How am I gong to achieve this?
As someone who is working freelance within the dance industry, it would be incredibly difficult to focus on and only work with one style of dance throughout the whole of the career as a freelance dancer. Therefore, I need to be able to adapt and work with styles that I don't necessarily feel confident with and are less experienced in. This will then hopefully broaden up the opportunities and jobs that I get as a freelance dancer. The dance world is also quite competitive so I may not be successful in getting jobs all the time. This therefore might mean that I will have to look for similar jobs such as a choreographer or an assistant choreographer.
Budgeting – this is very important because there will be periods of time at which the freelancer is not working and is therefore not earning any income. You need to be able to save money during the time at which you have incoming salary so that you will then have money when you are in lean periods.
How am I going to achieve this?
During the periods of time which I am working, I will try to save as much money as possible for the times of which I will not be earning money. I will create a budgeting sheet where I will separate my money into different categories. I will also keep a record of how much I have spent within each month and mark down if I have over spent or under spent during each calendar month. I may spend more in some months than others because I may need to pay for new rehearsal clothing and costumes if I am taking part in a performance or may need to pay for other items that are needed for my current project/job. To help during lean periods, I will apply for a part-time job which would most likely be in a bar or a restaurant. That way I can earn a bit of money all of time even if I am in a lean period with my dance career. Ideally the job would be on a zero hours contract which means that the hours that I will work will be flexible and will not be a fixed time for every time that I work. This enables me to have enough time to look for jobs and work within the dance industry as this is my main career.
Prepared to work without getting paid – everyone has to start somewhere and for most freelancers within theatre, they have to carry out unpaid work to get their name heard within the industry. Once they have their name out there they can start applying for jobs.
How am I going to achieve this?
As a freelance dancer I volunteer to take part in several different performances in different theatres. Volunteering to take part in public and larger events is also a good idea because therefore more people will see you perform and may offer you a job. That way I can get my name out into the industry and employers will then hire me for the job if they think that I am suitable. Volunteering for jobs will also make the process of applying for jobs easier because people will already know my name and I will then have more of a chance of getting the job. By volunteering I am not getting paid but this could then lead to me getting a better job which I could then earn a lot of money from.
Presenting yourself well – as a freelancer you must be able to stand out from the crowd either in the world of work or in auditions. It may be quite difficult for you to find a job because you are not able to present yourself well and stand out from the crowd.
How am I going to achieve this?
As a freelance dancer, I attend lots of auditions for different roles within jobs, projects and performances. I realise that there is a very high chance that I will not be selected for the role at every audition that I attend but I need to be able to show my skills to the people running the auditions. Therefore I will try my hardest throughout all of the auditions that I attend. I put all of my energy and effort into each audition to make sure that I stand out from the crowd which means that there is a higher chance of me getting picked for the job.
Must always be looking ahead – although it is great when a freelance worker finds a job, they don’t know how long it will last for and if they do, it is not going to last forever. This means that the worker always needs to be looking for new jobs in which they can apply for to take on after they have finished their current job.
How will I achieve this?
The dance industry is a very tough industry to be a part of and it can become increasingly difficult to find jobs within this sector. Therefore, planning ahead of time is crucial to ensure that lean periods are kept to minimum. I will attend as many auditions as possible applying for roles which I may not necessarily be in my comfort zone. This is absolute key to a successful sustainable freelance career especially in the dance sector.
Motivation – there needs to be high levels of motivation to become a successful and to remain as a successful freelancer. There may be quite a few occasions where you will go for an audition and not get the part or even shortlisted. However, you then need to put this aside and attend more auditions.
How will I achieve this?
As a dancer, it may not be very often at all that I will get picked for the job or even shortlisted however there are so many auditions in the dance industry that I will be able to attend and which I may get the job. The more auditions that I attend, the higher the chance of me being shortlisted and then getting the job!
Resilience and self-belief – freelancers have to be thick skinned because they may attend many auditions before they get offered anything.
How will I achieve this?
