The Future of Work - It's not a Bed of Roses

In this newsletter we’re dedicated to helping our free-spirited freelancing community of readers benefit from the possibilities that the future of work is opening-up with practical insights, news and advice. That also means acknowledging the lifestyle challenges and not simply painting a rosy picture. In this issue we’ll focus on the often unexpected stresses of going solo as an entrepreneur or freelancer.

The future is ours ;-)

First, some of the very good news. If you’re looking into freelancing full time or simply getting some gig work, you are part of a much bigger shift that isn’t about to be reversed as the pandemic ends. Employers attitudes to the location of work (not just the office) and ‘shape’ of work (not just full time) have shifted dramatically. Airbnb said that employees could work from anywhere with no pay cut and announced “The office as we know it, is over" prompting an 800,00 person stampede to their job site. The scale of change is staggering. The Economist noted that the amount of people taking at least one gig job per week in the UK skyrocketed from?5.8%?in 2016 to?14.7%?in 2021. Before the pandemic 5% of work in America was done remotely and 27% of employers offered flexible hours while today the numbers are 40% and 88% respectively.

Workaholic white male corporate leaders of all varieties may not all like it much (including you Elon), but the power of marketplace dynamics and technology means that attitudes, expectations and contracts have all endured a forced Ctrl+Alt+Shift?experience. In a recent Korn Ferry survey, nearly a third (32%) of professionals said they don’t think they’ll ever go back into the office full time. 74% say they have more energy and focus working from home instead of the office, so it’s easy to work out why they’re not keen on returning. 49% of professionals say they would turn down a job offer if the company mandated that they go into the office full-time. Women and younger people feel the same way, just more strongly.

So, it’s hardly a surprise to learn that in the US there have never been so many un-filled positions . The pandemic has been a time for reflection, reassessment and deciding that there really was no need to go back to the ‘same old shit’ when you can earn a decent living chilling at home with your cat on your lap. The ‘workforce’ has discovered it has?its own market force and real alternatives. Freelance marketplaces have opened-out the possibility of quickly finding decent-paying gigs and remote work. Meanwhile all part of the tech economy, from software development to gaming and jobs in delivery have fully embraced this transactional way to get the job done.?

Add to this the enormous uptake of remote, low cost on-line study/learning courses and ways to learn new skills on-line and we can also see that freelancers can also quickly up-skill themselves to fit an ever-changing economy. Upwork notes that 44% of freelancers say they earn more freelancing than with a traditional job, up from 32% in 2019, so there is more positivity about the future and apparently less of the downside expectation when it comes to trading-in a fixed role for freelance freedom.

Let’s not be in denial about very real challenges?

The bad news is that adjustments to freelance working can be tough and won’t suit every kind of character. There are many reports of unexpected and multiple stresses that come with going solo. Let’s not forget that with employed staff in the UK stress accounts for 37% of all work-related bad health and 45% of working days lost. So, stress is a significant factor in all our working lives and accounts for almost half of days off. Freelance life stresses may not about the boss, being mobbed or hating the corporate culture, but they can be every bit as unpleasant and without any corporate support you’ll need to find your own tools for coping. What are the main stress-inducing challenges???

No work-life balance:?

10 hours of constant Zoom calls and then incoming late-night e-mails that expecting immediate responses? When trying to demonstrate value and commitment to a client a lot of freelancers complain that they become more of a work slave than when employed. All the round-the-clock access remote working tools provide can mean there’s no down time, even if you’re at home. So, is it very old school to call a halt and set boundaries??

The only answer to this is to set out clear ground rules at the start of any engagement to establish what’s ‘normal’ and covered in a description of work hours, response times and any personal needs. Having your own rules is a sign of self-worth and professional discipline. It’s your corporate policy and you’re allowed to define it. Polite but semi-formal notes explaining how you work should do the trick. When necessary, just add the relevant personal information (your family commitments, sleep time and heavy addiction to late night Netflix ;-). And remember that pricing is a tool for enforcing considered and good behaviour – so if you’re being expected to work 18 hour days or late nights, the price is not the same as an 8 hour day. The opposite party knows that too, so stick to your guns. In short, it may feel awkward, but the earlier you get it out, the better.?

Loneliness:

For someone who’s always been in an office or other team work environment, it can feel mighty lonely to be at home with your laptop drumming up work. No kitchen coffee-making chat or after-work drinks. No feedback, no sharing. All alone…

The antidote to those draining and negative feelings are to re-create the mechanisms you appreciated and feel in need of. Missing peer chat? Set-up your own Linked-in Group and create a virtual peer group. Missing professional feedback? Arrange group discussions for the forum on the topics you struggle with, or fix meeting places for others like you who want peer contact and dialogue. You’re not the only one with no interest in commercial returns when you join a community. It’s also worth remembering that it’s sometimes very useful to build informal commercial alliances with people in your sector. People to discuss leads with and team-up with for project work, without necessarily forming a legal partnership.

The other critical tool is to establish balancing and compensating mechanisms that help maintain your mental wellness. Don’t stay all day at your laptop. Get out and do a variety of sports, in social settings. If you must be on the laptop all day, make some of it at a café.

The stress of irregular income:

The reality of freelance can mean swings from famine to feast. For former salary workers the first famine is a real trauma that’s hard to live with, especially for those with high fixed out-goings and dependents. There is no one size fits all solution, just a need to pre-plan, prepare and utilize network power.?There are some practical solutions to reduce the stress. First, reach-out to freelancers in your space and ask them about their early days and the seasonality of work. Most people will share more info than you expect because you’re rarely in absolutely direct competition. But get multiple views, and also talk to client prospects about the regularity of their needs. Secondly having worked out the likely seasonality and regularity of work make sure you budget for it with a savings buffer allowing for at least 3 ‘zero income’ months. It’s less stress to be spending less than to worry about paying credit card debt. Third, remember that there is no shame in taking employed work for a period of time, or lower-skilled gigs. No one has to know and if it’s enabling you to build-up your freelance client portfolio over time, it’s not a sell-out but an enabler. Last but not least, remember to market yourself non-stop, in good times and in slow times and to make it a discipline of getting references from happy existing customers. The wider your client contact base, the more choice you have and the fewer the lean times will come around.?

This is a profound issue for many, so we’ll come back to different aspects of this topic in future issues and share resources we think can help. Going freelance is a wise choice for most. But to beWise as a long-term freelancer remember that you may have to create all the support you need!

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