The year is 1194. Maurice De Bracy, enemy to the English crown, is locked in combat with a mysterious Black Knight. Suddenly, the Black Knight gains the upper hand. He whispers his true identity in De Bracy’s ear: King Richard the Lionheart of England. De Bracy yields. Later, De Bracy offers to let King Richard use his army of “Free Lances,” mercenary soldiers who were free to use their lances in service of whoever paid the most.
É o ano 1194. Maurice De Bracy, inimigo da coroa inglesa está a loitar cun misterioso Cabaleiro Negro. De pronto, o Cabaleiro Negro obtén a vantaxe. Susúrralle a De Bracy a súa verdadeira identidade: Rei Ricardo Corazón de León de Inglaterra. De Bracy ríndese. Máis tarde, De Bracy ofrécelle ao rei o seu exército de “Lanceiros Libres”, mercenarios que estaban ao dispor do mellor postor.
That’s how it plays out in Sir Walter Scott’s 1819 novel, “Ivanhoe.” Scott didn’t coin the term, but it was probably this use that stuck, and evolved to describe someone who works independently of any single company.
Así sucede na novela de Sir Walter Scott do ano 1819, “Ivanhoe”. Scott non acuñou o termo, pero foi este uso o que quedou, e pasou a describir a alguén que traballa independentemente de calquera empresa.
That independence seems to make people happy. A 2016 survey of freelancers in six countries found that those who freelance by choice— 70% of respondents, by the way— were happier than people in traditional jobs, specifically when it came to things like independence and flexibility in terms of where and when they work. In a survey conducted in the US, half of freelancers said there was no amount of money that would convince them to rejoin the traditional workforce.
Esta independencia parece facer feliz á xente. Unha enquisa de 2016 a freelancers de seis países atopou que quenes o son por elección, o 70 % dos entrevistados, eran máis felices que aqueles con traballos tradicionais, especialmente se falamos de independencia e flexibilidade en termos de onde e cando traballar. Nunha enquisa feita nos Estados Unidos a metade dos autónomos dixo que ningunha cantidade de diñeiro os convencería de volver traballar dun xeito tradicional.
At some point in your life— maybe even now— you might wonder whether freelancing is right for you. You'll need a few things to be successful.
Nalgún punto da túa vida, quizais incluso agora, podes preguntarte se traballar por libre é o teu. Necesitarás algunhas cousas para que funcione.
First, you'll need a skill that's in demand. This can be as universal as driving a car to as specialized as neurosurgery, and it can be in pretty much any field.
Primeiro, necesitas unha habilidade moi demandada. Isto pode ser tan universal como conducir ou tan especializado como a neurocirurxía, e pode ser en case calquera campo.
The more people who want your skill, and the fewer people who have it, the more you can charge for your services.
Canta máis xente queira a túa habilidade, e menos xente a teña, máis poderás pedir polos teus servizos.
Next, you’ll need to transform yourself into an entrepreneur. Before freelancers can do any work, they have to find it. That takes marketing your services, negotiating contracts, building a network of satisfied clients, and a whole set of administrative skills like project management, time management, and accounting.
Despois terás que transformarte nun emprendedor. Antes de poder traballar, necesitas atopar o emprego. Isto significa promocionar os teus servizos, negociar contratos, crear una rede de clientes satisfeitos, e todo un conxunto de habilidades administrativas, como a xestión de proxectos, xestión do tempo e contabilidade.
And thirdly, if you can afford it, it's probably a good idea to budget for some benefits for yourself and maybe your family. Freelancers don’t automatically get perks that some salaried jobs offer, like paid vacation or sick leave, life insurance, college tuition, or retirement plans. In countries like the US, where the government doesn’t provide healthcare to most people, freelancers are responsible for that, too.
E logo, se o podes pagar, poderías presupostar algúns beneficios para ti e quizais a túa familia. Os autónomos non teñen as vantaxes dalgúns empregos asalariados, como vacacións pagadas, baixas por enfermidade, seguro de vida, matrícula universitaria, ou plans de xubilación. En países como os EE. UU., onde non hai sanidade pública, os autónomos encárganse tamén diso.
Freelancing has been around for a long time; but digital freelancing platforms like Uber, Lyft, and Fiverr are pretty new. They say they’ll connect you with clients and take care of some of the entrepreneurial and administrative stuff so you can focus on the work. But there are some hidden costs to consider.
