That Fresh Freelance Smell!

Work seems to have been picking up lately. Not just for me, but for several other freelancers as well. I have no idea if this trend will continue, but it seemed like a positive sign when I had to turn down two jobs over the course of two weeks. That hasn't happened in quite some time for me.

Last week I was working on-site with fellow freelancer Joe Criscuolo. Now Joe calls himself a "Career Freelancer", and he makes this distinction to differentiate himself from the other freelancers who are just freelancing until they can find a staff position (remember the "Fake Freelancer" vs. the "Real Freelancer" post I made a while back?). Well, Joe eschews these fake freelancers as they are competing for the same work he is, and obviously the market is saturated with them. But here is the real rub... many of these "fake freelancers" have now breathed in the freedom of freelance life, and they freakin' LOVE IT!

Two days ago I was part of a conversation where three recently unemployed staffers were discussing how great freelancing was. "You don't get caught up in office politics, or have to go to stupid meetings, or deal with stupid clients... FREELANCE IS GREAT!!!" I then mentioned a few aspects of freelancing that weren't so great like having to wait 3 months to get paid, but my comments fell on deaf ears. Too late. These one-time staffers had just smelled the fresh scent of freelance, and they were all in agreement... there would be no looking back.

I have to wonder how many other recently unemployed staffers there are who are experiencing the joys of freelancing, and coming to the same conclusion.

It's all part of the cycle of the freelance industry I guess. Here we have a fresh batch of Career Freelancers entering the fold, and competing for the limited work available. In turn, I'm quite sure that there will be more than a few Career Freelancers who will be edged out of the market, and make the determination to change career paths. It's a vicious cycle my friends, and it will be quite interesting to see how the next 6 to 12 months develop with this new wave of Career Freelancers entering into the marketplace.

EDIT:
Looking back over previous blog entries, I came across one I wrote on Monday, January 5th of 2009 entitled "How Freelance Works - Or, In This Case, Doesn't Work". I found this snippet to be unfortunately prophetic...

"The bad news is Junior ADs aren't the only ones out on the street. A lot of senior-level creatives have been let go, and these folks know a lot of people. In the end, the people who were once your pipeline for freelance work are now competing with you for the little freelance work that's available."

Here's to hoping that the economy will rebound, agencies will start winning pitches, clients will loosen their purse-strings and there will be more than enough freelance work for everyone. What? I can dream, can't I?