As 2012 draws to a close, I must admit that I am somewhat befuddled. Everything seemed so straightforward in August. I want to work on strategic head-hurting customer-led challenges that facilitate true business transformation. The way I saw it back then, is that having the freedom and control to select what I work on would be the way to achieve this. So I decided that after over 15 years of permanent employment, 2013 would be the year I go freelance. Sounds simple, eh!
There is no shortage of agencies with ambitions to transform businesses, but in reality most are simply designing what their clients ask for. Freelancing therefore felt like the obvious career choice, putting me in control to work on those projects, both strategic and tactical, that drive real business value.
And then the confusion began. As I shared coffee, beer and lemsip, with friends, and friends of friends, in senior roles across the industry, they reliably informed me that this work exists in regular supply for permanent employees. The challenge is in knowing which agencies have built strategic relationships with their clients and are having grown-up customer-led conversations. As these encouraging and tantalizing conversations continued, I started to question, to freelance or not to freelance?
I have simple needs, to deliver great experiences that make a real difference. To freelance or not to freelance may be a red herring. Both offer the kind of work that really fires me up. The clear advantage of going freelance appears to be having more control over what I work on, and therefore increased likelihood that I’ll work on those things I love doing. Maybe I am suffering the career equivalent of a midlife crisis, as I consider trading in a secure and enjoyable career for a sexier but riskier model.
To be continued…