Many graduates and talented artists have an ultimate goal, which is to become a freelance artist (self-employed). So what is it all about then?, what is really involved and ultimately is it really for me?. Being a freelancer is very different from being employed, so consider all of the pros and cons before taking the plunge.

You need to sell your time and skill set the company who hires you. So make sure you understand the importance of time restrictions and quality control. You will have a lot more responsibilities than the average employee, because your now your own boss. If a company hires you for a particular project then that actually qualifies you to be a freelancer.

Most freelancers start out by charging by the hour, but it is up to you if you feel more comfortable charging by the project. If your a creative, then check out aoi.com for ideas and advice on what you could charge clients. You could contact other freelancers for advice on rates if your still not sure.

You might be wondering what the client gets out of hiring a freelancer, right?. Well, they are a number of benefits, firstly, freelancers are far more flexible than regular employees. Passionate freelancers will be prepared to work all hours in the comfort of their own home or office ,unlike the employee who will go home at a set time each day.

It helps to keep a solid relationship with your client by hitting your deadlines and pushing quality work. Companies who hire like the fact that there is little commitment involved, because they are only hiring you for one off jobs. Employees sign contracts which means that they will get paid regardless.

Quite often the in house team are only capable of producing work of a certain standard, but freelancers are usually specialists, with skills that can be valuable to the company for a particular time or project. If you are intending to become a freelancer, it helps to try and specialise in a particular area as this makes you more valuable to the client in the long run.

You will actually save the client money because of the non commitment involved. They do not have to consider paying you when you not well or on holiday. There is no redundancy money to pay out or tax, so it means less administration work for them.