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Freelancing, often portrayed as an idyllic lifestyle on social media, is undeniably experiencing a surge in popularity. The allure of being your own boss, setting your own hours, and working from anywhere has drawn many to seek freelancing for themselves. However, behind the glossy facade lies a reality often obscured by myths and misconceptions.
As someone who has been freelancing for over two decades, I have encountered several common myths that deserve to be debunked.
In this article, I aim to shed light on five of the most common myths about freelancing, providing a nuanced perspective on what it really entails. By dispelling these misconceptions, I hope to offer a clearer understanding of the challenges and rewards that freelancers face in their professional journeys.
Let's dive right in.
Myth #1: You need a huge social media following to be successful
There is a LOT of content out there on how to become an influencer, how to grow a following, how to build your email list, and how to get more followers and subscribers.
I'm not saying that you shouldn't try to build an audience, or that the advice around how to do it is inherently wrong.
What I am saying is – having a huge following is not requisite to having a successful business.
When I was first starting my business, I was still working a full-time job. And while I was "technically" allowed to do freelance on the side, it wasn't exactly encouraged. Because of this, I had to keep all of my freelance work "hush hush".
I didn't have the advantage of marketing, or posting on social media. It was too risky for me.
To be sure, I probably would have grown my business a lot faster if I had the ability to advertise and post on social media – but, without that option, I still had to find a way to make it work.
As it would turn out – that was probably one of the best lessons that I could have learned, and it continues to be useful for me to this very day.
It took me about 2 years... but I was eventually able to acquire enough clients that I was able to leave my job. And I did it with ZERO advertising and ZERO social media posts.
The reality is – no matter what kind of business you are starting, it's always going to start by building personal relationships with people.
I understand all-too-well how frustrating it can be, attempting to grow a huge following on social media. This is especially true if you're introverted, or not particularly a fan of social media.
So – take heart when I say... it is absolutely possible to build a successful business without the help of social media.
Myth = Busted
Myth #2: You will be working 80 hour weeks to avoid working 40 hour weeks
I love this myth. This is one of those phrases that gets slung around all the time amongst hustle-culture groups that love to romanticize "the grind".
The people who say this are usually the ones who glorify waking up at 3am, doing cold-plunges, hitting the gym for 2 hours, and working non-stop.
And I'm not hating. If that's your thing... I applaud you. I love people who have a great work ethic.
However – 80-hour work weeks is not strictly required in order to be successful in business. At least... what most people see as successful.
Don't misread what I'm saying. I'm not suggesting that it's not hard work. I'm also not saying it's easy, or that it's not going to take some nights and weekends.
What I AM saying is – now that I have my business established, I don't work anywhere close to 80 hours per week. And I am perfectly okay with that.
If you want to be a billionaire, and be able to do all of the things billionaires get to do – then you probably need to be outworking everybody else.
But I tend to define success a bit differently. For me, success is less about money, and more about freedom.
Having more time to do the things I love, while still making enough to live comfortably.
When I left my 9-5 job (or in my case, 7-5), I was chronically sleep-deprived.
When I finally made the leap to working for myself, the one thing I promised myself is that I would finally start to prioritize getting enough sleep.
These days, I normally go to bed around 1:30 - 2:00am, and usually wake up around 9:00 - 9:30am. I rarely set an alarm clock, and am blissfully more well-rested.
Most days, I put in between 4 - 6 hours of solid work... and that is usually plenty for me to generate enough money to keep the bills paid and sustain our lifestyle.
Just so it's said – I did end up having to put in a lot of 60+ hour weeks just before I made the leap, because I had a full-time job, and a full client roster outside of my job.
But, I was able to sustain it for as long as I had to, because I knew it was only going to be for a season.
So ultimately – be prepared to work long hours at first... but you can still have a very successful business, should you decide that you prefer to work less.
Given that I typically work ~30 hours per week and still make well over what I was making at my day job... we'll consider this myth busted.
