Be a gigster

The difference is subtle. Freelancing tends to be more of a permanent, long-term working situation where you specialize in a particular skill or expertise and build a clientele. Freelancers are also usually paid upon completion of their contract or deliverable. A gigster typically does a short-term project-based job. Gigsters may work for the same clients day-to-day, but they are usually paid by the unit of work produced, or a single-day rate.

In both cases, the person is generally not considered an employee, and thereby not entitled to typical employee benefits. At the end of the year, instead of a W-2 and earnings summary that you would get from an employer, you will typically receive a 1099 from your clients.

According to an Upwork survey, more than 36% of the total U.S. workforce did freelance work in 2019. That’s more than 57 million people out of a workforce of 164.4 million who worked as moonlighters, freelancers, or independent contractors (or gigsters). 26% of the 55+ workers were independent contractors, meaning they did work on a project-to-project basis.

In both cases, the person is generally not considered an employee, and thereby not entitled to typical employee benefits. At the end of the year, instead of a W-2 and earnings summary that you would get from an employer, you will typically receive a 1099 from your clients.

The majority of freelancers and gigsters use internet marketplace platforms such as Upwork, Gigster, TaskRabbit, Rover and Amazon’s Mechanical Turk to find jobs.

Recent economic and workforce shifts have shown that remote working through freelancing or gigging is not only possible but can be highly productive and rewarding. These nontraditional avenues of work can eliminate long commutes, stress of the corporate world, and give people more control over their lives. The financial revenue is directly dependent upon the type of work you choose to do, and the number of projects you take on.

This depends on what kind of work you are doing. A Doordash driver or pet sitter will require a lot of physical activity, but teaching online classes or working as a tutor or translator will require limited physical stress.

The biggest concern is access to affordable healthcare. For most retirees this is not an issue thanks to Medicare. Another concern is unpredictable and inconsistent income and no company sponsored retirement savings. Independent (1099) workers have to pay taxes directly to the IRS. And since gig workers are typically considered self-employed, they will generally pay both the employer’s share and employee’s share of social security and Medicare tax. This means that instead of 7.65% for just the employee’s share, they pay 15.3%. However, on the plus side, a self-employed person can deduct business related expenses from income.

It is a good idea to work with an accountant the first time you file taxes as a self-employed individual. It is an even better idea to check with an accountant ahead of time so you have an idea of what you should put aside for your yearly taxes, and which expenses will be tax-deductible, so you can track them.

This is dependent upon what kind of jobs you’ll be searching for. There are opportunities for work with little or no specialized training or education. For instance, house sitting, or driving for Uber are a few examples. Other gigs will be largely dependent upon the skills you bring to them, like tutoring, translating or teaching online.