Let the battle begin. Freelancing vs. full-time jobs. I don’t mean real battles, though, but I want to compare these two ways of earning money.
There are certain distinctions between full-time and freelance work. Let’s get into details.
A full-time employee normally has a predetermined work week, with eight-hour days and forty-hour weeks; however, this might vary depending on the industry and the nature of the role.
The assumption is also a five-day workweek, albeit this varies depending on the job.
While on the other hand, freelancing is a contract-based career where individuals use their talents and expertise to give services to several clients rather than being hired by an organization.
When you work as a freelancer, you use your abilities, knowledge, and experience to work with different customers and take on various jobs without committing to a single employer. The amount of assignments or tasks you may accept is limited by your capacity to complete them as requested.
Freelancing often entails tasks (called gigs) that allow you to work from home.
Which Should You Choose Between A Freelancing Job And A Full-Time Job?
Both occupations have distinct requirements, and you may select the one that best suits you and fits into your schedule.
There are a few factors to consider while deciding between the two.
Stability vs. Flexibility
Full-time employees benefit from the security of an employment contract and a scheduled work schedule. They also have a consistent income, which helps them plan for the future. Contrary to common assumptions, freelancers are not compensated for days off. Furthermore, there is frequently no employment guarantee for the following week or day.
As a result, the profits of freelancers fluctuate irregularly. They do, however, have the flexibility to work whenever and wherever they choose (at night, in bed, or at a café). They decide on their working hours.
Furthermore, they may supply services to many firms simultaneously and earn more if they reach the agreed-upon deadlines.
Security Vs. Liberty
These are two important factors to consider while deciding between freelancing and full-time employment. One of the most prominent motivations for freelancing is the ability to be your boss. And if all goes well, you’ll be able to choose how much you want to work and how much money you want to make.
In contrast, when working for a firm, these privileges are typically restricted by inflexible hierarchies that inhibit your development. And if you want to advance, you’ll probably have to wait for an opening. Or you’ll have to settle with a rise that comes only once a year.
While we’re on the subject, it’s arguably the most significant barrier to being self-employed.
You do not receive a fixed monthly paycheck deposited into your bank account as a freelancer. You must rather work for it: you will not be paid if you are unwell.
Furthermore, if you are on vacation, you will not be paid. You will not be compensated if the industry slows.
Things are not thesame if you have a permanent job contract. You have a predetermined salary and know when you will be paid next.
Salary Vs. Pay As You Go
Working a full-time job guarantees getting salaries every 30 days or every week depending on the country you are working from.
You get paid as a freelancer only when you deliver on the work given, so this, in comparison, may not be good for people who have bills daily since when they don’t get jobs, they don’t get paid. Still, getting paid whenever you have a full-time job is the security many wants.
What Are The Similarities Between Full-Time And Freelancing Jobs
My comparison of full-time job vs. freelancing will not be complete if the similarities are not established.
As much as I have a soft spot for freelancing, it is very close in operations with full-time jobs online, few things are different, and we will get into that in this article.
But let’s see the few similarities between full-time jobs and freelancing jobs.
Receiving A Promotion
Employees are promoted to honor their hard work and devotion in the workplace. It’s very much the same for freelancers; only they offer themselves the promotion, a break, a raise, a new gadget, etc. Getting a boost in their prices, dealing with larger clientele, and so on are all part of that promotion.
Greater And Improved Opportunities
Corporate personnel is continuously searching for their next big break – a new designation, position, benefits, or surroundings – whether inside the firm or another. Freelancers are the same as employees.
A freelancer, like no employee, does not stay with a single customer for the rest of their career. It’s just not how a freelancing business is run.
Sure, every freelancer has clients who want to work with them repeatedly, but that relationship is not permanent. They will eventually move on to other clientele.
Politics In The Workplace
Every day, office workers deal with workplace politics and their coworkers’ many behaviors and personalities, ranging from the passive-aggressive coworker to the know-it-all colleague. You’ve seen them all if you’ve ever worked in an office.
Freelancers see these personalities daily, but they encounter them in their clientele instead of coworkers. When two or more freelancers get together, the subject of client personalities almost always comes up.