Myth #3: You need to spend money in order to make money
I alluded to this a little bit earlier, but when I was first starting my business, I had to keep it on the downlow. So for me, advertising and marketing was out.
This taught me another valuable lesson in business: even with limited resources, you can still make amazing things happen.
With a little bit of creativity and a willingness to invest sweat-equity – you really don't need to spend a lot of money to get things up and running.
There are a ton of things that you can do in business, that cost nothing.
It costs nothing to call everyone you know and tell them about your business.
It costs nothing to write content for a blog or social media.
It costs nothing to start building relationships with other business owners.
Beyond that, there are also a ton of free tools out there that allow you to operate a business practically for free until you can upgrade your tools.
Don't get me wrong. Having good tools at your disposal is important, and can absolutely make you more effective and efficient. But – it's usually better to have money coming in before you pay for tools out of your own pocket.
Myth #4: It's easy, and anybody can do it.
Another myth that I think is super prevalent across social media and YouTube is that starting your own business is easy, and that anybody can do it.
There is an unbelievable amount of scheisters and scam artists out there perpetuating the idea that starting and scaling a business is easy. And that if you aren't doing six-figures a month, inside of your first week, you are doing something wrong.
It makes me sick to think about how much money has been spent on bogus courses sold by people who have never built anything outside of a course build on false premises that sells false promises.
The harsh reality is – building a business is HARD. Not impossible. But difficult. You should run from anybody who says otherwise. It takes time. It takes commitment. It takes persistence. And perhaps most important, it takes a level of self-belief that many people don't have.
One of the most normal things in business is the crippling doubt that comes with it. The unshakeable feeling that all of the hard work and time invested may not actually work out.
And unfortunately, there is no one-size-fits-all roadmap to success., despite the amount of people out there offering such things. It's easy to make promises that you can copy exactly what they did. But – the reality is, there are too many variables. Location. Connections. Trends. Experience. These things are all factors that contribute to success. And if any of them change, it can be the difference between something being a smashing success, or a catastrophic failure.
I don't say any of this to be discouraging, or to instill doubt in anybody who wishes to become a freelancer. As I said before – it is difficult, but it's not impossible. All I am saying is, don't buy into the various books, courses, and "gurus" who make it out to be easy. It's not.
Myth #5: You get to set your own hours
Freedom to set your own schedule is one of the most lauded benefits of being a freelancer and working for yourself.
And while it's true that you can technically set your own schedule, and work when you want – it's not quite that simple.
If your natural circadian rhythm indicates that your most productive hours are between 9pm - 5am, that unfortunately doesn't mean the rest of the world operates during those times.
The reality is – just because you exited the corporate world, does not mean the corporate world stops operating the same as it always has.
Most businesses still operate between the hours of 8am-6pm. As such, you will inevitably have clients who want to schedule meetings for 8am.
Now, to be fair – there is nothing that says you have to accept said meeting. As a freelancer, you certainly have the freedom to push back, or ask for a different time. This is something I do often.
But, in my years of being a freelancer, I often find that my schedule usually has to be accommodating to when most other people work. When a client reaches out to me, they have a reasonable expectation to get a hold of me. It would not be good if, every time they tried to reach me, I was asleep.
So while it is true that freelancing offers a certain degree of flexibility in my schedule – it is not true that I can set my own hours, and only work when I "feel like it."
Conclusion
There is no question that freelancing is an exciting and rewarding career path – but it's important to separate myths from realities. Success in business doesn't hinge on a massive social media following or grueling 80-hour workweeks. It's about finding your own definition of success, being resourceful with your finances, acknowledging the challenges, and embracing the flexibility it offers. By debunking these myths, I want to paint a more realistic picture of freelancing to empower aspiring freelancers to pursue their dreams with a clearer understanding. Freelancing is not just a job – it's a lifestyle that requires dedication, resilience, and a passion for your craft. But – when approached with the right mindset and expectations, it can be one of the most rewarding things you've ever done.