All of the research seems promising for aspiring freelancers. For those who are clear on the type of work they want to do, there appear to be many opportunities. However, for the people who want to move out of the 9-to-5 world and into an independent work arrangement without a clear vision of the work, it goes without saying that the transition is a bit more complex.
While it is a common problem for people to be unsure which career is right for them, this question can be especially challenging for a person who knows she wants to pursue independent work, but does not know what the work will look like. Why is it so hard for people to figure out what they really want in the modern world of work?
According to therapist and career counselor Barbara Sher (1994), there are two reasons:
One reason it’s so hard to know what we want is that we have so many options….The second reason…is that something inside you is stopping you from knowing. Your dreams are obscured by some kind of internal conflict (Sher, 1994).
Establishing a freelance career path is not always as simple as inventorying one’s skills or leveraging one’s professional experience and deciding to provide a related product or service. For the “unconventional” type who has been dissatisfied in traditional employment, the temptation is to believe that he will be happier doing the same type of work he has done before, as long as he is his own boss. But without carefully considering all of the options, the aspiring freelancer can end up just as frustrated as he was in traditional employment.
The problem is that people tend to be quite ineffective when it comes to predicting what they will want in the future. According to psychologist Daniel Gilbert (2005), people often make the mistake of guessing at what they will want in the future based on what they are feeling in the present. Says Gilbert (2005),
we expect our future to feel a bit more like our present than it actually will.
Deciding to switch to a freelance career and being removed from the perceived safety of traditional employment can be uncertain and stressful. Engaging a qualified coach can help the aspiring freelancer manage stress during the transition, and ensure that her plan is aligned with the her values. Based on Gilbert’s (2005) findings, it is important for the aspiring freelancer to plan her path based on what she wants to feel in the future, not based on the frustration that may lead someone to pursuing independent work. Part of the coach’s role in this case would be to help the client visualize her ideal future in clear detail, in order to shift to an emotional state of happiness that will better allow the client to make future plans that will be truly satisfying, rather than making decisions out of frustration.
According to the 2010 ICF Global Consumer Awareness Study, almost 40 percent of respondents indicated that they felt that coaching had helped them expand their career opportunities (International Coach Federation, 2011). Coaching is a tool that can help people slow down and reflect on their options, and it provides a sounding board for exploring all of their ideas without judgment.
Conclusion
Some research indicates that career and work satisfaction are among the strongest contributors to mental health (Eikelberry, 1999), which is a clear message that career satisfaction is more than just a luxury. In fact, it is critical to one’s well being. The desire for more independence, meaning and control over one’s work life seems to be a growing phenomenon. For this reason, career coaches need to be equipped to support not only clients who are looking for traditional careers, but so-called “unconventional” clients who dream of pursuing independent work. According to Sher (1994), a Harvard study conducted in the early 1980’s surveyed a sampling of people who called themselves happy.
And what [two things] did happy people have in common?…They knew exactly what they wanted and they felt they were moving toward getting it (Sher, 1994).
Coaches can help on both fronts. An effective coaching relationship helps clients get clear on what exactly they want, and holds them accountable for making a plan and taking the steps to achieve those goals. Those who aspire to work independently need support from coaches that understand their unique challenges, in addition to helping them achieve clarity and progress.
Bibliography
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