Here in the UK, there is a great divide between Freelancing and Contracting work.   Whilst there are a multitude of differences between the two types of work, for me, the difference is fairly clear:

Freelancing – Working with a customer, to provide a product or service.  This will consist of an agreed project, where the work if quoted, agreed, and fixed by way of a final delivery.  This delivery can be a product, a report, a site visit, a web site or anything else.  BUT, something agreed upon is delivered.  You get paid for the delivery rather than the time.

Contracting – A contracting role is where a resource is provided to a customer for a fixed length of time, and during that time, the resource works on the activities dictated by the customer which will typically vary during the contracted period.  You get paid for the time (normally paid by day at an agreed day rate) rather than upon completion of a delivery.

Now both of these activities can be carried out at a customer’s office, or can be carried out at your home/business office.   Both can be provided to the customer directly, or through a third party agency.  Both can be based on a hand shake, or can be nailed down with complex contracts.   Other than the product delivery Vs resource difference, the lines defining freelancing and contracting can be fuzzy.

Bread and Butter verses Meat

For me and my own business, the majority of the work I perform can be classed as falling into the Freelance category.

But here is a confession…… now and again, I love to do some contract work.   Generally, I like to do some contract work at least once a year.  More if time allows.

The way I view it is that contract work is the Bread and Butter of my business.   It pays pretty well (but no where near as good as a nice juicy freelance job), is nice and dependable, and the money is regular.  However, Freelance work is the Meat in the freelancing-contracting sandwich.   It is (generally) more interesting work, you have all the benefits of (generally) working from home (or a location of your choice) and you are the boss of your time and schedules.  Plus with freelancing, you have the option to run multiple freelance projects at the same time.

Given a choice, Freelancing for me is far juicer than contracting.

Why I love to Contract

So you may then ask, if I love Freelancing work, why then do I make sure that I do some contracting work at least once a year?   Well, there are many advantages to doing a contract stint for a few months for your average freelancer.  For me, the advantages outnumber the disadvantages:

1. Contracting for a short while forces me back to a regimented routine of 9 to 5.   It is terribly easy to fall into the easy working days that freelancing allows, so contracting reshapes my days
2. Contracting allows me to make more connections out in the field.   There is nothing better than picking a contract with a high flying company, and working with their teams for a solid block of time to build those connections for future work
3. Allows me to refresh my ideas of what commercial companies need.   As time changes, so the demands of companies change.  When sitting in an isolated environment of a home office, it is too easy to miss the subtle changes going on in the real world (such as technologies now being used, what products are starting to be shunned, etc)
4. Contracting can fill the void (time wise and cash wise) between freelancing work and so reduce the unpaid ‘sitting on the bench’ time
5. Whilst contracting, this for me is the perfect time to ramp up the freelancing marketing activities, and land freelance work ready for the end of the contract
6. I always find the mixture of ‘regular’ type office work when combined with a dynamic work approach (as demanded with a contract) together with working on new customer projects a way of ‘blowing out’ the cobwebs.   When I return back to freelancing a few weeks later, I am generally more energised and productive.

For me, a mixture of Freelance work, with some contracting thrown in from time to time is the perfect combination.