The Canadian workforce has more than 15 percent of self–employed professionals working in all the sectors of the labor market in Canada. The professional skills of an individual can assist them to get a career in Canada as a freelancer. Freelancing is an amazing way to make some extra cash and you can eventually be your own boss and have a full-time career too.
Canadian Job culture lays more emphasis on part-time and freelance jobs. They have independent contractors who pay them for freelance jobs on a project basis, in some cases, the recruiters can also pay by per hour. As a newcomer coming to Canada a lot of people want to find freelance opportunities that are part-time and help them with their earnings.
Through this article, you will be able to understand freelance jobs, their pros and cons it and how you can help your professional career by expanding your network in all the fields of freelancing.
Freelancing: What is it?
A freelance is someone who is employed by himself. The freelancers have unique individuality and mastery over their skills that enable them to take up contract-based projects and commissions. They can even work for themselves on a project and make money per hour while taking up freelance projects. Various companies and institutions collaborate with them to do work for them. The freelancer is also responsible to take personal tasks and getting hired on a project-to-project basis. If a freelancer has a lot they can outsource their work and vet clients to make the best business choices.
Freelance work has a lot of benefits, they can work remotely and put a unique set of challenges and their work is flexible too. An immigrant coming to Canada can perform exceptionally well in the country once they make a break into the Canadian economy.
Why is freelancing great?
1. Flexibility
Being self-employed means that you will have flexible hours and you can work from any place. A traditional 9 to 5 job just isn’t for you. If you have a family to take care of you can manage your responsibilities by working in the comfort of your house according to your individual needs and earning some extra cash while working for your passion.
2. Chase your passions
Many freelancers choose to freelance following their stimulus and creative mindset. Being self-employed means that you can dedicate all the time you have to the projects that you admire and always wanted to chase. You can schedule things up with your work.
3. Entry barrier is low
You must have the equipment that will help you to do your job and you must have skills and knowledge about the same. As long as web designers and writers are concerned, they can get started if they have a laptop of their own. A freelance designer or a graphic designer will need a laptop and an iPad or an e-pencil to do their work. This also brings down the financial barriers there are in the field. You can register your business but working as an immigrant and doing freelancing will make you be your own authority to respond.
4. Contract work can turn into a full-time opportunity
Freelance and freelancing websites provide an opportunity to prove yourself and your skills that will help the company and showcase your skills. A freelance writer based in Canada can connect with an employer situated anywhere in the world. Start-ups prefer freelancers for a day job. You can connect with a lot of creatives and freelance consultants regarding this. If you associate with various companies, they will know to hire you since they are already aware of your skills and the quality of the work that you produce. Being freelance you have to showcase your skills to your potential client and that requires an online portfolio.
5. Opening boundaries to your network
To become a freelancer who has achieved a lot and is celebrating, and being able to turn your social connections into work opportunities. When you come to Canada as an immigrant you might not have a lot to know or you may not have a lot of connections beforehand and it might act as a barrier that could limit your business but then again the internet has made connections to be more accessible and successful for immigrants. Initially, you may not have a lot of networks but once you become a freelancer you will have to look for changes in jobs online. The internet has helped immigrants to build a career and connections through LinkedIn and find new work.
Drawback of freelancing
1. No employee benefits
Employers in Canada provide the employee with employee benefits that are foreseen by the company. Some of the employee benefits include dental insurance, counseling services, life insurance, disability services, and also payment after retirement. The gig economy will not entertain staffing and as a freelancer, you yourself will be answerable for the benefit of yourself and it takes both effort and money.
2. One has to be one’s own accountant
A freelancer has to do their own marketing, track growth, face challenges and solve them, do accounting and make a development all at the same time. If you are a fresher in this field, it will be difficult to track the finances of your own. The flow of the money how much you owe and invoicing is important and you will have to plan your finances starting early.
The types of Freelance work
There are startups emerging everywhere and the technology is booming. The freelance industry is soaring too. The gig economy is quite famous for freelance writers, freelance artists, freelance software engineers, freelance graphic designers, and freelance journalists to have a work-life that is flexible and has untimely deadlines. Earlier the freelance marketing was involved with art and writing but now the creative freelancers have expanded to other fields as well.
The most common freelance work is
- Writing Freelance: This includes academic writing, freelance content writer, blog writing, writing for blog posts, independent writers, copy editors, technical writers, freelance authors, and various online writing roles.
- Technology outsourcing and development: Telecommute, blockchain, PHP, web development, app development, freelance programmer, marketing, information technology, SEO specialization.
- Artistic work: freelance audio and video production, freelance photographers, freelance graphic designers, mechanical Turk, illustrator, and other freelancing gigs in the creative field.
- Remote jobs in administration: Telecommute, virtual personal assistant, time tracking, pitching, becoming virtual assistant, and also jobs in the translation are part of the gig.
- Tutoring: To make money and fill paycheck the teaching certifications can fetch-in money by holding online classes while teaching writing skills, development skill-set and tutoring language skills and tech skills, any niche that you have expertise in, and so much more.
What to charge as a freelancer?
While freelancing to get paid, you must make a clear precise, and up-to-date invoice that has all the relevant information for the client to cover the tax purpose.
To make an invoice for your freelance job and get paid, these are the following things that you should consider including:
- Contact information: Address, phone number, email, business name.
- Invoice number
- A list of items/ services
- Options of payment you accept
- After payment receipt
There are various sites that can help you look up freelancing work such as Upwork, Fiverr, Elance, Odesk, etc. There are online platforms for invoicing too which are, Hiveage, Quickbooks, Hubstaff, and many others. These create and track the invoices and swiftly make the payment.
