Is freelancing an option if you’ve been laid off from your job?
We see it in the news and on the internet every day, the employment rate may hit double digits soon. Law firms are not immune to the growing jobless rate. You may be wondering what you would do if you suddenly found yourself unemployed. Or perhaps you have already been laid off and you’re finding that law firms are not hiring now. A few months ago I received a phone call from a local paralegal who had just received word that her job would end in 30 days. She was now considering freelancing and wanted to pick my brain. We discussed her background, education and experience. She had earned an associate’s degree in paralegal studies and had been working as a paralegal for a little over 2 years.
I asked her if she had not received notice of losing her job would she be considering freelancing. No she answered. I discouraged her from the freelancing route and we discussed other available options. I sent her links to job posting sites and asked her to keep in touch and let me how her job search progressed. I haven’t heard anything from her. But, I hope she was able to secure employment.
Freelancing is not an option for those who (1) have less than 10 years experience working in a traditional law office setting (2) need a steady paycheck and/or benefits and/or (3) think of freelancing as “easy” or something to do until something better, i.e. a “real job,” comes along.
Over the years I’ve heard comments from my paralegal friends such as “it must be so nice to work at home and set your own hours” and “I wish I could be my own boss.” It is nice to work at home and set my own schedule. But I didn’t get to that place overnight. I began the freelancing phase of my career after 10 years of working in both small and large law firms and I did it because I was bored to tears. 99% of everything that came across my desk was “been there, done that.” I also grew tired of the office politics, the commute and the realization that as long as I worked for someone else I was not in control of my career and thus, my destiny.
Forget about being your own boss. When you freelance every client, whether it’s 2 or 20, is your boss and each comes with their own set of expectations and idiosyncrasies. Most use Word, but one is still using WordPerfect. One only wants to communicate via e-mail and another one doesn’t know how to open an attachment. My attorney and CPA clients know that they can call me in the evening, on weekends or at 7:30 in the morning and I will answer the phone. They also know they can give me a project on Friday afternoon that is due Monday afternoon and it will be in that client’s hand Monday morning. So forget about setting your own schedule as well.
I saved my money, slashed expenses and took a leap of faith. The first year I worked 2 part-time jobs while building the business. It was a very bumpy ride and more than once I wondered if I would succeed. Eventually, I did succeed, but not without sacrifice. Would it have been easier to get a full time job with benefits? Absolutely. Would I do it all over again? Without a doubt.
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Tags: freelance, job outlook, Jobs, layoffs, paralegal, unemployment, virtual bankruptcy assistants, Virtual-Paralegal
