Over the last ten years, we have seen a significant increase in the number of freelancers. A trend not only linked to a desire for independence, financial freedom, and temporal freedom but also to the desire to reduce the fixed costs of businesses.

Freelancers are not only a valuable resource for businesses, but also a great way to increase the flexibility of their staff. Freelancers can work when they want and from where they want. This is why more and more companies have decided to hire freelancers, this allows them to reduce their costs while maintaining the quality of their services.

‍

Freelance, free but alone

While freedom can be appealing, the lack of social interaction can be overwhelming for some.

According to a recent survey conducted by Freelancers Union and Upwork, nearly two-thirds (64%) of freelancers say that their work makes them feel lonely on a daily basis.

This isolation can have an impact on the morale of the freelancer, on his motivation, his productivity and the quality of his work. Taken to its peak, social isolation can even lead to professional exhaustion or Burn Out.

Freelancers are often considered to be a lone wolf. While loneliness may be inherent in the way he works, that doesn't mean he's insensitive to others. As a human being, freelancers need to connect with others to find inspiration and boost motivation.

‍

So what can we do to prevent this isolation and prevent it from impacting the morale of the self-employed person?

Freelancers often face loneliness, but they learn to get used to it. However, when isolation becomes too much to bear, it's time to find solutions! Luckily, there are plenty of ways freelancers can stay connected to the outside world, such as:

Create a collective: Grouping together allows you to break the solitude of Freelance

For some time now, we have been witnessing the emergence of a new phenomenon. More and more freelancers no longer want to work alone and decide to Regroup in a collective. A solution that allows them to recreate social cohesion, to increase their strength and, above all, to break with isolation.

One of the great advantages of belonging to a collective of freelancers: having friends to break loneliness and escape boredom. If you sometimes find yourself alone in front of your black screen, there is nothing like talking to other freelancers to regain your motivation. This is the ambition of the freelance collective: to regain the atmosphere of discussions between colleagues at the coffee machine and After Works wild.

Joining a collective of freelancers allows us to satisfy our need for integration and belonging. By being part of a group, the freelancer will feel fully involved and connected to the other members. This can help boost motivation and productivity because you feel supported and encouraged by others. In addition, belonging to a collective can offer a multitude of opportunities to work as a team, learn from other members, and even collaborate on joint projects. In short, joining a collective is an excellent way for freelancers to feel more fulfilled and to find a sense of belonging within a dynamic community.

This is what Guillaume, founder of Neodelta collective, who “lacked having colleagues, sharing (their) ideas and being challenged”. He, who says he is solitary, has found in the freelance collective “a dynamic, more motivating environment, with exchanges that stimulate curiosity.”

For Eliot, a member of Expansion collective, “it's much less pleasant to work alone. In our collective, we get along well, there are real human contacts and an emotional dimension.” Conviviality is there, but not only... “It is also challenging because it involves dealing with everyone and letting go, as several of us are forced to lose control a bit”, he concludes.

The collective model is appealing for much more than just fighting loneliness. Indeed, freelancers who group together in a collective benefit from the power of the union of their complementary skills.

By combining their bandwidth, the members of the collective are able to respond to even larger projects, with greater challenges for their customers and more stimulating on a personal basis. This collaboration allows freelancers to get involved in more ambitious projects and take on exciting challenges while offering a superior service to their clients.

• Meet in community teleworking places to meet other freelancers and regain a sense of cohesion

The work environment has a very strong impact on the feeling of loneliness that freelancers can feel. They often spend their working days at home. Finding a place outside where they can meet up with peers to share as much about their missions as personal topics is a fairly easy way to counter some of their loneliness.

• Les coworking spaces, which are becoming more and more popular among freelancers, have many advantages. First, they provide a professional and structured work environment, which can help improve productivity and motivation. Second, these spaces are often located in central neighborhoods, and easily accessible. Finally, they are places designed to promote collaboration and meetings between professionals from different sectors.
• Coliving is an increasingly frequent practice that consists in sharing. large homes with other people, often unknown, to reduce housing costs and enjoy their company. Most coliving plans can be taken out monthly but there are now shorter and flexible weekly plans. Monthly coliving arrangements are often in large cities in France such as Grenoble, Marseille, Paris, Montpellier or Lille. Conversely, shorter formulas are found in nature (in the mountains, at the sea or in the countryside) in order to combine work and leisure with other freelancers.

Coworking and coliving represent two solutions to the solitude of freelancers. They can be used permanently by choosing to live in a coliving or by taking out a subscription for the year in a coworking space. They are also tools that freelancers can use from time to time when they need them to regain human contact, develop their professional network or find new missions.

It is this winning triptych that Laurie — freelance product manager — describes by speaking of “the benevolence of the people within Paatch coliving, the sharing of experiences, and the morning yoga sessions”. As Laurie concludes, “We're not going to lie to each other... [A] house [in] Cap Ferret is a hell of a place to work and live in a community! ”

Other accessible solutions that can help combat loneliness include:

• Participate in events (meetup, conferences, workshops, webinars, webinars, coaching and training) to share and exchange with other freelancers.
• Join a community virtual meeting of freelance workers to help each other and exchange best practices. This is the case, for example, of Board by Flavie Prévot, whose community meets virtually to share and work together.
• Practicing social activities outside of work, such as sports or cultural activities. This will allow you to meet and connect with others who share the same interests.

‍

To remember

Together, it is easier to maintain the morale of the troops. We get inspired, we train and we help each other.

From the union is born collective intelligence. It is based on five skills, the “5Cs” which are: creativity, compassion, collaboration, communication and collective thinking. Equipped with these skills, the collective allows each of its members to cooperate and solve problems more effectively.

The space and the work environment remain central elements in the daily life of freelancers. Beyond a good installation at home, coworking and coliving, even when used occasionally, make it possible to create human relationships and commercial opportunities. It's also an easy way to get motivated and learn from others.

‍