7 Perfect Self-Employed Jobs For Millennials Who Can’t Stand The 9-To-5 Grind
By Erica Gordon
Millennials these days seem to be united in their contempt for the 9-to-5 lifestyle. There’s just something so fulfilling about being your own boss, creating your own schedule and marching to the beat of your own drum. It’s no wonder why more and more millennials are finding creative ways to escape the 9-to-5 and are pursuing self-employed careers that allow them to flirt with freedom and achieve the flexibility they crave.
Entrepreneurship is on the rise, and the accretion of freelancing opportunities and avenues for self-employment are diminishing our desire to climb the corporate ladder. We’ve realized that what’s waiting at the top of that ladder isn’t as thrilling of a reward as self-made success is. Here are 7 perfect careers for those of you who can’t stand the 9-to-5 lifestyle:
1. Social Media Manager
As a millennial, you’re in the perfect position to help older business owners’ manage their social media accounts. Business owners of the older generations aren’t as social media savvy as you are, and that’s why they’re looking to hire someone like you who can run their company’s Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. They’re well aware that the best person to hire is a trendy millennial, and they’re willing to pay a pretty generous fee for your social media strategy and management. There is no shortage of remote work opportunities for those who are skilled in social media marketing and social media strategy. As a freelance Social Media Manager, you can have several clients for whom you manage social media and you can work your own hours and achieve that flexible work-life balance you’ve been seeking. If you do a great job, they’ll tell their business-owner friends about you, and while word travels fast you’ll have loads of work coming your way in no time.
2. Freelance Interior Designer
Interior design is a career that can be easily done on a freelance basis. Instagram will be your best friend, as you can showcase your work by snapping photos of beautiful homes and offices that you’ve decorated, and build a following which results in inquiries and booked gigs. Plus, many millennials are creative and visual thinkers. There are certain careers that are perfect for the visual thinker, and interior design is one of them. There are tons of people looking for a professional to design and decorate their home or office, and building up a client-base won’t be difficult if you love what you do and have a passion for it. One of the best perks of pursuing a career in interior design is that after each finished job, you have an amazing sense of accomplishment as you realize the beauty that you created in a space that was dull going in, yet stunning once you finished. Many of you might genuinely enjoy decorating your own homes, you’ve been told by others that you’re good at it, and you’ve considered what it might be like to pursue this as a career.
3. Blogger
Blogging can be a successful and lucrative business if you know what you’re doing. Your blog likely won’t become a revenue-earning, smash hit overnight, but start now and in a couple years you might just be sitting pretty. Start by coming up with a niche topic that you know people around the globe will google. By creating a niche blog that focuses on an area of expertise that many people want to learn more about, you’re off to a great start. Make sure that you self-educate when it comes to search engine optimization (SEO) practices, content strategy, and that you choose a catchy name for your blog (which will become your brand.) You’ll need to buy a domain, and when you choose a domain name remember that it should be short and to-the-point. You’ll want to check that social media handles of the same name are available, since your domain name will also be your brand and blog’s name. If your blog takes off, it can become a full time job and lead to infinite exciting opportunities. Here are some more tips on how to start a blog.
4. Freelance Writer
Blogging often leads to freelance writing gigs, and vice-versa. Freelance Writers who produce quality written work will land an impressive variety of gigs. You’ll find freelance work copywriting, article writing, editing, essay writing, writing advertisements, ghostwriting, writing press releases, and much more. Many freelance writers also land jobs managing blogs because more and more companies are realizing that adding a blog boosts their google ranking, but they need a freelance writer to provide them with the written content. You’d be in charge of managing the blog’s content strategy, writing the blog posts, scheduling them to be published and monitoring incoming comments on the blog posts. Bonus points if you already have your own blog and you therefore can showcase that you know what you’re doing. Freelance writers can work when they want, if they want, and many of them make a very healthy income and have landed a huge variety of clients who use their services.
5. Makeup Artist
The best freelance makeup artists are the ones who have completed training in makeup, eyelash extensions, airbrush tanning and hair. The more training you’ve completed, the more clients you’ll get, because many women are, for example, looking to get their makeup done and get an airbrush tan done. You won’t have to work 9-to-5, and you might even get some free vacations out of this career. Why? Because several brides planning destination weddings pay for their chosen makeup artist to fly to some tropical destination to do their bridal makeup. This is one of those awesome entrepreneurial careers that comes with a ton of cool adventures.
6. Marketing Consultant
Marketing Consultants tend to land plenty of clients in the older generation – those who don’t know a ton about digital marketing, marketing trends or how to effectively promote their business or brand. This is a career that lets you pick and choose your clients, create your own work schedule and work from anywhere in the world. You can promote your services as a Marketing Consultant on websites such as Upwork and Craigslist, and you’ll help people who are in dire need of marketing advice. You can be a self-taught Marketing genius as long as you’re dedicated and always learning new strategies. If you’re in-the-know when it comes to the current marketing trends (such as marketing through podcasts) and you educate yourself on a consistent basis, you’ll excel at this self-employed career. Self-educate by going to seminars, taking online courses, doing your online research and speaking with experts.
7. Personal Trainer
There’s never a shortage of people looking to get fit, lose weight and make some healthy changes in their lives. That’s why personal training is a career that is worth pursuing. It’s another one of those careers that lets you be in control of how many clients you take on, and what hours of the day you schedule sessions is up to you as well. You also get to help people and watch them get healthier right in front of your eyes, which is always going to be a fulfilling thing to witness. You’re making a difference in people’s lives which is always a sign you’ve made a great career choice.
Other careers that are great for those looking to escape the 9-to-5 life include video producer, transcription, graphic design, web development and photography.