Last June, I left my job of 10 years and went independent.
Actually, before quitting, I had two years of experience taking on side projects on Kmong, and my monthly income had started to pick up, so I gathered the courage. But the first three months were truly nerve-wracking. I never knew that not having a fixed monthly salary would be this scary.
Now I'm living with my own routine.
1. Wake up at 7 a.m., work fixed hours from 9 to 11 a.m.
2. Schedule client meetings only on Monday/Wednesday/Friday mornings.
3. After lunch, deep work until 5 p.m.
4. In the evening, work out and just organize the next day's tasks.
The biggest difference in freelancing is that you have to handle everything on your own. There's so much to keep an eye on—health insurance premiums, retirement pension, income volatility. Still, I have no regrets about starting. Whenever I meet people who are thinking about going independent, I always tell them to try landing that first client. That's where the sense of stability begins.