Freelancer - who is it in the modern labor market?

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Back in the distant 90s, Bill Gates wrote that soon more and more people would work from home, remotely, without wasting time on the road. In general, he was right. It is generally accepted that a freelancer is engaged in remote work. Who is this in terms of social status, profession, occupation? In fact, the concept, unlike the word, is far from new. In Europe, and throughout the world, the so-called "free spearmen" appeared a long time ago - this is how the word "freelancer" is translated. Who is it? And how are they related to hunting?

In fact, there is nothing militant, except that they themselves are looking for their own food, a means of subsistence. Another meaning of this word is a free artist. So, freelancer - who is it? This is a person who works "for himself", a representative of a free profession, who independently seeks orders and clients for himself. ATin the modern world, these include, first of all, photographers, journalists, translators, programmers, designers. Basically, it has been that way for a long time. Recall that over the past 200-300 years, representatives of creative professions have increasingly refused to serve at court (at the chapel, at the cathedral, at the theater). One of the first such freelance artists was the great Mozart. It was he who refused his salary and began to work on orders from various private clients and theaters, while before him composers and musicians usually served at the courts of magnates.

Many writers who collaborated with various editorial offices and publishing houses as journalists, publicists or authors led the same lifestyle. Of course, magazines, newspapers, online publications often feature staff correspondents and photographers. However, the global trend indicates that more and more people are leaving their "habitable" jobs with salaries to be called the proud word "freelancer". Who else is this? Architects, graphic designers, creators of fashion collections. Website developers and photographers who sell their images on

exchanges (stocks). These are freelance translators who fulfill a specific order and receive payment for it (by the number of pages, words, characters, hours), and not for sitting in the office from 9 to 17. If such professions have existed for a long time and functioned according to this principle, then Recently, other activities have also appeared. Freelance work is also the administration of network groups (on Facebook orVKontakte), this is content management. Increasingly, even large corporations prefer not to keep their employees (for example, in advertising) in the state, but to give orders to "free artists". From an economic and psychological point of view, such a decision is justified. After all, it is well known that if a person receives a guaranteed salary, then over time the desire to do as little as possible for the same amount only intensifies. Consequently, the productivity of full-time workers decreases as their length of service increases. In addition, there are such phenomena as professional burnout and exhaustion of creative potential. In this case, freelancing can be a great solution.

What does this give the customer?

The ability to choose a portfolio specialist, according to a creative concept. What does this give a freelancer? The ability to choose a customer with whom it will be interesting to cooperate. Constantly new projects, fresh ideas save us from stagnation, from blurring our eyes. The ability to plan your working day and schedule in a way that is convenient for a freelancer, and not for a boss, to set your own prices for services, to do what you love - all these are undeniable advantages. The disadvantages include the need to constantly search for new customers, high competition, and dumping rates. However, for most of those who choose to live this lifestyle, the positives far outweigh the negatives.