–Sir Walter Scott, 1771–1832.
Financial viability meets feasibility. These words encapsulate the world of freelancing. [break]
From tackling various types of jobs, juggling multiple clients, honing marketing and accounting skills, and creating offices in bedrooms, cafés, slugging day or night, the trend of working at your own leisure and in pajamas, if need be, is increasing amongst the youth.
Call them freelancers, contractors, sole proprietors, consultants, temps, and self-employed – independent workers are on the rise and, and perhaps most surprisingly, many of them love it.
Bypassing the office bureaucracy, the politics, the nine-to-five existence might sound too good to be true for many. But surviving solely on job-to-job basis is definitely not for the fainthearted, especially when the market is awash with creative locals and internationals who bring their years of experience to the table and armed with lethal public relations (PR).
To break into the world of freelancers and snatch a good project or two depends on how rigorous your PR is shared by Suraj Ratna Shakya, a 27-year-old freelance photographer and multimedia producer.
“Talented people will reap benefits, for sure, but one has to sow before s/he can hope to reap.
Till date, almost all of my projects have been through my links and there’s no question that you need to sell yourself,” adds he.
The uncertain economy might have unwillingly forced some individuals into independent work, but for many, the flexibility that lets them skip the dreary office environment and focus on more personally fulfilling projects seems to be the reason.
Interested in multimedia since his schooldays, Shakya always knew he wanted to work in the creative field, and Internet has definitely helped the cause.
His last project, a documentary short for a fundraising event of a New York-based organization, “Kids of Kathmandu,” was well funded; and although a tad bit hectic, since he works solo, was immensely gratifying.
A culture that is heavily dependent on networking and sustainability, mutualism between freelancers is of utmost priority.
Avinash Shrestha, 26, who juggles his full-time work at Magnum Design Studio, Tahachal, with freelance web and graphic designing, believes that although informal networks and support systems help, a formal community would be helpful in creating sustainable careers that can support freelancers for the long run.
“We’re becoming the content aggregators of the world and we share a symbiotic relationship. It’s quite prevalent in networks where an individual uses or recommends a freelancer on a regular basis. Like in website design works, we tend to pay freelance writer and web, or the freelance photographer for headshots,” said Shrestha.
Flexibility, it seems, is the number one priority in most freelancers’ list, yet the age-old tussle of permanence versus accessibility rears its head from time to time.
“I enjoy my work that pays good and gives satisfaction, but my parents nag me about getting a permanent job, or in their words, a ‘secure’ source of income,” revealed a candid Shakya who believes that the effort and time put into odd jobs are not likely to go to waste, even if one decides to apply for further studies or join a firm.
Freelancing gives you access to work and help you rack up the kind of experience that it takes many people years to accumulate. A proposition not lost on the contributing writer of art for ECS Publications is Nischal Oli, 24.
“As a contributing writer, I get to fulfill two of my life’s passions – art and writing. I get to experience the local art scenes,” said he, adding that getting remuneration for what he loves is not a bad offer, either.
He feels that freelance writing is a viable option for anyone who is already involved somewhere else but would love to get published.
“As long as you meet the deadlines, there’s no problem. I personally don’t see myself slugging six days a week from 9 to 5.” Oli doesn’t see the relevancy behind the reasoning that just because one is chained to a desk the whole day, he or she will produce good write-ups.
So what is the biggest challenge?
It is time management. Contrary to popular belief, almost all freelancers agree that one ends up putting in more hours than one would in a permanent office environment.
Since the success rate at harpooning future assignments is dependent on one’s work quality, and since it is done on a individual level, it can get challenging.
“You’re free and yet you’re super busy. So it’s important to prioritize. The goal is to do the best job while you tackle some more and meet with the client’s expectations,” reasons Shakya.
Servicing for a wide range of clientele, local and international, is not easy, says Shrestha. “Lapse in work schedule can be demeaning to one’s credibility and his portfolio, as it can lead to a pile of messes, including backed up work, missed deadlines and killer stress.”
Assigning specific office hours can be the first step to less chaos. One should refrain from working around the clock and becoming jacks of all trades.
A savvy freelancer assesses the services he can provide or elements he can add to his existing range of expertise – or maybe link another fellow freelancer with complementary skills to form a team.
Oli stresses on the need to network. “Networking is of utmost importance – especially in my field of writing for art, which is very niche, so as to speak, I need to know the right persons and events.”
He feels belonging to groups or organization with likeminded people also helps. A member of Sattya Media Arts Collective, Oli feels the interactions not only help him in landing future projects but in the analysis of his write-ups, which can get objective, it gets benefits from a second perspective.
Writers, photographer, designers, or even cooks, independent workers should not hesitate to step out of the comfort zone.
“Life’s all about learning, and learning newer things can really improve your freelance skills, and give you more scope to market yourself,” Shrestha said. He is also thinking of learning a new programming language himself.
A word of advice: Freelancing is a JOB, not a hobby. So take it seriously. Another related tip is: update your portfolio regularly. Shakya keeps an updated profile on behance.net, vimeo.net – for his videos.
“Yes, don’t under estimate Facebook and Twitter. These are networking sites and also meant for socializing.”
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