The Dream Factor

When I started freelancing full-time from home, I knew I had found my dream job. I could set my own hours, work if I felt like it and if I didn't, I could do something else. I always thought it so stupid that I was made to time in to a timeclock from 7-4 when maybe on that day I would have worked better from 12-9 because I had a headache at 7 that subsided by noon. My freelance life usually allows me to make those discretionary changes in my schedule.
Some of us have what it takes to be our own bosses. In the corporate world, they used to call this "needs little supervision" on those moronic evaluation forms.
Some people do, though, need the stability of knowing they will receive a weekly or bi-weekly check. They need to wake up everyday and know their job is waiting for them without having to locate more work and market themselves. They know they can plan on 2 weeks vacation a year and they get to choose their health coverage from a menu of options given to them by a company. I call this the 9-5 worker.
That's ok too, we're all different. My husband is one of those people and in this instance, direct opposites do work together. His need for a stable environment has earned him a solid work history. When we were writing his resume in preparation for finding a job in our new town, at first I thought it looked a little short - having only two jobs to list his entire adult life. However, when we started listing his accomplishments, it revealed the outstanding work ethic he has used his whole working life. I mean, how many people could say they haven't missed a day of work due to illness or injury in 21 years?
This week, that stable work ethic paid off for him. He found an excellent job that went beyond our wildest dreams here in this small town with few opportunities.
The thing I love about my freelance life today is how it balances so well I balance with my 9-5 worker.