3 Reasons You Should Consider Self-Employment (Part Two)

When you’ve been writing for awhile there will come a point where you’ll say to yourself–“Could I do this full time? Would I want to?” The question of self-employment pops up for pretty much every writer.The question isn’t what’s important though.

Your answer to it, that’s what’s important.

Because if you see your writing as more than just a hobby and if you can imagine yourself being self-employed, you should give it some serious consideration.

Sure, answering “yes” to that question is scary as hell. It’s downright frightening. You may want to hide in your cubicle, ducked down so the idea never finds you again.

But you’ll get so much more out of being a self-employed writer who gets to write what you want to write versus writing what some company tells you to write for the rest of your life.

You could argue that some writers are working at companies where they enjoy what they’re writing. And that’s fine. If that makes you happy as a writer, then that’s fine and dandy.

But you’re not that kind of writer. If you were, you wouldn’t be here at InkyBites.

No, you came here because you’re the kind of writer who wants to find a way to make a living from your art. You want to earn an income from sharing your writing with the world, in whatever way makes sense for you.

Maybe you want to write fiction or maybe you want to be a full-time freelancer. Maybe your dream is to write how-to books and then expand into teaching workshops.

Whatever it is you want to do with your writing, know this–you CAN make an income from your writing. There IS a way to do it.

The way you go about it will be different depending on what your dream is. For example, if you want to write fiction for a living, you would start by writing a story that kicks ass and then building your audience so you have a platform to publish (self or traditional). But if you write how-to guides, you could start by creating a core eGuide that you can build the rest of your eGuides off of (you still have to build an audience too).

But the point is you’d be self-employed. You’d be writing for you and for your audience. You’d be in control of your destiny.

Have I piqued your interest? Here are 3 reasons why you should consider self-employment:

1. Because The Work World Sucks

You sit in a cubicle all day. Behind a desk. In a dull office building. It’s freezing all day long because the A/C is always blasting, even though it’s really not that hot outside.

You’re told how long you have to sit there for. You’re told what time you have to get there and when you can leave. You’re told how long you can take for lunch.

Your merit in the workplace is based on face time and not on results. You get paid and promoted (or not) based on coming in early and leaving late. An employee’s value is determined by presenteeism.

And you might work your ass off day in and day out for years at a company, only to be fired one day because they wanted to cut corporate spending.

When you’re self-employed, you’re in charge of your destiny–you decide when you work, how you work, where you work and how much money you get for doing so.

2. Because Doing What You Love Is Awesome

When you’re self-employed, you get to wake up every day and do something that you love and are passionate about. You get to spend your time doing something you care about and focusing on things that matter to you.

You get to decide if it’s a work day or a play day, or if you’re going to mix work and play into the same day (and you may even find your work feels like play).

You get to work toward your dreams, instead of working toward someone else’s.

What could be better than that?

3. Because Your Art Deserves To Be Shared With Those Who Need It

You’re a writer. What you have to share and offer is unique. There is no one else just like you.

The stuff you create deserves to be shared. You deserve to live your dreams and earn an income from it.

It won’t come without lots of hard work (scary, I know), but your stories and knowledge and information will be out there for the people who need it. You’ll be contributing to the world and doing your part to make it a better place.

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Have you ever made money from your writing? How did it feel?

In part one of this series I explained more about being a creative entrepreneur and what it could mean for you.

Photo courtesy of Charles Jeffrey Danoff

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