As a dancer you are tough skinned physically due to the training that you have been through but also tough skinned mentally because although you may not get shortlisted at many of the auditions, this causes you to come back fighting stronger and gives you more determination to do well in the upcoming auditions.
Practicalities and finance – a freelancer must make a regular class 2 national insurance payment. This will provide security for them in the future. You also need to keep your receipts for things like transport, hotels. postage and any other purchases that are business related. If you are a performer, you can claim for cosmetics, toiletries and clothing. Once a year, you need to submit a record of your income and outgoings to the HMRC (tax department). This is called a tax return.
How will I achieve this?
As a freelance dancer I am quite often performing as part of my job. Therefore I am able to claim money back on all of things that I have bought which have gone towards the show for example costumes, makeup, etc. It can be quite costly in the dance industry as it requires a lot of things which need to be replaced regularly and if you can claim the money back on some of these items then this will help with your personal budgeting. This is also known as a tax return and is very important especially to dancers.
CPD – this is continuous professional development. This is about maintaining a professional skill level. You may attend classes, carry out regular voice/movement warmups, research new audition materials and look at relevant sites on the internet. Also, you need to maintain a current CV.
How Will I achieve this?
It is very important as a dancer to always be developing and maintaining your level of skill. Therefore classes need to be taken in order to do this. I could also run my own classes to keep up the skill of teaching and working with other people which is essential when working in the freelance industry. Taking part in auditions is also maintaining my skill because I will be dancing during these times and most likely learning new material. Dancers also require a high level of fitness so it is also important that I go to the gym regularly and eat healthily to keep my body in shape.
Research – keep on top of new employment opportunities by looking at The Stage online and any other online journals where jobs are advertised.
How will I achieve this?
Even when I am in work, I will keep up to date via all medians in accessing jobs within the industry. This will make it easier to find a job during a lean period. It is now also becoming increasingly easy to find jobs using different social media platforms.
There are many different websites out on the internet that can help freelances working in different industries to improve on all of the actions listed above. A great website that freelances can use is 'The Federation of Entertainment Unions'. Although you have to be a member of a union to register for the website, there are still free resources on the website that could be very useful to a freelance worker such as the blogs and webinars featured on their website. Here is a link to the website:
http://www.feutraining.org/2016/overcoming-freelance-challenges/
Budgeting – this is very important because there will be periods of time at which the freelancer is not working and is therefore not earning any income. You need to be able to save money during the time at which you have incoming salary so that you will then have money when you are in lean periods.
How am I going to achieve this?
During the periods of time which I am working, I will try to save as much money as possible for the times of which I will not be earning money. I will create a budgeting sheet where I will separate my money into different categories. I will also keep a record of how much I have spent within each month and mark down if I have over spent or under spent during each calendar month. I may spend more in some months than others because I may need to pay for new rehearsal clothing and costumes if I am taking part in a performance or may need to pay for other items that are needed for my current project/job. To help during lean periods, I will apply for a part-time job which would most likely be in a bar or a restaurant. That way I can earn a bit of money all of time even if I am in a lean period with my dance career. Ideally the job would be on a zero hours contract which means that the hours that I will work will be flexible and will not be a fixed time for every time that I work. This enables me to have enough time to look for jobs and work within the dance industry as this is my main career.
Prepared to work without getting paid – everyone has to start somewhere and for most freelancers within theatre, they have to carry out unpaid work to get their name heard within the industry. Once they have their name out there they can start applying for jobs.
How am I going to achieve this?
As a freelance dancer I volunteer to take part in several different performances in different theatres. Volunteering to take part in public and larger events is also a good idea because therefore more people will see you perform and may offer you a job. That way I can get my name out into the industry and employers will then hire me for the job if they think that I am suitable. Volunteering for jobs will also make the process of applying for jobs easier because people will already know my name and I will then have more of a chance of getting the job. By volunteering I am not getting paid but this could then lead to me getting a better job which I could then earn a lot of money from.
