More than 53 million Americans call themselves freelancers, but does that mean you should too?

In today’s article we’ll find out by exposing 9 not often talked about realities of what it’s like to be a full-time Freelancer (from a real Freelancer earning high six figures per year).

You shouldn’t be a freelancer if…

#1. You like it (alot) when other people pay your taxes and your insurance

Fact: Freelancers have zero income ceiling.

You can make as much as you’re willing to grow your business.

Also fact: you don’t get to keep every penny that you make.

Things like taxes, insurance, and the occasional legal fees are all part and parcel of running a legitimate, successful Freelancing business.

The good news is, if you’re smart about how you grow your business you can create pricing structures and fees that include those costs. If you’re extra smart (or just lazy like me) you’ll also build in the cost of hiring someone smarter than you to handle those adult-ish things (accountant, attorney, insurance specialists, etc.).

Either way, the buck stops with you.

#2. You are addicted to the Internet and Netflix

This sounds like a joke but it isn’t.

If you suffer from real Internet addiction no amount of self-discipline will help you get the work done that your clients have paid you for.

Don’t get me wrong, there is no other career path in the world that allows you the lifestyle flexibility and freedom while earning surgeon-level money that freelancing does, but a key component to earning more and working less is time management.

If you can’t stop checking Flakebook every ten minutes, it’s going to be hard to make a living online.

I typically get done in an hour at least 5x what a typical employee accomplishes in that same hour. This is part of why clients hire me.

To think of it another way: what you used to get away with working for someone else will crush your chances of developing a lifestyle business.

The easy fix is to develop simple discipline practices and habits, but if you suffer from legitimate Internet addiction this might not be for you.

#3. You shirk personal responsibility

Excuse-itis, blaming others, and shying away from constructive criticism are behaviors that will quickly ruin your chances of a fruitful Freelancing business.

It is a lot easier than you think to charge and be paid $100 an hour for a Super Power that helps others. However, it requires a certain level of professionalism and personal responsibility to be worthy of receiving that much trust from clients.

Freelancers are more directly responsible for their work and the results they bring to clients than most employees will ever be in corporate America.

If you run away from responsibility, if you lie about and missed deadlines, if you refuse to accept feedback on your work…

… Freelancing and the rewards it brings are simply not for you.

#4. You believe that you are owed a living

As an employee you are paid to show up regardless of the quality or quantity of effort you provide.

True or not true: there are some days at your job that you simply coast through.

True or not true: you still have that job.

Therefore: you are paid to show up.

Likely, on those days where you give less than your best effort at work you still believe you are owed a paycheck for that time.

This is not the case when it comes to working with and for clients.

To earn $100 per hour, you must give hundred dollars worth of value (at least) within that hour. There are no shortcuts, no cutting corners, and no stealing time.

If those are the behaviors which guide your moral and philosophical approach to work, you will quickly develop a reputation of being lazy, slothful, and non-hireable as a Freelancer.

I have seen many new Freelancers excited about the financial and lifestyle possibilities available to them only to watch them crawl back to their old employers because they simply could not develop the habit of giving in return for being paid.

#5. You hate to learn new things

It doesn’t matter if you are a writer, a designer, a photographer or videographer, or you don’t know yet what you’ll be doing as a full-time service provider…

… If you aren’t willing to get better at whatever it is you do, you won’t last very long in this business.

I’m not suggesting you go get a graduate degree in business writing (frankly, I think that would be a giant waste of time and money).

I’m not suggesting that you fork over $45,000 for a personal mentor (yet).

What I am suggesting is that you build and commit to a daily regimen of improvement.

Here’s what I do:

— Read at least 100 pages worth of material that will help me to improve my craft (sometimes I replace reading with listening to an audio or watching a video)

— Spend at least a few minutes every day admiring the work of the Masters in my field trying to glean inspiration and ideas from them

— Consistently ask for and review feedback from my clients

That’s it.

It’s not complex, costs me nothing (I have a well-worn library card), and I have no delusions that I will become a Master of  my craft overnight. It is a daily regimen that relies on small, incremental improvements over time.

I’m in this for the long haul my dudes.

If you aren’t willing to get better at what you do, this business is not for you.

#6. You struggle to overcome your own self interest

The best service providers are those who can empathize and adjust to the needs of their clients within reasonable bounds.

I would never suggest bending over backwards for a client. Frankly, I consistently teach the opposite.

However, if you are unable or unwilling to put the needs of your clients at the top of your list of priorities you will fail as a Freelancer. Guaranteed.

While it makes for good TV and movies, creative divas do not exist in the world of well-paying, lifestyle centric service providing Freelancing. Sure, you could argue that there are plenty of psychotic fashion designers/painters/movie directors who would prove me wrong, but…

… Those are not service-based careers and for the most part (speaking from experience having worked with clients at the celebrity level) most of those people fall into a state of psychosis because they are overworked, overstressed, and are experiencing pressures you and I can’t even begin to imagine.

