欢迎来到自由职业新时代

    尽管自由职业者无法获得医保这类员工福利，但自从雷曼兄弟（Lehman Brothers）、鲍德斯书店（Borders）和华盛顿互惠银行（Washington Mutual）等大公司倒闭之后，职场中的“不安全感”情绪在不断蔓延。不少自由职业者坦言，比起依赖于某个雇主，自己给自己打工要感觉更安全一点。如果一个客户丢掉了，还有其他的可以来补充。

    来自美国马萨诸塞州格林菲尔德的丹•尼森鲍姆是一位JAVA程序员，他在1999年时曾在一家名为Cimex的软件集成公司担任全职工作，主要负责计算机辅助设计程序的开发。但他却说喜欢在小公司里工作，“我不能忍受坐办公室，它会扼杀一个人全部的创意。”最终，他辞去工作，并在美国西北大学（Northwestern University）获得了物理学博士学位，然后在2008年成了一名自由职业者。

    尼森鲍姆拥有非常热门的技能，令他在一众自由职业者中脱颖而出。离家外出工作时，他会仔细挑选客户并从工作中获得乐趣。一旦某个客户提出过分要求，他就会为他们开出解除合同通知书，停止继续为他们工作。他语带讥讽地说：“对程序员指手划脚根本没什么用。”

    那么，做自由职业者有哪些不足之处呢？首先是必须自掏腰包才能获得与大部分全职员工相同的福利。42岁的尼森鲍姆说，他不得不提高收费以支付医保费用以及为晚年生活所存的生活费。他所服务的一个大客户是好莱坞的一家公司，目前这家公司在为他们这些自由职业者建立档案数据库。

    虽然如此，他还是常常在Guru 和Elance这些网站搜寻新的工作项目。不停地寻找新工作也常常令他焦虑不已，但是又有什么办法呢？尼森鲍姆说：“无论是全职工作还是自由职业，总归都是缺乏职业稳定性的。”

    肯•兰卡斯特是美国德克萨斯州达拉斯市一家名为兰卡斯特广告营销公司（Lancaster Advertising & Marketing）的创始人和创意总监。2004年，公司拥有4,000平方英尺的办公室和15名全职员工，营业额高达300万美元。如今办公室缩小到350平方英尺，而他也成了公司唯一的一名全职员工。

    但如今，兰卡斯特随时都可以说自己雇用了15到30名兼职网页开发员、软件程序员、搜索引擎营销专家和平面设计师。这些人中有的是在美国，更多的是在亚洲、东欧和南美等国家。他从2004年开始就和其中一些人合作，通常是按项目或是小时结算薪水。

    兰卡斯特说雇用自由职业者不但可以大幅削减成本、为客户提供物美价廉的商品，还能为自己带来更多的灵活性。他说：“这样的好处是我无需为他们缴纳个人所得税和医保，还能为客户提供高性价比的产品。唯一的问题就是没人可以说说话。”

    While freelancers must operate without the security blanket of employee benefits like health insurance, the insecurity in the workplace, after the demise of major companies like Lehman Brothers, Borders, and Washington Mutual is pervasive, Pink says. No one's job is secure. Some freelancers contend they're safer working for themselves rather than depending on one employee. If one client disappears, freelancers can fall back on several others.

    Dan Nissenbaum, a Greenfield, Mass.-based software programmer who specializes in Java programming, spent a year working full-time at Cimex Corporation, a software integration company, in 1999, where he worked on CAD (computer assisted design). While he says he liked working at a small company, "I can't stand working in an office. It stultifies your ability to do creative work." He left the job to earn a doctorate in physics at Northwestern University and started freelancing in 2008.

    Nissenbaum possesses skills that are in demand, which separates him from other independent contractors. Working out of his home, he says he chooses his clients carefully and finds his work satisfying. When one client made excessive demands, he gave them the pink slip and stopped working for them. "Telling a programmer what to do isn't effective," he says wryly.

    What's the downside of freelancing? Having to pay out of pocket for benefits most full-time employees receive by default, says the 42-year-old Nissenbaum. He says he charges a higher hourly fee to cover health care costs and puts money aside for his senior years. He works mostly for one primary client, a Hollywood firm that is creating a database for their archives.

    Still, he's always searching Guru and Elance for new assignments. Having to constantly pursue new work puts him on edge, but what's the alternative? "There's a lack of stability whether you're a full-time worker or a freelancer," Nissenbaum says.

    Ken Lancaster, owner and creative director of Dallas, Texas-based Lancaster Advertising & Marketing, until 2004 had 15 full-time staffers, a 4,000 square foot office, and generated $3 million in revenue. He's since downsized into a 350-square-foot office and is his company's only full-time employee.

    At any given time, Lancaster says he hires 15 to 30 freelance web developers, software programmers, search engine marketing specialists, and graphic designers. Some are based in the U.S., but many work out of Asia, Eastern Europe, and South America. He's worked with some freelancers since 2004, always on a project or hourly basis.

    Lancaster says hiring independent contractors has slashed his costs, produces better work at cheaper prices for his clients, and offers him more flexibility. "I don't have their payroll taxes or health insurance and my clients get more for their money. The only problem is there's no one to talk to," he notes.