Presenting yourself well – as a freelancer you must be able to stand out from the crowd either in the world of work or in auditions. It may be quite difficult for you to find a job because you are not able to present yourself well and stand out from the crowd.
How am I going to achieve this?
As a freelance dancer, I attend lots of auditions for different roles within jobs, projects and performances. I realise that there is a very high chance that I will not be selected for the role at every audition that I attend but I need to be able to show my skills to the people running the auditions. Therefore I will try my hardest throughout all of the auditions that I attend. I put all of my energy and effort into each audition to make sure that I stand out from the crowd which means that there is a higher chance of me getting picked for the job.
Must always be looking ahead – although it is great when a freelance worker finds a job, they don’t know how long it will last for and if they do, it is not going to last forever. This means that the worker always needs to be looking for new jobs in which they can apply for to take on after they have finished their current job.
How will I achieve this?
The dance industry is a very tough industry to be a part of and it can become increasingly difficult to find jobs within this sector. Therefore, planning ahead of time is crucial to ensure that lean periods are kept to minimum. I will attend as many auditions as possible applying for roles which I may not necessarily be in my comfort zone. This is absolute key to a successful sustainable freelance career especially in the dance sector.
Motivation – there needs to be high levels of motivation to become a successful and to remain as a successful freelancer. There may be quite a few occasions where you will go for an audition and not get the part or even shortlisted. However, you then need to put this aside and attend more auditions.
How will I achieve this?
As a dancer, it may not be very often at all that I will get picked for the job or even shortlisted however there are so many auditions in the dance industry that I will be able to attend and which I may get the job. The more auditions that I attend, the higher the chance of me being shortlisted and then getting the job!
Resilience and self-belief – freelancers have to be thick skinned because they may attend many auditions before they get offered anything.
How will I achieve this?
As a dancer you are tough skinned physically due to the training that you have been through but also tough skinned mentally because although you may not get shortlisted at many of the auditions, this causes you to come back fighting stronger and gives you more determination to do well in the upcoming auditions.
Practicalities and finance – a freelancer must make a regular class 2 national insurance payment. This will provide security for them in the future. You also need to keep your receipts for things like transport, hotels. postage and any other purchases that are business related. If you are a performer, you can claim for cosmetics, toiletries and clothing. Once a year, you need to submit a record of your income and outgoings to the HMRC (tax department). This is called a tax return.
How will I achieve this?
As a freelance dancer I am quite often performing as part of my job. Therefore I am able to claim money back on all of things that I have bought which have gone towards the show for example costumes, makeup, etc. It can be quite costly in the dance industry as it requires a lot of things which need to be replaced regularly and if you can claim the money back on some of these items then this will help with your personal budgeting. This is also known as a tax return and is very important especially to dancers.
CPD – this is continuous professional development. This is about maintaining a professional skill level. You may attend classes, carry out regular voice/movement warmups, research new audition materials and look at relevant sites on the internet. Also, you need to maintain a current CV.
How Will I achieve this?
It is very important as a dancer to always be developing and maintaining your level of skill. Therefore classes need to be taken in order to do this. I could also run my own classes to keep up the skill of teaching and working with other people which is essential when working in the freelance industry. Taking part in auditions is also maintaining my skill because I will be dancing during these times and most likely learning new material. Dancers also require a high level of fitness so it is also important that I go to the gym regularly and eat healthily to keep my body in shape.
Research – keep on top of new employment opportunities by looking at The Stage online and any other online journals where jobs are advertised.
How will I achieve this?
Even when I am in work, I will keep up to date via all medians in accessing jobs within the industry. This will make it easier to find a job during a lean period. It is now also becoming increasingly easy to find jobs using different social media platforms.
There are many different websites out on the internet that can help freelances working in different industries to improve on all of the actions listed above. A great website that freelances can use is 'The Federation of Entertainment Unions'. Although you have to be a member of a union to register for the website, there are still free resources on the website that could be very useful to a freelance worker such as the blogs and webinars featured on their website. Here is a link to the website:
http://www.feutraining.org/2016/overcoming-freelance-challenges/
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