Story

Greetings. I’m Jackie. I started this blog back in 2009 because I’ve always been cheap and frugal. To me frugality was a fun game: How can I do more with less? What are some cool hacks on saving money?

Anywho, I get really inspired by frugal friends I’ve met along the way. These people were able to quell the compulsion to make money and be part of the rat race, so to speak, to pursue their passion, their personal endeavors. Because I love to save money not because I want to be super rich, but because I basically want to do what I want, whenever I want (within reason, of course).

There’s Joel, who was voluntarily laid off and used his severance pay and savings to travel the world for two years; Matt, who moved out of his apartment and went on a spiritual quest by going on a cross-country road trip and living in his car; GC, who was able to retire at the age of 35 and pursued a career as a prog rock musician; and Sharon and Jonn, who accumulated enough savings flipping homes in Portland to not work for several years to focus on their band.

Many of my friends are freelancers self-employed artists who do a lot of gig jobs. And they aren’t all great business-minded folks with ace money skills, so have problems staying on top of their finances. And who can blame ’em? It’s tough when your income fluctuates so much, and there’s more housekeeping you have to do as a freelancer. Plus there’s the hustle, day in and day out. So I decided to write posts that would help my freelance buddies with their money issues, and to help them be creative and pursue their passions on the cheap. Having financial wealth is pretty awesome, but I think having the freedom to design your life, to live according to your passion and values, is even more awesome.

Here’s what Hey Freelancer is all about:

+ Freelancers share a lot of the same money problems (hello, variable income!), and usually have a desire to carve out some of their own time to be off the grid and work on their own projects. Let’s help each other do both.
+ Being a freelancer doesn’t mean you need to starve. There are plenty of ways to make a living being creative.
+ Being a freelancer doesn’t necessarily equate to being bad with your money. You do need to take different things into consideration, but you can manage your money like a mofo, and grow your money while you’re at it.
+ With mindful intent and some change of habits, you’ll be able to make time to run your freelance business and creative projects.

And when I was gently nudged into freelancing full-time back in 2015, I had even a greater desire to do my part of building a freelancer community where I live and share my wins and fails with others. I think working for yourself is pretty awesome, and I think we can really help each other along. I currently am the L.A. organizer for Freelance Friday, a global monthly coworking event.

Whether you side hustle on the weekends to supplement your day job, are taking the “leap” and transitioning to freelance full-time, or are starting your own business, Hey Freelancer will help you keep your finances in check while figuring out how to work on your creative projects without breaking the bank.

I currently am a freelance copywriter, copyeditor, and blogger with a background in content marketing. I also test proctor and petsit, and am working on some fiction writing projects. You can check out my money articles here.

Disclaimer: I am not a certified financial professional. Readers should seek professional advice from an attorney or financial planner.
I reserve the right to decline affiliate marketing or sponsored post opportunities that do not best serve my readership.