For the first time since before my first summer job as a teenager, I am not bound down to any routine or schedule. And I can thank it all to freelancing.
I just graduated from college. Now, I have begun looking for a full-time job, of course. But, I’ve also been writing on the side in the mean time, because girls gotta eat.
I think the expectations of freelancing versus the reality are wildly different. Before I started doing freelance writing work, I always thought this was a the perfect job. I mean, for starters, you write. Yes! This is what I want to do for life. Just sit and write. Incredible! The world is amazing.
Freelancing isn’t as simple as “sit and write all day and watch the cash flow in,” as I’ve come to realize.
First of all, it’s homework. It feels like homework. You’re writing and researching topics you may not know much about for a written document before a deadline – what is that called? Right, HOMEWORK. Don’t get me wrong, that just comes with the nature of the work. But I was surprised by how much I felt like I was studying for a research paper writing my first few documents.
You get a whole new sense of learning how to discipline yourself when you work from home. Honestly, every time I write, I have to go to a coffee shop because my house has too many distractions that keep me from getting work done. My brain thinks “CAT VIDEOS and REDDIT” when I lay in bed and try to write. Basically I have to separate my work life from my home life.
However, you also have no excuse to not take care of yourself. Since I started freelancing, I’ve been going to the gym or making my own meals because I don’t have to be anywhere. It’s a blessing and a curse. Mostly a blessing in my case.
I still like this work a lot, but I have a different kind of love for it. I respect it a lot more now, you know?