Edelman Intelligence recently conducted a research study for Upwork, a freelance-jobs platform in Santa Clara, Calif. It surveyed 6,000 working freelancers and employees between June 15 and July 7 of 2020. And they found that among other things: 59 million U.S. workers performed freelance work in the past 12 months, an increase of 2 million people year over year. The composition of the freelance workforce is getting younger, as 50 percent of Generation Z , 44 percent of Millennials, 30 percent of Generation X , and 26 percent of Baby Boomers freelanced at some point in the past year. The top two occupations for new freelancers are in technology and finance/business operations. 96 percent of new freelancers say they will do more freelancing in the future. 58 percent of workers who are not freelancers and are new to remote work due to the pandemic are now considering freelancing in the future. Although we didn’t need a pandemic and social distancing to prove the importance that freelancing plays in our current economy, 2020 has brought to light much about this often talked of mechanism for making a living. Platforms such as Fiverr and Upwork have created a thriving digital and remote freelance environment in which many are either making a full time living or at least fulfilling their side hustle needs. The question remains….Is this the wave of the future or just a fad? And more importantly, can you really make a living doing full time freelance? In 2015, Alexandra Fasulo (aka the freelance fairy) quit her lofty NYC public relations job after working for just 4-weeks. She had no plan, no money, and no idea what would come next. She just knew she couldn’t work for a company any more. What she soon realized is that quitting that job was the best thing she could ever do. It thrust her into the world of freelancing on Fiverr.com, where she is a 6-figure freelance writer, and freelancing personality on podcasts, talk shows, and blogs around the world. In this broad ranging interview, we talk about how she stumbled into freelancing, the types of jobs she has found most lucrative, and address some of the hate she has received from going public with her success. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices