Pointing at shifting employment trends that include an increasing use of independent contractors, the online employment platform Elance predicts that 2013 will be The Year of the Freelancer. We're only a few weeks into the year, but already there’s been a lot of talk in the media about freelancing. From the Guardian’s feature on work-life balance to the Huffington Post’s analysis of the ways in which women’s careers are changing (hint: a lot more of us are freelancing), the freelance lifestyle seems to be gaining more visibility. Even Fox and CNN have recently weighed in on the growing freelance trend.

Freelancing is being touted as a win-win alternative in the current economy: it saves companies some of the costs of hiring full-time employees and it offers workers one of the things they want the most: flexibility. In a recent survey of working parents, 89% said that a flexible schedule is the most important thing they’ll consider when looking for their next job. Pay is the second most important, at only 50%.

Meanwhile, a recent survey of self-employed workers found that, while 56% were most concerned about the uncertainty of income that comes with freelancing, 92% are happy to be freelancing anyway. And what tops the list of reasons for their satisfaction? Flexibility, of course.

With freelancing making headlines, is 2013 really shaping up to be The Year of the Freelancer?

 

Was flexibility one of the deciding factors for you when you decided to go freelance? Is income uncertainty your top concern? We'd love to have your input in the comments section below.