Freelance Forward

Freelancing is a hot career path. It offers autonomy, flexibility, control, and creativity-both in your day and in your career. You are your own boss. You can work how you like, when you like, and your earning potential is informed by your skills, drive and network.

Freelancing is not so much the future as it is already here.

In its 2025 Future Workforce Index, the Upwork Research Institute reported that 28 percent% of skilled knowledge workers-that's more than one in four workers-currently operate as freelancers or independent professionals. For this report, skilled work "differs from gig work in that skilled knowledge workers apply highly specialized expertise toward solving organizational challenges." We are talking about computer programmers, nurses, and camera operators-versus driving for Uber or pet sitting, which are considered part of the gig economy.

Gen Z is already shaping this change in work, with 53% of skilled Gen Z workers currently operating in a freelance capacity, opting for freelancing over full-time employment. The reasons for this shift are many, but they are largely rooted in autonomy over one's professional and personal life. Gen Z understands their lives as interwoven r-not divided into professional versus personal. Freelancing offers a framework to integrate work in a way that supports health and an overall quality of life.

I spoke with several IC alumni who have built successful freelancing careers. It is worth noting that I became aware of them through aAlumni nNetworks-people who know people. This is key to freelancing: maintaining your network. While these alumni work primarily in creative fields, their knowledge is transferable across industries.

This leads us to the first step in freelancing: say yes. A successful freelancer often builds a career on a diversity of skills.

Andi Obarski '13 has been freelancing from almost the very beginning of her career. Two years in, while working as at a camera rental house, she met her business partner and formed one of her two LLC's (Limited Liability Corporation). They purchased a camera package and started taking "whatever jobs we could get in the camera, grip, and electric departments, just to sort of fill out our own breadth of knowledge in the cinematography world." Now, more than ten years later, the duo can think strategically about directed growth and say no to work that does not support their goals.

Matt Rigby '11, a Brooklyn-based freelance sound editor, mirrors this sentiment with advice he received from an IC alum early in his freelance journey: "Say yes to everything. Get good at what you are good at, and then get picky."

Saying yes allows freelancers to expand their versatility, gain exposure to emerging technologies, and grow their networks.

Next: network. Freelancing is not only about the work itself-it's about building a business. In this case, you are the business. So where does the work come from? Start with your IC network.

Andrew Rivard '12 lives in Los Angeles, working as a freelance editor and producer. He is currently on a six-month contract with Apple. He shares, "I was nervous to talk to strangers about what I did professionally when I moved out here, but the IC connection was the biggest motivator. It was the one thing we had in common." Rivard's first job in Los Angeles was at a creative agency that specializes in movie marketing campaigns. He recalls, "I attended an event there-the owner was an IC graduate. I gave him my resume, got an interview, and then got the gig."

This is what Obarski means when she says, "Be prepared to know what you're doing when you're not working. The biggest thing is when you're not actively on set-how are you filling your time to either better yourself or the profession?" Freelancers spend time checking in with others in the industry about opportunities, buying equipment, attending trainings, gaining new skills, and becoming part of the broader professional conversation. All of this is part of the business.

Which leads to the third rule: you are your business.

When you freelance, you are your own boss. This means you effectively have two jobs: business owner and service provider. Freelancers are responsible for everything-getting the work, doing the work, billing for the work, and maintaining relationships that will (hopefully) lead to more work. For many, this is a space where they thrive.

Beyond skilled expertise, freelancers must also actively shape and maintain their professional directions. Rigby reflects, "It was a big shift for me to think of myself as a business. Early on, I felt excited that I got to do this work-I didn't even want to send invoices." The freedom lies in having ownership over how you run your business and what you need to be successful. Obarski credits her father with helping her set up invoices and understanding business logistics. Rigby's mother works in accounting. This kind of support can be essential when starting out.

Freelancing, however, is not for everyone. Rivard, now based in Los Angeles as a freelance editor and producer, didn't start out that way. He worked for eight years at the creative agency MOCEAN before transitioning to freelancing post-pandemic. "It definitely suits people who are disciplined and can manage their time well," he says. "At the beginning of my career, I needed structure. I needed to see clear pathways forward, and benefits were also huge."

In the more than ten years these alumni have spent in the workforce post-graduation, they have seen the shift toward freelancing ushered in by digital technologies, online brand identity, and-of course-the pandemic, which sparked a work-from-home revolution. Digital tools, whether industry-specific or administrative (like QuickBooks or Zoom), have allowed skilled workers to operate more efficiently and communicate across decentralized teams. Rigby credits the pandemic with accelerating this shift, as people had to determine how to work from home and create their own setups. He notes that before 2020, people typically worked on one project at a time. Digital workflows now allow faster work, meaning many freelancers juggle three to four projects at once.

What these alumni-and countless others who have chosen freelance configurations-share is a sense that they are positioned for growth over the next five to ten years and beyond. Their versatility and strong networks position them to shape the next phases of their careers in ways that align with their life needs, while remaining responsive to a rapidly changing world. Each alum credits IC not only for technical skills, but also for community, network, and a sense of resilience that supports the whole person.

Rivard concludes by reflecting on the next five years of his life: the freelance model offers him the ability to be decentralized. He sees it as a blessing.