I recently – without flinching – turned down a full-time job. It was well paid, in line with my interests and, all extras aside, a pretty good job. But when asked if I wanted to sign on the dotted line, it was a no-brainer to stick with my self-employed status.
I'm not the only one who values flexibility over to a traditional 9-to-5; freelance work is currently at an all-time high, reaching 4.6 million in February 2016. By 2020, freelancers will make up over 40% of the total workforce.
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Of these, a large percentage should be women. A recent study found that of the 1.88 million self-employed in the UK, 40% are women. Between 2009 and 2014, the number of self-employed women in the UK grew almost three times faster than that of men.
Furthermore, while self-employment was previously seen as a last resort, increasingly Plus, men and women of all ages consider it the most preferable option. A recent study by Contently, a tech company and network of freelance creators, concluded that despite the complexities of freelancing – salary instability, lack of benefits, etc. – 76 percent of freelancers do it because they want to, citing independence, flexibility and greater opportunity as the top deciding factors.
“I left a permanent job at a production company and I haven't stopped working since; it was the best decision I ever made,” says Amalia Rosen-Rawlings, a 30-year-old video producer based in London. "I have found that I am much better suited to work with people rather than for people; I like being my own boss and deciding what jobs I would like to do. 28-year-old Joss Meek, who heads up digital press at Wired PR, a London-based PR start-up, said:“I'm a big believer in productivity percentages. Twenty percent of our day accounts for 80 percent of our productivity. Some of us work faster than others. Why should I stare at a laptop for eight hours or more when I know I can complete the task in four hours or less? »
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Indeed, it seems that today these types of considerations rank high on many people's priority lists, perhaps even higher than the stability of knowing one's where your paycheck comes from. “It’s the rise of the DIY generation,” says Rosen-Rawlings. "We were told we could be whatever we wanted to be in life, so with that mindset, we'll get better and find a way to get there." ”
Thanks in large part to technology and the internet, it has never been easier to build and maintain something from the ground up, as evidenced by the rise of millennial entrepreneurs, or “millinepreneurs ". Through my thriving digital network, I've worked with a number of publications and brands over the years, and wherever I find myself, a laptop is in tow. Why would I give that up?
As Joss says, "I don't squeeze my square-shaped self into a round hole of timeless job structure. Although women in traditional jobs are still arguably undervalued, trying to compete in a system complete with gender inequalities, pay gaps, trust gaps, workplace sexism, sexual harassment, etc., research suggests women can carve out their own niche as successful freelancers. of the impostor. No matter how rosy it is when we write from bed with a plate of avocado toast, it's not as easy as it sounds.
As fashion designer Kyran Low says 32-year-old based in London:“Endless negotiation of rates. Continue payments for months. I don't know if you're going to be booked again, ever. Friends with “normal” jobs not understanding that making plans, or rather sticking to them, is basically impossible. Learn to be an expert in your field and in all other fields as well. »
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When you work for yourself, you don't get paid when you're sick or on vacation; you don't have access to benefits, maternity leave or pension schemes (one study found that 60 per cent of full-time staff in the UK received pensions, compared to just 16 per cent of the self-employed).
As people increasingly equate success with things other than material possessions, focusing on relationship building, a healthy mind and body, and a better work-life balance private, this change is probably only natural and a good thing. "I think women might be more attracted to a lifestyle that makes it easier for them to balance other areas of their lives, like raising kids, traveling, or not wanting to work full-time for someone. else,” suggests Seattle, 48. Kristen Gill, owner of a web-based media platform. “Home-based businesses are on the rise because of the freedom they provide and the flexibility to work the hours you have for free rather than pre-determined hours.”
Meek agrees. “I love my ability to be able to work anytime and anywhere. I can travel and work; I can be sick and work; I can have a late night and start a little later,” she says, citing a flexibility that is obviously increasingly important for a rising generation.
Everyone, from Spanx founder Sarah Blakely, to Cher Wang, co-founder of mobile technology company HTC, to the next girl who uploads a perfectly filtered selfie to Instagram, nowadays manages to start, sustain and often thrive in her self-created, independent world. Why would anyone want to chain themselves to a desk to build someone else's dream for less money, less flexibility, and less autonomy (unless they really are )? Could stability be a sacrifice here rather than an asset?
“Making lemons out of lemonade” is a colloquial phrase. For this generation of women, we're making lemonade empires, and no matter how much extra work it takes to make it, the pulpy extract tastes even sweeter.
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