Having worked largely on their own for extended periods of time, arts and humanities PhDs can become accustomed to the life of an independent worker. For some, getting up in the morning and starting work at home, in their pyjamas, and not speaking to anyone before mid-afternoon is an appealing way of life. Many also cite the independence and autonomy to manage a big project entirely in their own idiosyncratic way as a distinct advantage of PhD study.

The self-motivation and discipline it takes to adhere to a topic and to complete a thesis are substantial, but they are highly valued in retrospect when PhDs look back on the experience. Some recognise that the personal qualities and skills honed by the process of successfully completing a doctorate can be used to good effect in the freelance world. The experiences of those who have – and haven't – made this transition successfully reveal lessons both groups wished they had learnt earlier. The transition phase can be turbulent, sometimes more so than anticipated.

Freelancers say they enjoy the freedom to work from home, flexible hours, autonomy to follow their own interests, lack of office politics, and simply earning their living. But the flip side of this might be having to motivate yourself to generate work, then managing too many projects because of fear of turning down any opportunity, agreeing to projects you are not really interested in completing, and having no colleagues to say 'good morning' to.

Freelancers will often start by taking one project and seeing how it develops. Some will stop at that point and instead seek employment in an organisation. Others will persist and perhaps seek temporary paid work or a short contract with an employer to make ends meet while pursuing the next freelance project. Knowing what alternative opportunities can be combined with freelance work – to pay the bills while building a good reputation and worthwhile contacts – helps to secure success. In time it is possible to give up the 'day job' and focus entirely on the freelance work. Financial support may come in other forms: you probably don't want to freeload for too long (or perhaps you do) but accepting that sharing everyday expenses with a friend or relation will help to get you started can be a helpful attitude to adopt. (A generous benefactor is another option, but don't waste too much time looking.)

Understanding what you can offer, having a clear idea of how you can contribute, and knowing the organisations which can pay you for doing so, means knowing the territory of the sector that interests you. Researching it thoroughly will build confidence and contacts, and can increase the effectiveness of speculative approaches.

The reality of freelancing involves working rapidly to meet other people's deadlines. Doing twelve things at once and managing competing deadlines imposed by others might relate to the PhD style of working. Adapting outputs to suit the differing needs of those hiring your services again might be similar to experience gained through academic study. In this way, PhD study could be viewed as an apprenticeship: the preparation for freelance work. The difference will be in determining what your work is worth to those requesting your services. Billing for work can be remarkably hard in the initial stages of freelancing, although it gets easier with practice. Asking others who are adept at charging for professional services how they cost their work, can ease new freelancers into determining their worth. Defining diverse work projects and talking with clients effectively, so that rapport is strong and understanding is deep, may demand more from you than you experienced in your PhD study.

Many employers outsource work to freelancers and rely on them to plug capability gaps. Freelancers increase an organisation's capacity during peak periods and can become indispensible. Gaining understanding of employers' views of the world, their needs and requirements, will increase your chances of winning new work. Learning to talk like them, using their vernacular and sounding as if you fit in, will also help. This does not mean abandoning academic discourse but rather applying it only in the appropriate circumstances. Successful freelancers adopt the right language for each client.

In addition to the project work itself, freelancers talk of the time they need to allocate to researching, marketing, promoting and networking in order to generate business. It is not unrealistic, especially in the early stages, to apportion up to 50% of working time to these administrative aspects, but few do this and hence find themselves burning the midnight oil and working exceptionally long hours at the start of their career. One way to avoid this is to work for an organisation in a paid role before embarking on the freelance bit. Being employed generally means having fixed hours of work and paid holiday. (The pension and sick pay are also benefits.) More significantly, being employed means networking in paid work time: building relationships and learning about the sector are legitimate paid activity. The career trajectory of many freelancers includes having been employed in a related sector. An active step towards becoming freelance might mean finding paid employment first and reaping the benefits of this before embarking on the increased freedom of the freelancer, thus reducing the choppy waters common at the early stages of this career path.

Some freelancers volunteer with organisations as a means of establishing contacts, testing out ideas and in some cases benefitting from training and informal learning opportunities. Regular part-time volunteering alongside paid freelance work can form a portfolio of experience that is ultimately very satisfying, each aspect involving varied types of participation and activity.

Developing the occupational identity of a journalist, writer or other professional freelancer requires self confidence. You cannot simply say 'I am employed by so-and-so as a something-or-other to do such-and-such'. When you're not sure whether you are, are becoming, or simply hope to become, for example, a journalist, it is hard to define your occupation. As a result, newly established freelancers tend to use language that diminishes what they do: 'I write a bit', 'I've only had a few articles published' or 'I'm just trying my hand at a bit of wordsmithing'. It takes time to grow the guts to say 'I am a writer' and the PhD graduate can feel bereft of an identity for a period of time that feels too long and too shaky. With hindsight, though, this period often seems shorter and far less significant. A thickish skin can also help the freelancer to become established. Rejection will come and how each individual reacts to it will differ. The thin skinned who let it put them off will take longer to recover and might be permanently deterred.  

The skills, abilities and personal qualities developed during PhD study can provide a firm foundation on which to build a freelance career. However, it would be wrong to overstate the parallels and kid yourself that freelance work is simply an extension of graduate studies. They are quite different realities, making different demands and producing different satisfactions. Writing for an organisation's specific requirements is not like writing chapters of a thesis; researching for a TV documentary is not like PhD research and you will not be examined on your work. You will learn much about different subjects and develop new skills. Furthermore, the freelancer's professional development is their own concern, and involves time and expense. And there is no free internet and IT support, accessible library, subsidised cafe, or cheap beer. But comparing the reality of freelance work with the reality of other types of available employment, rather than with academic study, can make it an appealing choice.

If more displacement activity is needed before embarking on freelance work, try reading sociologist Richard Sennett on what happens when people want to do a good job. In The Craftsman, he explores how we anchor ourselves in the world around us through work and argues that our work matters to us and to the rest of society because 'learning to work well enables people to govern themselves and so become good citizens. The industrious maid is more likely to prove a good citizen than her bored mistress'.(269) So, good citizens, be resourceful and take the active steps necessary to pursue freelance work and avoid the humdrum world of regular paid employment.

Reference

Sennett Richard, 2008, The Craftsman, Penguin, London.

Catherine Reynolds
University of Sussex
August 2008

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