Salary/rate bargaining
9-to-5 employees receive a set income and a scheduled compensation hike in corporate employment. On the surface, freelancers appear to be the polar opposite.
They determine their rates and can raise them at any time. On the other hand, regular workers negotiate their salaries the same way as freelancers negotiate their rates with clients.
Responsibility
While you may not be entirely accountable for a single project or deadline, working in a firm provides a safety net in accepting responsibility when things go wrong.
In a business context, the manager bears the brunt of the blame for a failed project, regardless of which of their employees was to blame.
When things go wrong, you get to take ALL of the blame regardless of your job function, which is comparable to freelancing.
What Are The Benefits Of A Full-Time Job?
Full-time employment entails working in an organization or corporation throughout their needed shifting methods.
Some occupations may need 8–10 hours per day, 5–6 hours per day, or 3–4 hours per day. It might also be the Morning, Day, or Night shift.
In a nutshell, you must be entirely accessible for the firm based on their needs. Most significantly, they will compensate you for it.
But let’s see the benefits that a full-time job brings to the table.
- Consistent earnings
Most full-time employees are paid weekly or bimonthly and have fixed incomes. Every paycheck will be the same amount of money for the whole number of work hours, which means you will know how much money to expect in your monthly bank account and will be able to appropriately budget depending on your costs.
- Insurance
Most firms provide their employees with health benefits and other insurance policies, such as dental and life insurance.
Depending on the position and employer, these may be offered at a business discount or paid. In addition to helping to cover medical bills, insurance coverage can be useful in an unforeseen event, such as a short-term disability.
- Paid vacation
Employees often get a certain amount of paid time off every pay period, which can be utilized for vacation or sick leave. Companies also provide paid time off for holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas and parental leave once a baby is born.
- Plans for retirement
Employees may prepare for the future by investing in a retirement plan. Some businesses provide an employer contribution match, in which they match a percentage of the employee’s contributions.
As your career progresses, you may be able to keep your retirement earnings by rolling them over to your new employer’s retirement plan.
What are the disadvantages of a full-time job?
- The propensity to become stationary.
Working for the same employer for a long period might lead to boredom and a lack of desire for change. As you perform the same things every day, the work may get tedious.
To prevent being stagnant, make sure you continue to improve your job abilities and consider taking on more demanding initiatives at work.
- Workplace stress has increased.
Because full-time employment entails spending a significant amount of time on the job every day, you may suffer increased work-related stress when attempting to manage various duties simultaneously.
Create a to-do list and rank your chores in order of priority to prioritize what has to be done first.
- You could become bored.
One of the most significant hidden disadvantages of a full-time job is boredom. Boredom is generated from regularity, and a lack of enthusiasm in your work may limit your career unchecked.
It reduces your productivity by affecting your continuous performance management, analysis, and employee return on investment. Boredom, in effect, makes you a worse worker.
- Your CV may be lacking in variety.
Although dedication to a firm is admirable, CVs are intended to demonstrate your variety, adaptability, and enthusiasm for the field in which you work.
As your CV should demonstrate your vision, having long employment at one workplace might indicate a lack of drive to improve or enhance your career.
What Are The Benefits Of A Freelancing Job?
Freelancing has many benefits, and in my 6 years as a full-time freelancer, one of the most enjoyable benefits is that I have my time to plan which is incredible for me. But here are more benefits of freelancing
Clients’ Liberty
Freelancers have the unique ability to select the clientele with whom they work. They can also deal with a large number of clients or simply a few select ones.
Workload Management
Another advantage of freelancing is the flexibility to select your workload. You may work as much or as little as you like and select important tasks.
You may concentrate on the work you enjoy without the distractions of full-time employment, such as meetings, office politics, office diversions, etc.
Breaking the Monopoly
The ball is in your court once you’ve embraced the independent lifestyle. You are free to mix and match your customer and project since you have complete control over both.
You not only have the freedom to pick the type of job you do, but you can also choose your office hours.
