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Poll: Do you think freelancers are generally happier than other types of professional?
Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
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Aug 8, 2018

This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "Do you think freelancers are generally happier than other types of professional?".

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Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 20:24
Member (2007)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
I don't know Aug 8, 2018

I’m not happier now than I was when I was working in-house. I have more freedom for sure but that does not equate to happiness. The freelancing lifestyle certainly has its appeal, especially when things are looking good, but knowing that you will have a salary at the end of the month no matter what had also its appeal…

Liena Vijupe
ipv
Amir Arzani
Mariana Borio
Alcinda Marinho
TB CommuniCAT
 
Bora Taşdemir
Bora Taşdemir  Identity Verified
Local time: 23:24
Member (2012)
English to Turkish
+ ...
Yes! Yes! Yes! Aug 8, 2018

There are of corse pros and cons, but as a freelancer, the biggest advantage is that you don't really have a boss and you can just go and run errands whenever you want! All you need to do is to inform the clients beforehand. On the other hand, the people working in offices barely have time to do something extra. Being a freelancer is like a gift! I feel myself privileged all the time!

neilmac
Mariana Perussia
Minna Bäckman
András Veszelka
Mario Freitas
 
Catherine De Crignis
Catherine De Crignis  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 21:24
Member (2012)
English to French
+ ...
Je ne sais pas Aug 8, 2018

I don’t know and don’t need to know either, quite frankly.

The question is way too general, in my view. One way to get somewhere with this would be to ask, say 1.000 freelancers in one single country.
Then again it would make sense to not mix all types of freelancers (I don’t mean this in a bitter way, but what has your high-profile neurosurgeon or lawyer got to do with a translator or a cobbler, for instance?).

My other point is that those who choose freela
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I don’t know and don’t need to know either, quite frankly.

The question is way too general, in my view. One way to get somewhere with this would be to ask, say 1.000 freelancers in one single country.
Then again it would make sense to not mix all types of freelancers (I don’t mean this in a bitter way, but what has your high-profile neurosurgeon or lawyer got to do with a translator or a cobbler, for instance?).

My other point is that those who choose freelancing tend to be different to start with from those who choose employment. So there would be another bias.
Depending on the country, it would also make sense to account for the fact that, due to high unemployment, freelancing may not really be a chosen path, but rather the only way to make a living.

Like Teresa hinted, personally I don’t miss employment, but not always knowing where your next tenner is going to come from isn’t necessarily that comfortable.


[Edited at 2018-08-08 10:57 GMT]
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neilmac
 
Angus Stewart
Angus Stewart  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 20:24
Member (2011)
French to English
+ ...
Yes Aug 8, 2018

At first I hated during the phase when I was getting my business up and running, as I missed the security of a regular salary, the camaraderie of my colleagues in the office and the fact that I no longer got to see my customers as real people whom I met face to face. However, the profession I left behind has changed beyond recognition and the reasons which attracted me to it in the first place would now no longer apply. There has also been a drive towards greater specialisation and one of things... See more
At first I hated during the phase when I was getting my business up and running, as I missed the security of a regular salary, the camaraderie of my colleagues in the office and the fact that I no longer got to see my customers as real people whom I met face to face. However, the profession I left behind has changed beyond recognition and the reasons which attracted me to it in the first place would now no longer apply. There has also been a drive towards greater specialisation and one of things which I had previously enjoyed was the variety of the work.

Since, I have become established as a freelancer I love the freedom it gives me and I can now fit my work around my private life rather than the other way round. I can pick and chose the work and clients I take on to do more of what I enjoy whereas before I had to take what I was given. I am also now able to study at University part time alongside working, which wouldn't be possible if I was in a regular job as I wouldn't be able to leave the office on time. I can take holidays and time off when it suits me without having to ask anyone's permission. I also do not have to stick to the rigid 9-5 Monday to Friday routine and am free to have Facebook and other websites running in the background whilst I work which would not be possible in a traditional office.
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Karin Usher
Mario Freitas
 
Christopher Schröder
Christopher Schröder
United Kingdom
Member (2011)
Swedish to English
+ ...
I think not Aug 8, 2018

My impression from ProZ and elsewhere is that while freelancers revel in the extra freedoms they also struggle with the added stresses.

Alan Corbo, CT
 
Axelle H.
Axelle H.  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 21:24
English to French
Strange question .. Aug 8, 2018

If you like what you do, you are happy..
My plumber loves his job, my accountant too ..It's not comparable.


Ricardo Suin
Amlaku Eshetie
Vera Schoen
 
Kay-Viktor Stegemann
Kay-Viktor Stegemann
Germany
Local time: 21:24
English to German
In memoriam
Yes Aug 8, 2018

I can only speak for myself, but I lived the life of an employee for more than 25 years, and now that I am self-employed, I am definitely happier, if only because I don't need an alarm clock any more. This is so cool!

