General Discussion

MineralMan

(151,447 posts)

13. One of the reasons I decided to be self-employed

Sat Jul 9, 2022, 11:35 AM

Jul 2022

as a freelance magazine journalist with a couple of side-hustles, was so I could earn as much as I needed working about half-time. Sometimes I had to work longer hours than that, but in spurts, not on a daily basis.

I managed to do that for about 45 years, while being a homeowner and putting away retirement funds. I was lucky, of course, but I partly made my own luck.

What did I get from that? Time. Time to read and expand my knowledge base. Time to relax. Time to go fishing from time to time in the morning when the lakes weren't busy. Time to think.

Do I recommend that way of life? Maybe, but only if you have or can develop a skill set that lets you adjust your work time to suit yourself. if you can, though, you can enrich your own life. You might not become wealthy, of course, but you can manage quite well. If you have the required skill set and can motivate yourself to work hard and smart when you need to work.

Edit history

Please sign in to view edit histories.

Recommendations

0 members have recommended this reply (displayed in chronological order):

46 replies

= new reply since forum marked as read

Highlight:

It's Time to Stop Living the American Scam [View all] PatSeg Jul 2022 OP

K&R 2naSalit Jul 2022 #1

Well, maybe, hopefully, Americans will get back to having hobbies again... Hugin Jul 2022 #2

Often people tend to forget PatSeg Jul 2022 #32

Retirement is going to be a nightmare for most 50 and below. jimfields33 Jul 2022 #3

Good reason to have Unions make a come back.. multigraincracker Jul 2022 #10

Even if unions come back fully, it's too late for pensions for the middle generation jimfields33 Jul 2022 #26

Many boomers got left out in the cold PatSeg Jul 2022 #33

Sure, but Boomers are still wealthier as a group Mariana Jul 2022 #45

I suppose PatSeg Jul 2022 #46

K & R Thank You for Posting This Stuart G Jul 2022 #4

Thanks for this. Novara Jul 2022 #5

You're welcome PatSeg Jul 2022 #34

I am grateful Novara Jul 2022 #36

40 hours is a pipe dream Skittles Jul 2022 #37

The only time I work that many hours is if the workload is so heavy I can't avoid it. Novara Jul 2022 #39

I work 12+ hour nights four nights a week Skittles Jul 2022 #40

Been saying this for years, and I'm a Boomer, not an X-er. malthaussen Jul 2022 #6

I have been wanting to research this phenomenon Redleg Jul 2022 #7

LOL, you're work-life balance is insufficient. malthaussen Jul 2022 #27

This goes under the heading of "The Culture of Capitalism." ariadne0614 Jul 2022 #8

Just bookmarked it to listen to while exercising. Farmer-Rick Jul 2022 #11

You're welcome. It's an eye-opener. n/t ariadne0614 Jul 2022 #14

This was in the NY Times? Farmer-Rick Jul 2022 #9

This is a great piece! Thanks for posting it. Native Jul 2022 #12

One of the reasons I decided to be self-employed MineralMan Jul 2022 #13

The fiction that working hard will be rewarded is a fiction. My wife was a top biller at a top radio Pepsidog Jul 2022 #15

As a Former ClearChannel Employee... LoCo Cat Lady Jul 2022 #23

You know then exactly what I'm talking about. They gave my wife a decent exit package but had they Pepsidog Jul 2022 #24

I Have Found that the Best Reps LoCo Cat Lady Jul 2022 #28

Thanks. It's true if you can survive and thrive in radio sales then most everything else looks easy. Pepsidog Jul 2022 #30

My favorite old cajun saying: world wide wally Jul 2022 #16

K & R ..... plus a trimmed URL if anyone is having issues, plus an archived version Celerity Jul 2022 #17

Good writer. edbermac Jul 2022 #18

Fabulous insight. cilla4progress Jul 2022 #19

Saw this coming with the dawn of the "Information Age". jaxexpat Jul 2022 #20

When beepers came in (remember them?) I knew it was gonna get bad. malthaussen Jul 2022 #29

I was assigned a "beeper" at about the same time in my career....... jaxexpat Jul 2022 #31

I don't accept calls after 6pm Sympthsical Jul 2022 #35

You reminded me I was expected to be on call 24/7 Novara Jul 2022 #38

Keep your nose to the grindstone snd Captain Zero Jul 2022 #21

I work for a school district that forced me into the office everyday even though there were zero onecaliberal Jul 2022 #22

You forgot telephone sanitizers Warpy Jul 2022 #25

He didn't mention "owners", who don't even need... Buckeye_Democrat Jul 2022 #41

It certainly suggests our system needs a serious redesign Warpy Jul 2022 #42

It is really disturbing PatSeg Jul 2022 #43

KNR and bookmarking. For later. niyad Jul 2022 #44