You can hear Ernie over in the next cubicle biting his nails and spitting them out. Yesterday it was so hot in your department you got sick right after lunch. Today it is so cold you are wearing a parka. It's June. Do you spend your lunches chewing your lip (after you eat your soggy tuna fish sandwich) and dreaming of working from home? Do you think you are ready to take the freelance plunge?

Still Waters Run Deep

If you think you are ready to quit your job and do the stay-at-home thing, ask yourself a few questions first:

• Do you consistently arrive at work on or ahead of time?
  
• Do you get right to work, or do you take time to make coffee, say hello to your co-workers, straighten your desk or read a few interesting news items?
  
• Are you able to work alone and keep yourself within time limits, or do you require a supervisor to assign you tasks throughout the day?
  
• Do you need a pat on the back every now and then, or are you able to find motivation within yourself?

Freelance writers find very quickly how much personal discipline is required to keep yourself on track when there is no one there to crack the whip. Will you be able to get yourself out of bed every single day, resisting the urge to sleep in just this one time? Are you able to make a schedule and stick to it? Scheduling is very important self-employed. It is very easy to allow yourself to slide into complacency. You tell yourself you are doing something fabulous just by making the mental jump into freelance mode. Then you find yourself resting on the laurels of the gigantic leap of faith in yourself. Now what?

It is important for anyone considering a freelance career to take into account all the variables. Will you be able to save for a rainy day, which is bound to happen quite a bit during those first days of branding and reputation-building? Arguably the most important question before even beginning such an endeavor is to decide if you have the funds (or access to income) to get you through the lean years. It is very important to have a primary source of income when first starting your freelancing business. Your freelancing 'job' should be supplemental income, not your main occupation. You should wait until you have a strong following and a respectable group of clients to establish a full-time business until it shows serious potential for being a steady source of money. I will be posting more articles geared to new freelance writers. I am also working on an e-book that will be a valuable guide for those young to the freelancing world. Keep an eye out!