Learn #15 New Things:
Are you a freelancer or an entrepreneur?
The concept of freelance work versus entrepreneurship is something I didn’t really understand until recently. I envisioned myself creating a career as an entrepreneur but was going about it from a freelancer point of view…
Last week I listened to a podcast called Seth Godin’s Startup School and I learned a lot about the difference between these two types of work. Author Gordin said, “Freelancers get paid when the work, they don’t get paid when they don’t.” And that really hit me. In the business of providing doula services and yoga classes I would be a freelancer. Also according to Godin, “Entrepreneurs build something bigger than themselves – they make money when they sleep.” My current model involves a lot of getting paid when I work, and very little getting paid when I don’t work. Perhaps this is the nature of my business, but perhaps I can be both.
What really resonated with me is the idea that you can be both. Like Seth Godin, I would eventually like to spend 80% or less of my time as a freelancer, and 20% or more of my time as an entrepreneur. To do that I need to corner a market and provide something different or better than anyone else. What will people cross the street to get from me? I’ve been looking at my competition in the prenatal yoga, childbirth education, and doula fields and considering my options. Always on the back-burner is my idea to incorporate a space or community center for queer and trans nonprofits and organizations. I continue to let these ideas marinate, and perhaps someday soon my true path with unfold itself to me.
As I continue to save financially to undertake my dreams, my next step is to really narrow down my goals and consider what I can realistically (and successfully) accomplish. My overarching goal this year is to get out of credit card debt and start saving! While I won’t reach my goal of having $600 saved for yoga teacher training by the end of March, I have significantly reduced my credit card debt by freelancing on the side of my regular job. As a tutor I make between $20-30 an hour, which helped me pay over $1,000 toward my credit cards this month. Through conscious thriftiness over 6 months we’ve paid off over $3,000 in debt. It’s been a long road, but when you have a concrete – AND AMAZING – goal in mind, it’s not so hard.
If you’re considering getting out of debt or starting to save to start your own business, let me know in the comment below!