Mario Freitas
 
Kay Denney
Kay Denney  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 21:24
French to English
Yes and no Aug 8, 2018

I like being able to organise my own time, taking three hours off at lunchtime to go swimming then have a late lunch, for example.
I don't like quiet patches. If I knew that I wouldn't get any work all week, I'd take the time to work on a sewing project. If I think something will be come in any minute, it's not worth starting on a project. If you have to stop half-way through, it can be really hard to come back to it.
I love no longer having a boss ordering me about.
I still
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I like being able to organise my own time, taking three hours off at lunchtime to go swimming then have a late lunch, for example.
I don't like quiet patches. If I knew that I wouldn't get any work all week, I'd take the time to work on a sewing project. If I think something will be come in any minute, it's not worth starting on a project. If you have to stop half-way through, it can be really hard to come back to it.
I love no longer having a boss ordering me about.
I still desperately miss having colleagues. I was especially lucky in the last few years of employment, working with several really nice people who I still socialise with, but occasional drinks or a dinner party are not the same as seeing someone every single day for lunch.
People have suggested co-working cafés but it still wouldn't be the same, there wouldn't be any sense of colleague solidarity.
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Amlaku Eshetie
 
R. Alex Jenkins
R. Alex Jenkins  Identity Verified
Brazil
Local time: 17:24
Member (2006)
Portuguese to English
+ ...
Yes, I think so. Aug 8, 2018

It's been nigh on fifteen years now, so it's a little bit difficult to ascertain if I was happier 'then' than I am now, but I think I am happier, yes.

We're not funneled into a specific working routine that so many professionals have to adhere to, which really suits me, but for all that, I have never felt entirely comfortable with the financial aspect of being a freelancer and the insecurity I always feel because of that.

Remember that happiness stems from other aspects
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It's been nigh on fifteen years now, so it's a little bit difficult to ascertain if I was happier 'then' than I am now, but I think I am happier, yes.

We're not funneled into a specific working routine that so many professionals have to adhere to, which really suits me, but for all that, I have never felt entirely comfortable with the financial aspect of being a freelancer and the insecurity I always feel because of that.

Remember that happiness stems from other aspects of life too, such as having good health and loved ones around you. Fortunately, I have both at the moment.
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Yaotl Altan
Yaotl Altan  Identity Verified
Mexico
Local time: 14:24
Member (2006)
English to Spanish
+ ...
No Aug 8, 2018

Happiness can be found in other fields and kinds of jobs too.

Certainly, I love translation and its related freelance feature because that gives us freedom, but we're not .the only happy freelancers


 
Amlaku Eshetie
Amlaku Eshetie
United States
Local time: 14:24
English to Amharic
+ ...
It depends Aug 8, 2018

Being a freelancer should not be the only factor. There really are dozens of other factors which may make people happy or unhappy.

However, generally speaking being a freelancer may give you more time, freedom and flexibility of life. And that may be considered one plus thing, which may lead to being happy.


 
Mario Freitas
Mario Freitas  Identity Verified
Brazil
Local time: 17:24
Member (2014)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
Yes Aug 9, 2018

Not only I think so, I'm absolutely sure.
I was an "other type" for 20 years. There is no comparison at all.


 
Muriel Vasconcellos
Muriel Vasconcellos  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 13:24
Member (2003)
Spanish to English
+ ...
Yes Aug 9, 2018

My quality of life changed dramatically when I left my full-time translation job and started freelancing. My life has been enriched in more ways than I can count.

While I miss everyday contact with colleagues, we still stay in touch and I have met many new cyberfriends on ProZ. My circle of friends is much wider now because I engage in so many more activities: classes, volunteering, social groups, meeting neighbors and other folks when I get outside at more different times in the da
... See more
My quality of life changed dramatically when I left my full-time translation job and started freelancing. My life has been enriched in more ways than I can count.

While I miss everyday contact with colleagues, we still stay in touch and I have met many new cyberfriends on ProZ. My circle of friends is much wider now because I engage in so many more activities: classes, volunteering, social groups, meeting neighbors and other folks when I get outside at more different times in the day.

[Edited at 2018-08-09 07:12 GMT]
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Mario Freitas
 
Vera Schoen
Vera Schoen  Identity Verified
Sweden
Local time: 21:24
Member (2008)
German to Swedish
+ ...
No, not at all Aug 9, 2018

Being a freelancer suits me very well, and I would not want to have it any other way.
Having said that, I have many friends who couldn’t imagine a workday with no colleagues, lunchbreaks with nice conversation and the regular, reliable pay check.
What suits me doesn’t necessarily have to suit others.


 
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Poll: Do you think freelancers are generally happier than other types of professional?






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