First of all, let’s understand the gig economy in brief: A gig economy is a system of free market in which temporary positions are common and workers are given short term commitments. A gig economy comprises three components viz. independent workers, consumers, companies. The independent workers (short-term freelancers with no geographical boundaries in proximity to those that are employing them ) are paid through gig i.e., a task or project, as opposed to those workers who receive a salary. The consumer is the person who needs the service and avails the benefit of the service. Companies act as a connector between the two through any technology, it may be app-based. These companies make it a little effortless job for workers to help them find a gig, which can include any kind of work like delivering a product, musical performance, completing any project, etc. The gig economy is not new, people have always worked gigs, perhaps today when people talk about the gig economy they refer to technology-enabled work.

The gig economy is largely undefined but still growing and influencing the way we view our work.

The current scenario explains itself as the rise of the gig economy as a consequence of changing mindset of people in the way that they view their work now, everyone has developed a sense of autonomy in terms of work and career. People prefer to enter the gig economy as it offers flexibility, freedom, and personal fulfillment. Now workers want to work in different fields and spread their talent through multitasking, they are reluctant towards the conventional system of being a full-time employee for an employer. This shift of mindset is a result of traditional corporate hierarchies that focused on awarding assignments based on titles and formal job descriptions, whereas in a marketplace people compete on a level playing field allowed by remote work, opportunities can be better matched to skills and experiences.

The shift towards remote working are means organizations are taking advantage of the abundance of gig workers and growing their demand through online freelance workers. Talented professionals are increasingly wanting their life and their work differently, working across different organizations and different projects that play to their strengths.

The reason behind such a traditional job market was need of that time and convenience. Before the internet and even before (reliable) mass transportation, the only option to be employed was to find a company that could provide long and consistent employment in close proximity, and this notion became prominent not because it was the best option, but the only available option.

The great resignation, the Yolo economy, the great freelance economy – these terms as an outcome intimidate us from pondering over that how people participate in the global labor market. We see this conversation playing out across news headlines and social media because, we as a society, are paying attention to Work Awakening.

When we focus on Work Awakening, we focus on the value that we receive and the value that we create simultaneously. The pace and creativity, with which we are constructing our careers in new ways are exhilarating. We are choosing a different employer or have no employer at all, exploring multiple streams through which we can generate revenue, and crafting careers that are more flexible as fluid, and customized than what we have traditionally seen in “freelance” and “full-time employment” binary.

In 2021, entrepreneurship skyrocketed to its highest levels. Already 50% of knowledge workers are remote. All generations of workers are opting out for different roles according to their needs, skills, and passion, in many cases following a path that was unthinkably risky before the pandemic perhaps finding new opportunities that simply didn’t exist.

Professionals are restructuring value chains in new ways that rethink the relationship between producer and consumer, from decentralized autonomous organizations to the creator and interest-based micro-communities. Now the chain is working in the opposite order, organizations are indulged in fighting for the attention of talent in an environment where talent has both opportunities and nuanced decision-making criteria than ever before. Companies are struggling in a war for talent and therefore compromising with work culture (onsite/remote), a hybrid team of independent and full-time talent, and other work practices.

Professionals are realizing that the path to career success is radically different from the path that used to be in the past three decades. They have completely tabulated a new path with a different approach. Businesses are now focusing more on working models- including leadership, management, cultural and behavioral norms. The entire playbook of work is being rewritten to shape this next version of “how to get work done”.

If you are thinking that only freelancers are the ones who avail of the benefit, you may be mistaken, as companies are on a better edge in terms of earning profit. This argument can be supported easily as these days companies don’t need to provide freelancers with any facility such as office space, and expenses reimbursements, companies get to select from a huge pool of candidates. This quality talent contributes to the success of a company. Unlike previous work cultures in which companies had to shortlist candidates belonging to a certain geographical area, the gig economy offers no geographical restraints. With a task force of freelancers, companies can now highly specialized workers with minimum effort.

How Gig Economy Benefits Freelancers 💯

These days companies are not the core authority to decide the salary of an individual employee. The employees are starting their own businesses and side hustle to command their salaries along with aligning their passion for work. Freelancers have control of their income and flexible work schedules.

 

How should we get ready for the future of freelance work or to become entrepreneurs? How are we going to help our youth in preparing for future of freelance work?

We can prepare them by offering opportunities, opportunities to create and explore, to recognize relevant skills and necessary qualifications to withstand.

As per the studies conducted, it suggests that the future of work is a bit more dependent on freelancing than ever before, so keeping this trend in mind, do schools consider focusing more on formal training and extended learning programs over a college degree.

Many schools have started to offer more courses based on emerging trends, such as entrepreneurship, web page design, sports and entertainment management, and other similar courses to help students develop skills necessary to create their job opportunities. Students are indulged in developing skills to prepare them for many career options as well as better understand how to start a small business or plan major events. All these courses develop communication skills, problem solving skills, team management, time management, and emotional learning skills.

We need to help students learn how to communicate, collaborate, problem-solve, and find out what they are passionate about. There should be a dedicated program focusing on providing opportunities for students to absorb more real-world experiences, and they can get the measure of needs in their community and conceptualize ways to offer services that will be beneficial for others. Project-based learning ensures preparedness of students in working with others and provides real and relevant information. When students are promoted to concentrate on larger prospect of learning, they develop ability to set goal, manage time and team, engage in projects which can help in enhancing their skills required to be successful in future of independent work culture, and withstand challenges.