once an employee is paid, they no longer have to worry about paying taxes because their employer has already paid their dues.

Freelancers, on the other hand, have to file their taxes and then pay the IRS by themselves.

Types of Freelance Jobs

Freelancers of all ages can work a variety of jobs.

Freelance Jobs for Students

Students can engage in multiple entry-level freelancing jobs that they can learn quickly. Here are a few:

• Freelance writing
• Virtual assistants
• Translators/interpreters
• Search engine evaluators
• Trainers (personal trainers, fitness trainers, sports coaches, etc.)

Freelance Jobs from Home

Freelance jobs that people utilize as a primary income source from home are often a bit more sophisticated. These include but aren’t limited to:

• Developers
• Coaches
• Photographers/videographers
• Graphic designers
• 3D animators

How Are Freelancers Paid for Their Work?

Freelancers are remote workers, which is why they’re often paid via online transactions like bank account transfers.

In most cases, freelancers are given a down payment first. They’re then allowed an agreed-upon amount of time to work on their project. Once they finish, the rest of the money is paid.

If the freelancers are using online platforms like Upwork and Fiverr, they may have to accumulate a certain amount of money and withdraw every week.

How Do You Find Freelance Work?

There are various ways to find freelance work. Here are some of them:

Freelancing Platforms

Freelancing platforms are everywhere. Upwork, Fiverr, Toptal, Freelancer.com, and Guru are all examples of platforms where you can find job postings.

Networking

Networking is among the harder methods to find freelance work, but it’s also one of the methods where you can get to know your clients closer before you start working.

Talk to the people you know, get into online communities and groups, and look around your neighborhood to see if someone would be interested in your services.

Social Media

Social media like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube are full of job postings that require freelancers.

You just have to find the right people who are looking for the services you provide and try to stand out among all other applicants.

Portfolio Site

Having a portfolio is one of the best methods to showcase your work and prove to your clients that you mean business.

Clients in some platforms like Upwork sometimes don’t even look at applicants who don’t have a portfolio.

Advertisements

You may advertise your services through the internet by using ad campaigns, paid advertisements, and social media.

It’s important to understand that advertisements may take a considerable chunk of your income in the beginning. Accordingly, you must set aside a monthly budget just for ads.  

Is Freelance Work Worth It?

The short answer is yes. Freelancing has many advantages over employed work, especially if the freelancer can consistently land clients and generate income.

Pros

Here’s why it can be a good idea to become a freelancer:

Independence

You don’t have a boss while working as a freelancer. If you don’t like a client for any reason, you may politely decline their work without worrying about consequences.

That’s something you can’t do with traditional work.

Flexibility

No longer do you have to wake up early and go to work every day at fixed times.

Freelancing has the massive advantage of allowing you to work anytime and anywhere. As such, you’ll have much more control over your work-life balance.

Scalability

You often start as a lesser-known freelancer who barely lands a job every once in a while.

With time and consistency, your services may get big enough that you’ll need to recruit other freelancers to cope with the amount of work you have.

The better you are at your work, the more scalable your business can become.

Variety

Some freelancing skills allow you to land more than one type of job. For example, those who are bilingual can work as teachers, translators, writers, and content editors.

Cons

The freelance business has its fair share of cons that may not suit some people. These include:

Uncertainty

Being a freelancer, you don’t have a fixed employer. Some of your usual clients may decide suddenly that they no longer need your services, which could land a hard hit on your income.

As such, it’s up to you to secure enough clients to keep your work and income at the level you demand.

Client Issues

All freelancers know the dread of facing clients with unrealistic expectations. You get provided with a massive task in a short time. Soon after you somehow manage to finish it, the client would request unreasonable edits.

Clients who disappear mid-project are also on the list of client issues.

As a freelancer, you’ll have to accept the fact that you’ll deal with these. It’s not a matter of if it happens, it’s when it happens.

Sole Responsibility

Being a freelancer makes you responsible for everything. That includes learning new skills, finding clients, marketing for yourself, self-employment tax, and improving your craft to keep up with the market.

Lack of Benefits

In most cases, working as an independent contractor doesn’t allow you to get any benefits from clients other than getting paid.

Money may be important, but life is getting expensive, especially in the medical department. As such, you’ll have to pay for health insurance yourself.

Conclusion

Freelancers have the flexibility to set their times, make their schedules, and learn the skills they love. That gives a huge earning potential if the freelancer knows what they’re doing.

However, having to find clients, taking responsibility for everything, and having no benefits are things to keep in mind before becoming a freelancer.