So you want to be a freelance designer?  Why wouldn’t you.  As a freelancer you get all the glory.  You set your own hours and your own rates.  There’s finally light at the end of the tunnel, and the light is so very bright.

To be a freelancer is to sleep til 10am, to work til 2pm and spend lazy afternoons at the beach.  You can drift off to Starbucks to work on projects while sipping pensively at your low-foam vanilla latte.

Well, almost.  Freelancing may provide you with the eventual freedom to laze around in pyjamas for half the day, whack-whackity-whacking away at projects when the mood strikes you but it’s certainly not all butterflies and rainbows, especially not in the beginning.  No, in the beginning you can expect longer days, less money and probably just as many headaches as you had when you worked for an agency.

All is not lost though, Smashing Magazine published an article titled The Roadmap To Becoming A Professional Freelance Web Designer.  If you’re thinking about making the move to the wonderful world of freelancing, give this nugget a read before you do.  You’ll be glad you did.