Qasim Mughal
Nothing on this earth is stable and smooth. Everything has its ups and downs, most of the good things in life come with a struggle. It is true for freelancing as well. When Freelancing comes with a lot of benefits like its significance over the traditional job. It also has obstacles faced by every freelancer in their journey.
As I have already discussed what is freelancing and freelance writing and its types. Now it is also important to discuss the struggles faced by an individual freelance writer.
There are many obstacles faced by freelancer in their journey of freelancing, but today I am discussing 5 topmost obstacles below:
Struggle In Setting Up A Business And Finding Clients
Initially, when you are new to the market of freelancers, nobody really cares about you and your offerings. The reason behind this is that many competitors in the market are offering the same services with either compatible prices or more experience than you.
As a new freelancer, you can’t really just go and start to get orders. In fact, sometimes new people struggle a lot in getting their business or portfolio set up on different platforms. You have to work harder than others to make your reputable place in a market online. The key to this is patience.
I highly suggest to keep calm and patient, what’s your will finds it’s ways to you. No matter what you want to achieve in life you will get through struggles in the passage. You only have to work hard to achieve it. Show people why you deserve this and show them what you are capable of. Don’t fear rejection. Instead, make it’s your biggest power for growth.
No Security Of Job
The question arises, Is working as a full-time freelancer is a secure job? The answer is NO. There is no security or guarantee for your job as a freelancer. The majority of the people are truthful and humble. Some people are difficult to deal with, stay away from those kinds of clients in the first place if possible.
Some clients are difficult to get payments from. You have done the work but they are kept on asking for revisions or you have submitted complete work to them but they are lazy to release your payment. There are clients difficult to satisfy, no matter what you do they are not satisfied with the work and give a difficult time releasing payments.
Send reminders to your clients from time to time for your payment release. If you fail in doing so take the help of the platform support you are on.
Learn about scams so you can run a secure business online, and if you get scammed don’t dishearten, keep going. Not everyone is the same, people are good and bad, don’t limit your progress due to some bad people you came across.
Unsteady Daily Routine
A normal office worker might think about all the benefits of being a freelancer but obstacles faced by freelancers knows only by them. They know how much the struggle between managing time and settling the work. If you are a freelancer working from home, your family might not take it as same as traditional 9-5 jobs and you might get distracted from your work due to this.
When you have a lot of work scheduled you seldom get time for yourself and ignore your family and your surrounding. And there may be days where you are free all day and no work to do. You can’t set a proper routine due to this fluctuation.
Due to flexible working hours, you might end up having sleepless at night time and sleeping in the daytime. Or sometimes not sleeping at all for long periods of time. All your routine gets disturbed, you become lazy and you end up being rush to complete the project. Sometimes it’s hard to meet the deadlines and this will have a high impact on the client’s relationship with you.
My advice on this issue is that. Make a daily or weekly schedule for yourself and stick to it. By maintaining this you will not end up in rush, you will meet the deadlines, and you can manage your work and personal life.
Health Threats
This is the most neglected section by freelancers. Yes, you read it right. Working from home as a freelancer is having a lot of health threats which is often neglected by everyone and very few freelancers pay attention to it.
This topic will be discussed in detail in upcoming articles on the health of freelancers. The biggest health threat of all to specific freelancers is a sedentary lifestyle. The less mobility or sedentary lifestyle leads to a lot of health concerns such as heart issues, depression, high blood sugar, obesity, and many more. Prioritize your health and don’t neglect it.
Learn 10 health and fitness tips anyone can follow.
Segregation
This issue will not be faced by you initially. As time goes by, and you are getting involved in your freelancing business, sitting on the computer alone. With time you will get frustrated and end up feeling lonely and stressed.
We all are social animals and we need to socialize. Stay on the computer all day in front of the screen of your laptop will resist you to get socialize and with time it will affect your mental health as well.
What you can do about it? Like I said before try to make a schedule, once you have one, keep some time for yourself to spend with your friends and family. Try to find a freelancing partner, or try to work with a group of freelancers. You will enjoy freelancing more without getting lonely.
Lastly, Obstacles faced by a freelancer are not permanent and are preventable. Life is a journey full of rough roads and smooth road. Freelancing similarly has both. Learn how to be a successful Freelancer If you face a rough road don’t get worried about it, it’s just a matter of time. Keep yourself motivated. Time will pass and you will end up learning something new from your experience. Stay focused and work hard, rest will come to you when it’s time for it. As Robert H. Schuller said
“Tough times don’t last, tough people do”