Os autónomos levan aquí bastante tempo, pero as plataformas de freelance dixital, como Uber, Lyft o Fiverr, son moi novas. Din que te conectarán cos clientes e coidarán dos asuntos administrativo e empresarial, para que poidas centrarte no traballo. Pero hai algúns custos ocultos a considerar.
First, your life may not be as flexible as you think. For example, if you're a rideshare driver, you get to choose when to work, but not how: the app recommends what route to take, enforces how you act with the threat of low customer ratings, and sets your rate. Those rates may be so low that you end up working more than if you had a salaried full-time job.
Primeiro: a túa vida pode non ser tan flexible como pensas. Por exemplo, se es conductor de viaxes compartidas podes escoller cando traballar, pero non como: a aplicación recomenda a ruta, impón como actuar ante o risco dunha mala reseña, e elixe a túa tarifa. Pode ser tan baixa que acabas traballando máis que se tiveses un traballo asalariado a tempo completo.
Speaking of rates, it can be hard to figure out exactly how much money you’ll make. Earnings vary based on location; platforms might advertise hourly rates that don’t factor in expenses, and large scale data on actual earnings is sparse. One of the largest data sets we have is from Uber. It contains 740 million trips by 1.8 million drivers between 2015 and 2017. Researchers analyzed these figures in a 2018 paper and found that once you deduct Uber's cut and the cost of business expenses, drivers’ average earnings dropped from about $22 an hour to about $12 an hour. And buying benefits would reduce that number even more.
Falando de tarifas: pode ser difícil saber canto diñeiro gañarás. Os ingresos varían segundo a localización, as plataformas poden anunciar tarifas por hora que non teñan en conta os gastos, e os datos a gran escala sobre ingresos reais son escasos. Unha das maiores bases de datos que temos é Uber. Contén 740 millóns de viaxes de 1,8 millóns de condutores entre 2015 e 2017. Os investigadores analizaron estas cifras nun artigo de 2018 e descubriron que se quitas a parte de Uber e os gastos comerciais, os ingresos medios baixaban de 22 a uns 12 dólares por hora. E os beneficios podían reducir aínda máis esa cifra.
And there is a lot of variability in working conditions across different gig platforms. For example, the company 99 in Brazil operates a rideshare platform that many people use to deliver packages. Drivers are matched with shippers, and 99 takes a cut. The company’s terms and conditions hold both the shipper and the driver liable for anything that could go wrong— including things like if a package gets stolen.
Hai moita variabilidade nas condicións de traballo dependendo da plataforma. Por exemplo, a empresa 99 en Brasil opera unha plataforma de transporte compartido que moita xente emprega para entregar paquetes. Os condutores son emparellados cos remitentes, e 99 leva unha parte. Os termos e condicións da empresa fan responsables ao condutor e ao remitente do que poida saír mal, incluíndo se alguén rouba o paquete.
If you’re considering joining the app economy and don’t want to read all the fine print, there’s a network of researchers who publish ratings of platforms based on five categories of fair employment.
Se estás pensando en unirte a esta economía e non queres ler toda a letra pequena, hai unha rede de investigadores que publican valoracións de plataformas baseándose en cinco categorías de emprego xusto.
Digital gig platforms come with drawbacks and may not provide a reliable living wage. But for many around the world who don’t have the luxury of choice and need to make money as soon as possible, like, say, if you just lost your job, the gig economy is the easiest and fastest place to get hired. For this reason, some have called it an “alternative safety net.”
As plataformas dixitais teñen inconvenientes e poden non ser unha fonte fiable de ingresos. Pero para moitos en todo o mundo que non teñen o luxo de escoller e necesitan gañar diñeiro canto antes, como, digamos, se perdeches o teu traballo, estas plataformas son o xeito máis fácil e rápido de ser contratado. Por iso, dise que son “unha rede de seguridade alternativa”.
So, considering all these factors and many others, should you dip your toes into the gig economy? Or dive in? Ask yourself: how much do you value flexibility or autonomy? Do you prefer to work within an established structure, or to make your own? Are you willing to network to find new clients? Are you organized and self-directed? And perhaps most importantly, how much do you value knowing exactly what you'll earn from week to week?
Se tes todo isto en conta, e moitas outras cousas, deberías probar a mollar os pés nesta economía? Ou mergullarte nela? Pregúntate: canto valoras a flexibilidade ou a autonomía? Prefires traballar dentro dunha estrutura establecida, ou facela ti mesmo? Estás disposto a crear redes para atopar novos clientes? Es organizado e autodirixido? E quizais o máis importante: canto valoras saber exactamente o que gañarás cada semana?