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Part Time Jobs and Freelance Work

By: Beth Morrisey MLIS - Updated: 1 Jul 2010 | comments*Discuss
 
Part Time Jobs And Freelance Work

It is a real risk to jump into freelance work full time and to give up your "day job". It means giving up the security of a steady pay cheque, company benefits, socialising with co-workers and the routine of going to the office, not to mention leaving the office, every day. For some people, the lure of freelance work is strong but they just aren’t quite ready to forsake their day job quite yet. If this is your situation, you might want to consider taking on a part time job while you explore freelancing.

Advantages Of Freelancing With A Part Time Job

Reducing your “day job” hours by taking up a part time job while you begin to freelance might be a great way for you to learn more about this type of work before giving up all of the security of being employed by someone else. You’ll still get a regular pay cheque with a part time job, and you’ll still have the routine of getting out of the house and interacting with others while you work. You may even be able to get a part time job in an industry related to your freelance work which will give you added experience and learn related skills on somebody else’s time – and money.

Part time work also often offers an array of working hours, so you may be able to schedule a shift around your preferred freelance hours. Depending on the industry of your original job and your original employer, you may even be able to simply reduce the hours of your present full time job to make it a part time job.

Disadvantages Of Freelancing With A Part Time Job

Unfortunately, just because you decide to take on a part time job to free up more time for freelancing this decision alone does not guarantee that your freelance work will be successful. Taking on a part time job may mean that you don’t have enough money to cover your needs if your freelance work does not pay out as expected, and having to commute to a part time job during regular working hours may make freelancing more difficult. You may also find that some part time jobs will require you to sign a non-compete clause, such as that while you are working for that employer you can not do similar work in a freelance capacity at all.

Part time workers are also sometimes looked on as less serious or committed than full time workers, pay can be comparatively lower than full time work and company benefits may not extend to some part time jobs.

Taking on a part time job may be one way that you can explore more about freelance work without having to risk everything to do it. Before you decide whether or not to switch to part time work in order to spend more time freelancing, weigh up the advantages and disadvantages of this type of arrangement and then consider what will be best for your circumstances.

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