If you are sick and tired of the 9-5 corporate world and unsure of what to do, then I’ve got great news for you…there’s another way!

Freelancing is a growing career choice that is great for people who like to set their own schedules instead of constantly taking orders from others. It’s a career that allows you to work from the comfort of your own home, sometimes even while relaxing in your pajamas. But before you get too excited, here are a few misconceptions about freelance writing:

• You don’t need to work as much – Wrong, wrong, wrong…in fact, until you are able to get some passive income rolling in, you can expect to work quite a bit more than 8 hours a day. As a freelance writer you don’t just write, you have to be able to market your services, take care of your clients, and take care of your own accounting. Basically, you’re running your own business.
• You have absolute time freedom – Again, this is not the case. Sure, you can take time off when you want. But when you get busy, you can’t blame your mistakes or missed deadlines on anybody but yourself. Being a freelance writer has a lot to do with perseverance and accountability, two traits that don’t always give you time freedom.
• You get to set your own rates -This one really depends on where you are in your career. It all goes back to supply and demand…if you have clients lining up at the door begging for your services, then you can definitely jack your prices up. But if you’re starting out in this business, you really have got to take what you can get; sometimes this will come in the form of 500 product descriptions for $400 (this was my first job as a freelancer, working out to $10/hour).

On the other hand, there are also a number of positive things that a freelancing career can offer you:

• Choose the work that you want – No, you can’t be picky when you start out – but you definitely get to choose the type of work you want to do when you get going. Lately, I’ve had a lot of success with sales letters to the point where I really enjoy doing them. Now, I try to bid on as many as I can (on sites like Elance or Online Writing Jobs) and spend about 70% of my work time doing these kinds of projects.
• Turn down jobs that you don’t want – The great thing about being a freelance writer is that you don’t need to take orders from anybody but yourself. You won’t have a boss come around the corner and tell you to grab him a coffee, nor will you have a client ask you to wash his car (believe me, some people actually ask employees to do these kinds of things in the corporate world…and the sad thing is that the employees sometimes appreciate the opportunity to get a break from the boredom of their actual jobs).
• Take the breaks you want – Yeah, I know that I already told you that you don’t have complete time freedom. Situations come up where you’ll have to work through the night or skip an evening out with friends. But…you also get quite a bit of control over your time that you won’t find in many other careers. For instance, I love to play basketball. Since I’m a freelance writer, I can leave the office (at home) at noon and go shoot some hoops at the local recreational center if I want – something that I really appreciate.

Freelance writing is as much of a business as it is a job. If you are willing to put in the time and effort to build your business, then it will be worth it in the end. You have the ability to earn more time freedom the longer you go into your career. If you do a good job of building a clientele then you will eventually be able to raise your rates and, if you want, spend less time working.

It’s a tough business, but a rewarding one…one that I would recommend to anybody who has the dedication to go out and grab the lifestyle that they desire.

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