I Was Exploited As a Freelancer

And how I regained the upper hand.

Photo by Tim Gouw on Unsplash

I stood in front of my “boss” as he yelled at me. He sat in his chair behind his desk; I had to stand like a school boy in trouble because there were no other chairs in the office.

He told me my designs were unprofessional and looked like garbage. He tried to guilt me about complaining that I hadn’t gotten paid yet. He belittled my skills and my position.

It all came at me so fast that I was still trying to process what was happening. Even as I tried to stutter out a response in my defense, he cut me off immediately.

In that moment, he had all the power and I didn’t know how to respond. It was worse than an employer-employee dynamic, it was like a master-servant dynamic.

But then I realized I was a freelancer with specialized skills, and I secretly held all the power.

I was taking every job I could get

The economy crashed in 2008, and I had just graduated with my master’s degree in 2009. With everyone firing and no one hiring, my degree was worthless. I couldn’t find any work, not even part-time or entry-level jobs.

So I started freelancing, initially with graphic design, and then with web design. It wasn’t what I went to college for…