3 Things Freelance Writing Has Allowed Me To Do

October 12, 2011

Being a freelance writer can be a considerably varied career.

If you’re a banker, you work in finance.

If you’re an IT executive, you work in IT.

If you’re a doctor, you work in medicine.

If you’re a freelance writer, however, you get to sample numerous different careers and be involved with a variety of different projects and client.

For some, this variety isn’t ideal. For me, however, I absolutely love it and being a freelance writer has given me the opportunity to do things I otherwise wouldn’t have been able to do, with the three things mentioned here being perfect examples.

1. Expand my knowledge base

This is something that I’m sure every freelance writer out there will agree with to some degree — I’m certain I’ve learned more as a freelance writer over these last few years than people I know who are 30 and 40 years older have learned in their entire lives.

I never turned down work when I first started writing, preferring to research a topic for a project rather than only work on projects with topics I had knowledge of and it’s meant I’ve developed somewhat of an extensive — if not a little random — knowledge base.

From swimming pool design to venomous snakes, every piece of knowledge I’ve gained might not help me tremendously throughout life, but I’m a massive fan of continually learning and so for me, developing my knowledge base while working has been a major positive by-product of freelance writing.

2. Develop my career

The first few months of my freelance career — not necessarily freelance writing — were spent trying to define just what I wanted to do.

I knew I wanted to do something with my spare time and I tried my hand at what seemed like everything.

I taught myself HTML and CSS. I had a stab at some graphic design work. I had a few proxy websites for a while. I even invested in some premium rate phone lines to see if it was an avenue I could pursue.

I stumbled upon freelance writing by chance and it’s turned out to not only be a career choice that I love and which fits around my individual needs, but one which has allowed me to develop my overall career immensely.

I’ve met people I wouldn’t have otherwise met. I’ve developed skills to the extent I don’t believe I would have done otherwise. I’ve made contacts that are, simply put, invaluable.

I dropped out of college and I never went to university, but I still tell people that I honestly don’t believe I’d be in a better position than I am today if I’d stuck at full time education.

I’m not saying that’s the right option for everyone, but for me, I have no doubt that it worked.

3. Go on more breaks

As many of you will know, I started out as a freelance writer while working a full time, salaried role and I’m still working in a salaried position today, albeit a part-time one.

Now although I don’t choose all of my clients and projects based on how much money they bring in, I’m honest enough to say that one of the biggest draws for me over the years when it comes to freelance writing benefits has been the additional income.

I’m lucky enough to have been able to write alongside a salaried position for years now and although I do rely on my freelance writing income to a certain extent (or I at least factor a certain percentage of it into what I consider to be my monthly income), when I first started out especially, any money earned was extra.

Me and my Better Half both work our socks off and so I love the fact that while we might not see each other a considerable amount each week if I’m, for instance, working on a project and I’m investing 70 or 80 hours of each week to work, I love the fact that the result is I can take us away, whether it’s to see family two hundred miles away or a few thousand miles away to our favourite city, New York.

There are numerous benefits to freelance writing and every freelance writer will have their own stories, but for me, the above three points are all things that being a freelance write has allowed me to do.