Work while your creative juices are flowing, and take a rest whenever you like. No more relying on the clock to eat lunch or take a tea break will. Personalize your regimen.
Increase Your Skill Set
The cool part of taking on various projects is learning something new with each new assignment.
Freelancing allows you to get out of your comfort zone and work on something you’ve always wanted but was too afraid to do.
Many young professionals have side enterprises that they are enthusiastic about but don’t have the time to focus on. You may pick your workload when you work as a freelancer.
You can take on assignments that aren’t too time-consuming and will leave you with plenty of time and energy to concentrate on your side business.
Income from Various Sources
One significant advantage of working as a freelancer is that there is no upper limit to how much you may make. No rule limits the number of projects that can be worked on simultaneously.
If you are a jack of many, if not all, trades, you may work on many tasks that need diverse abilities at the same time. This allows you to be more productive while also mining more cash.
What Are The Disadvantages Of Freelancing Jobs
The positives of freelancing are numerous, including improved work-life balance, the opportunity to pick your work hours and customers, and infinite earning potential.
Let me show you the drawbacks of self-employment before transitioning from full-time employee to freelancing.
Here are several examples:
Isolation
Working from home can be lonely. You have no interaction with management, staff, or other employees as a freelancer without employees.
Participation in professional organizations and social media might help alleviate feelings of isolation. Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook are excellent platforms for connecting with other professionals.
Inadequate Benefits
You do not receive employer-provided benefits such as vacation money, health insurance, or other popular perks as an independent contractor. Sick leave is non-existent, and malpractice or professional liability insurance is expensive.
If you work for yourself, you won’t get paid sick or vacation time. When you cannot serve your clients or fulfill deadlines due to illness, personal issues, or vacations, you must establish a backup plan.
Health insurance can be expensive for self-employed people since they do not qualify for the volume-based discounts available to large corporations. Preexisting medical issues might make it harder to get coverage.
Differentiating Work and Personal Time
Being your boss and working from home can make it difficult to distinguish between work and personal life. This implies you can work long hours and never devote time to your hobbies.
Is Freelancing Also A Part-Time Job
The answer is a resounding NO!
We frequently confuse these two terms.
However, if you’re looking for a part-time job, you must comprehend the fundamental distinction between part-time and full-time labor.
While freelancers are self-employed, part-time employees are considered employees and entitled to corporate benefits. Part-timers spend 30 hours a week or fewer involved in multiple processes instead of freelancers who work on a single project.
Freelancing is when you work on a project on your own time. Your employer does not keep track of when you work. They only care about what you deliver and when you deliver it.
A part-time job entails working at set hours and delivering specific deliverables daily or weekly. However, it is also subject to the employer’s judgment.
In addition, as a freelancer, you are your boss, employee, and assistant. You have clients rather than bosses, and you have the freedom to determine your own rules and working hours.
If you work part-time, you must report to your employer. Your work has a timetable and a deadline.
How Much Time Do You Need To Work As A Freelancer
Freelancing entails polishing your talents and ideas and turning them into a company – a difficult task.
But keep in mind that it’s not only about working long hours. It’s all about doing so wisely. Any freelancer will tell you that planning your time and spending less time on secondary activities is the best way to ensure your time is efficient!
There are no set amount of hours that freelancers must work. You’ve probably heard about three-hour-a-day freelancers.
It is feasible to reach that level, but it will require time and networking. Meanwhile, continuing to enjoy your life, even expanding your freelance employment hours, would be beneficial.
Working 30 freelancing hours from home sounds far better than 40 at your present job before quitting your job to become a full-time freelance writer.
Final Thought
I am confident that the points of similarities and differences I made above should be able to help shape your decision in choosing if you love to be a freelancer or get a full-time job.
But like I said, I have been a freelancer for 6years, and I have never regretted it a day since I have the chance to make dollars in my country, which cannot be so if I had a full-time job.
My recommendation will be that if you are a skilled person in any digital skill or have a passion for learning, then freelancing is a thing you can look into.
But if you are an office person and like the security of the salary, then I guess it is obvious you have to look for a job.
Thank you for stopping by. Have a great day.