by Leo Wiles
02 December 2015
Hi ladies, thanks so much for your fabulous site, it’s helped me get work and your blog has so many useful tips for freelancers! With this in mind, what are the implications of freelancing on your career if you decide to combine freelancing with an in-house job or head back into 9 to 5 land full time? Do employers look favourably upon a stint freelancing or do they think it’s a euphemism for watching daytime TV in your pjs? A
Great question. Recently I wrote about the implications of being full-time and going freelance but the flipside of being freelance to go in-house is another kettle of fish. In my experience, publishers are the most wary. You’ll need a valid reason, such as raising children – or in my case, I told my interviewer that I was looking for some stability to please my bank manager and pay my mortgage.
I also promised I’d be a loyal staff member and stay for at least two years which I did – and I believe my initial honesty won the panel over. That, and my years of writing across so many genres, which led them to accept I’d be able to handle an associate editor role looking after 26 pages of news and features each week.
Corporate tend to be less fussed. Ultimately, they want to know what skillset you’ll bring to the role they have in mind. So again, a freelance background and a keen interest in disseminating complex information for audiences with various reading ages can really be beneficial here. Especially if you have a niche that reflects your understanding of their industry, and you have the right contacts to fulfil their brief. It’s one of the reasons I think most of us can slip so easily from journalism to PR as we all inhabit the same world.
If you have spent your freelance years sitting around eating Coco Pops in front of breakfast TV, then your track record will speak for itself and I guess your time freelancing could be seen as a hindrance. However, armed with a portfolio bursting full of cuttings in either the private or public sector – even if they are dated pre-children – should get you out of a pickle.
A, I wish you luck in your endeavours and would love to hear from other full timers or contractors about how you successfully made the transition.
Have you bounced back and forth between freelancing and full-time roles? Ever encountered a negative attitude from employers?
