In recent years, freelancing has become more popular than ever, with more than one-third of people pursuing it.
近年来，自由职业变得比以往更受欢迎，超过三分之一的人都投身于自由职业。
Moreover, people aren’t freelancing out of necessity. The majority deliberately choose the freelance lifestyle.
而且，人们并不是迫于生计从事自由职业。大多数人是有意识地选择自由职业的生活方式。
A
What are the advantages of being a freelancer？
成为自由职业者的优势是什么？
01
More freedom
更多自由
One of the advantages of being a freelancer is that you have much more freedom than when you work for someone else. You’re essentially running your own business, and it’s up to you which new clients you take on, what your hourly rate is, and what hours you work.
做自由职业者的好处之一是，与为他人工作相比，你有更多的自由。基本上你是在经营自己的事业，你可以自己决定接受哪些新客户，你的时薪是多少，以及你的工作时间。
02
Flexible hours
时间灵活
If you have kids, you might choose to do your work while they’re in school and after they’ve gone to bed. If you want to take off Wednesday because the weather is nice and work on a Saturday instead, it’s entirely up to you. In general, as long as the work for your clients is completed by the agreed-on deadlines, you have complete control over when and how you do it.
如果你有孩子，你可以选择在他们上学时和睡觉后工作。如果天气好，你想周三休息，改为周六工作，也是你说了算。一般来说，只要客户的工作能在约定的截止日期前完成，你完全可以控制你的工作时间和工作方式。
03
Self-management
自我管理
Again, as a freelancer, you’re your own boss. You choose your workload, your schedule, your dress code, and every other aspect of how you run things.
同样，作为一名自由职业者，你是自己的老板。你可以决定自己的工作量、日程安排、着装，以及管理事情的方方面面。
04
Location flexibility
地点灵活
A lot of freelance work is done digitally, which means you can be fully remote—with clients worldwide—and live and travel wherever you please while completing it.
很多自由职业者的工作都是以数字化方式完成的，这意味着你完全可以和与世界各地的客户远联系，在完成工作的同时，你可以随心所欲地生活和旅行。
05
Compensation and earnings control
薪酬可控
As a freelancer, there’s no need to ask your boss for a raise. You set your rates. You also choose how much work you take on. To a certain degree, though, rates and amount of work are subject to market forces. You can’t ask for astronomical compensation without reducing your list of prospective clients.
作为一个自由职业者，你不需要向你的老板要申请加薪。你为自己定价。承担多少工作量也由你自己定。不过在某种程度上，价格和工作量都受到市场力量的影响。如果不想减少你的潜在客户名单，你就不能报个天价。
06
Improved skill set
提升技能
Freelancing means you take on various projects from multiple clients. Each project brings something new to the table and provides an opportunity to expand your skill set. You’ll likely find yourself learning new things as you go.
自由职业意味着你要接触各种客户的各种项目。每个项目都会带来一些新的东西，并提供扩展技能的机会。你可能会发现工作中的自己一直在学习新东西。
B
What are the disadvantages of working as a freelancer?
作为自由职业者的缺点是什么？
Being a freelancer can have its downsides, although many who find success do so because the benefits outweigh these drawbacks. Among the disadvantages is that you must pay taxes as a business would, meaning you pay the business portion of Social Security and Medicare that is generally covered by employers in a regular job.
作为一名自由职业者也有其缺点，尽管许多人认为成功是因为优点大于缺点。自由职业者缺点之一是，你必须像企业一样纳税，这意味着你要自己支付社会保险和医疗保险中企业承担的那部分，一般来说普通工作中这部分是由雇主承担的。
There is also no health insurance or retirement benefits from an employer, and you must provide these for yourself. Freelancing is sometimes seen as less secure since you can’t count on a regular paycheck and must keep seeking new projects and clients.
自由职业者也没有来自雇主的健康保险或退休金，你必须为自己提供这些。自由职业有时被认为不那么安全，就是因为自由职业者不能指望固定薪水，必须不断寻找新项目和新客户。
C
How do you start freelancing?
如何开始自由职业？
There are many approaches to starting freelancing. Some people choose to do it on the side first while still working a full-time job, and then they slowly transition to full-time freelancing as they gain clients.
开始自由职业有许多方法。有些人选择在做全职工作时也做副业，积累一定客户后再慢慢过渡到全职自由职业。
Getting started and established generally requires creating a personal website where you describe your services and skills and setting up social media accounts on sites like LinkedIn so that you can connect with businesses and clients.
自由职业起步和建立一般需要创建一个个人网站，用于描述你提供的服务和技能，并在LinkedIn等网站上注册社交媒体账户，以便与企业和客户建立联系。
Key points：
1. freelance 自由职业的
He is a freelance journalist.
他是一名自由新闻记者。
2. compensation 补偿（金）
He has dismissed an offer of compensation.
他拒绝接受赔偿金。
3. outweigh 比……重要；胜过
The advantages of this deal largely outweigh the disadvantages.
这笔交易的利远远大于弊。