If lifestyle-based freelancing — you know, the kind that doesn’t give you a heart attack at 30 — is your goal then you simply cannot afford to be a diva.

You must have or be willing to develop a mindset of compassion and empathy towards the clients who will end up paying your rent.

#7. Deadlines are your nightmare

This goes back to point #3 but it’s worth repeating:

The clients you will work with will measure your worth by how well you meet deadlines.

This is why I consistently teach that YOU must be in control of when deadlines are set. It’s also why teach that Freelancers are only as good as clients will allow them to be.

Think about it:

If a client gives you unrealistic deadlines, you’ll never be able to do a good enough job to impress them. Therefore, pick your clients wisely. Say “no” to those who refuse to give you an environment in which you can succeed.

However, you better hit those deadlines if you are the one who set them.

I’m not only a Freelancer, but I also hire Freelancers from time to time to help me with various projects.

As a client I can say this with 100% certainty:

There is no faster way to lose trust in a client provider relationship than consistently missing deadlines.

Don’t do it. Ever.

#8. You need to be able to predict the future to get through the day

If you build your service business the way that I teach you’ll never have to worry about chasing gig after gig. There will be income consistency like few other businesses experience.

However, a bimonthly paycheck of exactly the same amount of money is not a reality for people who own their own business. There will be fluctuation, there will be change.

If you follow what I teach, those changes and fluctuations will be positive. That bimonthly paycheck will grow over time instead of staying stagnant, but even then owning a real business means things change and shift.

If you are the kind of person who cannot function unless they know exactly what they are going to be eating for breakfast six years, two months and three days from now… Freelancing just isn’t for you.

Your clients will change, your skills will change and improve, you will be constantly growing and getting better. This means you will be taking on different projects, better projects, working with bigger and better clients, earning more, and changing a lot about what your life probably looks like right now.

If that scares you, don’t be fooled by the lie of “consistent employment” either.

A traditional job is no more secure than starting your own business. You could be laid off at any moment, without warning, and for no reason… tomorrow.

To think otherwise is naïve and financially dangerous.

I am the son of a manufacturing plant worker who grew up during the great outsourcing of the 90s. We moved 28 times before I was 18.

The promise of “traditional job security” is a complete and utter lie.

However, if you disagree or you choose to ignore the writing on the wall and you believe that you couldn’t function in an environment which changes (one that you control) then maybe Freelancing isn’t for you after all.

#9. You hate the idea of getting paid above poverty levels

You may think I’m joking when I put this on here, but after having served thousands of potential, new, and even experienced professional service providers…

… I have found that there is a group of people who simply hate the idea of earning good money.

They have somehow twisted in their mind that earning good money means you must be a bad person.

I don’t understand the logic, but I recognize it as a phenomenon.

If you believe that earning $100 an hour is a sin against the world, Freelancing isn’t for you.

That said, allow me a moment to change your mind (whether you decide to Freelance or not):

I make a lot of money.

That’s not arrogance, that’s simply a fact.

I also give a lot of that money away.

Again, not arrogance just a fact.

Some of it I give to nonprofits like Nikela.org who help stop illegal poaching in Africa. Some of it, I give to local families near me who I know are in need. A lot of it I give to members of my family who have fallen on hard times, or experienced unusual life circumstances which have left them financially incapacitated.

I’m not telling you these things in hopes that you’ll pat me on the back, I truly don’t care what you think about it or me. I’m simply pointing out that most of the good things you want to do for others could be helped with the tool of money.

That’s all money is, a tool.

If you are able to — with integrity — provide services for others in which you earn a good amount of money you will be arming yourself with a tool you can use to do good.

We are not talking about the sleazy kind of wealth that Enron bankers were accumulating through manipulation and deception. I am suggesting that you build a business that legitimately and truly helps others by leveraging your creative abilities and getting paid what you are worth so you can go live the life you desire (including helping the less fortunate).

If you still believe that getting paid well is an evil act, then Freelancing just simply isn’t for you.

To be frank, I’m not sure what is.

Conclusion

Being a Freelancer isn’t always sunshine and rainbows.

You don’t just automagically have all of the benefits and rewards that this business can offer the second you decide to pursue it.

It requires internal shifts, learning new skills, and developing a business plan which supports both a lifestyle and a high income (I can teach you how to do that here). If you are willing to make those changes, to grow as an individual, and to persevere UNTIL you make it (not IF you make it), then I truly believe there is no better way to make a living on this earth than being a creative service provider helping others as a Freelancer.

If you’d like more information on how to build your own successful service-based business, come watch my free training where I will teach you the 3 core components to building a business around your life instead of trying to fit your life into a business. Click here to learn more.