Here we are once again on our quest for the costs to freelancing, and after the reception part 1 received the pressure to really deliver on the next installment was compounding. Luckily, the added pressure just made it that much easier to completely phone this one in! Totally kidding. I really am trying, so if you don’t like it, it’s totally on you.
Make no mistake about it, freelancing is tough work. Angie and I have talked on numerous occasions since setting out on the freelancer’s path, that we have never worked so hard at anything in our lives. That could be because the work has never been this rewarding. Not even when we were in the Peace Corps. Okay, that was a lie. We were never in the Peace Corps. I made that up. I was in the boy scouts. Got some badges. You don’t get badges in the Peace Corps. But as a freelance designer, I can make all the digital badges I want. If I had the time.
In the Beginning…
There was a first part. And it was great. It was presented to the people, and the people said, ‘Behold, this is great.’ Okay, so I’m paraphrasing. But this is the second installment of the article, and here is what we covered in What Does True Freelancing Cost? Part 1:
- #1 - Uniform
- #2 - Respect (Big up yourself!)
- #3 - Cashflow A-No-Go
And now for something completely similar.
#4 - Freetime (thanks for the memories)
Remember what it was like to have time off from work where you could spend a relaxing day outside away from the stresses the office likes to bring with it each day? Good. Cling to that memory. You are never going to know what that is like again! Kidding. But not really. Your time becomes much more precious when you don the freelancing crown. You have to be much more aware of where your time disappears to each day.
For example. Today I woke up, began checking the blogs for comments that need to be approved, checking and responding to e-mail, and started my daily social media routine. Then after looking through our to-do list of upcoming tasks, I got ready to go to my non-fun, non-freelance job and headed into work. When I got home, it was grab my first bite of the day, and turn my attentions to the blogging. Take a break to collaborate on a snowboard design for Dead Wings Designs with Angie, and then it is back to the blogosphere. Four a.m. rolls around, and I'm still working. And that's pretty typical around here.
However, you cannot lose sight of those who mean the most to you. No, not your twitter followers, your family! Make sure you make time for your family. Your immediate family, meaning those who occupy your home office space. Those living outside said space, we make no promises about. It is all about balance and maintaining that equilibrium.
#5 - Taxes (Death can take a number)
It is one of the certainties of life, and the freelancing arena is no exception. You have to pay taxes. And in the US, though the IRS makes it seem easier for the self-employed with four convenient quarterly scheduled payments (all based on your yearly ESTIMATED income), no one is fooled. We all know it is a huge pain in the gross annual income. And estimate carefully, because there are penalties if you underestimate your monies. Not to mention penalties if you do not meet the convenient quarterly payment schedule.
Though, luckily, if you are struggling to get started and suffering at the hands of #3 from the list, and your estimated annual income is below $8,000 and change in a year ($16,000 and change if you are married filing jointly.) then you can ignore the quarterly payments and file at the end of the year like normal people. Even though we all know we are far from normal.
Of course, we might be reading that wrong, so we advise everyone to read it for themselves on the IRS website. And if we botched it, could you drop us a line about it?
#6 - Peace of Mind
Our final cost is just a little peace of mind (Well, and the annual $49.95 paid to Big Bob at fileforyourfreelancerlicense.com. Everyone does have to pay that, right? He made it sound so legit. Dammit!). But seriously, when the freetime goes out the window, you have to find that elusive peace of mind to keep your work from being negatively impacted. No job, no matter how fun, is worth your sanity. Not even this one. Okay, so that depends on how much sanity you had to start out with.
When (or should I say if) you worked in an office environment, retreating to your sanctuary was easy for reaching that peace of mind. It was done daily when you journeyed home. But now that you work in your home, finding this sanctuary can become a bit more difficult. None the less important, but that escape can be trickier to track down. For those of us freelancing in the creative field, this escape can be crucial to the overall creative process.
So make sure to create this environment for yourself in what ever way you find at your disposal. Being able to decompress is essential for keeping you going, and it is a lot easier to achieve with a sort of refuge to immerse yourself in. Without it, the stresses of the freelancing grind could prove to take more peace of mind than you have to offer in the moment. You can learn to do without freetime, but you should never attempt to do without me-time!
But we wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world
No matter the costs, this gig is the one for us. For so many, in fact. I think Alma Gray said it best in our last post.
“I feel I have no choice–it’s what I was meant for, so I better make it a go.”
Also check out the latest in the series, Freelancing Costs Pt.3 - Return of the Red-Eye
The Complete Series
- What Does True Freelancing Cost? Pt. 1
- Freelancing Costs Pt. 3 – Return of the Red-Eye!
- The True Benefits of Freelancing Pt.1
- The True Benefits of Freelancing Pt. Deux!
- Freelancing Benefits Episode III : Revenge of the Myth
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Good list, both parts 1 & 2. As a full-time freelancer, I can relate to each and every point. I was surprised at the omission of two things I find to be a big cost of freelancing, though: having to foot the bill completely on your own for both health insurance, and any kind of retirement fund (no employer matching what you contribute or anything like that). Those two in particular have been a double-whammy on my budget planning.
But overall, great list and amusing read.
I’m really enjoying this series, keep up the great work! Maybe someday I’ll build up the clientele and the guile to go fulltime freelance :)
Andrew Houles last blog post..MyInkTrail: Best of the Web, November 2008
@ Amanda Cobb — Thanks for the read and the comments. Now what are these ‘health insurance and retirement fund’ things of which you speak? Seriously though, our bad for neglecting them. Perhaps we will have to do one more in the future.
@Andrew — Much appreciated, Andrew. This series is tentatively wrapped so I’m glad it was enjoyable. Though there’s talk of a third…but mainly it’s just me. I’d say you’ve got the guile, so we look forward to your embrace of the darkside.
Love the humor and the solid points.
I’ve been running an informal survey on the biggest challenges freelances face around setting fees. 37% say they are afraid to charge too much.
I hope your posts will help address that fear. We’re a lot more likely to charge too little.
Molly Gordons last blog post..How Prospective Clients Can Teach You Marketing: The Surprising Relationship Between Marketing and Empathy