Freelance Heroes Day 2019

On the train on my way to Freelance Heroes Day I am reflecting on my journey that has taken me from full time employment to full time freelancing, and what a journey it has been. I have always been someone that likes to be busy, working on lots of different projects and on lots of different things but I always thought one day I would just have to settle.

When I got my first freelance job I wondered if this was exactly what I would have to do forever as a freelancer, that, once you were in that was it. I couldn’t have been more wrong, over the last 18 months I have worked in inner city schools, at large tech conferences, in the refugee camps in Calais, in boardrooms with CEO’s, with young carers and young people living with HIV. I have said Yes and I have said No and it’s been one of the most empowering experiences of my life.

Freelancing and self-employment isn’t something that you get told about at careers fairs or from your advisor, and yet there are almost 5 million self-employed people in the UK. The fastest growing groups are the over 65’s and 20-24 year olds, both of whom are groups that struggle in the unemployment figures. With self-employment reducing unemployment why aren't we doing more to show people the opportunities that come with choosing a different kind of future. We already know the future of work is non traditional, its the Multi-Hyphen method and the Slashie Generation (can we get a better name for this PLEASE!). So let’s embrace it and celebrate it.

Today is Freelance Heroes day, while we might not feel like Heroes and sometimes it gets lonely, it feels hard and it’s tempting to give up and apply for that job that looks fine. I wouldn’t change it for the world. If you are a freelancer or self-employed, today is for you, if you are not why not drop a message to that friend who is just starting out, or to the person that built your website last year, photographed your wedding or built your website.