In “The Gig Economy,” on January 12th’s Daily Beast , Tina Brown comments about the apparently growing number of well-educated people who make $75K a year (or more) without having “real” jobs. They earn a living working on “free-floating projects, consultancies, and part-time bits and pieces,” known as “gigs.” Many former high-fliers in once secure jobs now find themselves loose in the gig economy, creating a new “hustling class,” experienced professionals scrambling for consulting contracts, short- and long-term project work, and new sources of income.
It is a provocative article, and “The Gig Economy” went viral, of course. Within the next month, everybody was blogging or twittering about what Brown dubbed “gigonomics.” National Public Radio picked up the story, and there were responses and musings all over the web. On GenX Finance, a blog post queried, “Are you Part of the Gig Economy? If Not, You Might Want to Start Thinking About it Now.” The writer makes a case that GenXers should plan for job uncertainty and design a way to manage on gigs alone, trending from “fixed” to “freelance” career paths. This shift could bring with it a sea change, from traditional planning models to brand new ones that are still evolving and complex to manage.
Sound financial planning is supported by some degree of economic certainty – for example, a predictable income from a steady job. But as steady jobs evaporate, there is potential impact on your practice and the lives of clients who might be shifting course. How would you counsel a client who is never quite sure of annual income or sources? How would you allocate investments for a client who comes up short and may need quick liquidity? As our friends at GenX Finance warn, you might want to start thinking about it now.
Creating a new financial services industry from the ashes around us requires a straight-ahead look at what we’ve created and commonsense reality checking. We’re not going back to “the way it was” any time soon, if ever. “Landing a gig” instead of “finding a job” may be the way many of us make it for the next little while.
So we need to get savvy and comfortable – fast – navigating without a map. Those adept at playing in the gig economy (Brown’s “hustler class”) know that there’s a certain discipline to the game and inestimable lessons to learn from playing it. How do you establish yourself and your personal brand in this new paradigm for “career?” It all depends on your value (what do you add to the team?), reputation (what’s your street cred?), and connections (who do you know?). To thrive here, you must be a recognized contributor with an impressive track record and targeted networks – and a strong sales ability.
Think about it now, rather than later. What makes you “gig worthy” – and what’s your plan for getting them?
Want to hear more about the gig economy? Go to www.cabhq.com