Latest / Job Hopping with Fexingo: Tenure, Loyalty, and the Modern Career Resume / How Freelance Stints Build Career Resilience
Transcript
- Lucas: Luna, I want to talk about something that comes up a lot in career coaching sessions — the freelance gap. Or what a lot of job seekers still worry is a 'gap' on their resume. Luna: Right — the fear that if you take even six months to freelance, you'll look like you couldn't hold a job. But a lot of the data says the opposite. Lucas: Exactly. Let me give you a concrete example. I was talking to a marketing professional — let's call her Sarah. Over eight years, she did three separate six-month freelance contracts between full-time roles. She eventually landed a director role at a major tech firm. Luna: So she wasn't just filling gaps — she was building a different kind of resume. What did her freelance work actually look like? Lucas: First stint — she left a corporate marketing manager role after three years, felt burned out. She took a contract helping a startup launch their brand. Six months. Then she went back to a full-time senior manager role at a bigger company. Two years later, she did it again — this time to lead a product launch for a friend's company. Luna: So each freelance stint was intentional and project-based. Not just 'I couldn't find a job.' Lucas: Exactly right. And when she interviewed for that director role, she framed each contract as a strategic choice — 'I wanted to deepen my expertise in early-stage branding' or 'I wanted to lead a cross-functional launch without the politics of a large org.' The hiring manager told me later that those six-month blocks were actually what sealed the offer. Luna: Why? Because they showed she could hit the ground running, deliver results quickly, and then leave cleanly. That's rare. Lucas: And the numbers back this up. The Freelancers Union and Upwork did a study in 2024 — they found that 64 percent of freelancers who transition back to full-time employment report a salary increase of at least 15 percent. And that increase is often larger than what they'd get from a standard promotion inside their old company. Luna: That's a huge stat. So the freelance period isn't a penalty — it's actually a catalyst for a raise. But I think the fear is still real for a lot of people. What about resume formatting? How do you present freelance work so it doesn't look like a blank space? Lucas: Great question. Best practice — list it as a separate entry, just like any job. 'Freelance Marketing Consultant' or 'Independent Brand Strategist.' Then bullet points with specific outcomes. 'Led brand launch for a pre-seed startup, achieving 12,000 users in first quarter.' That's a result, not a job description. Luna: And you can group multiple short contracts under one umbrella if they're in the same period. 'Freelance Projects, 2024–2025' with a few highlights. Lucas: Exactly. The key is to show that you were working — and that the work was impactful. Now, there's another angle here that I think is underappreciated: the psychological resilience that comes from freelancing. Luna: Talk to me about that. I've heard people say freelancing made them better employees because they had to manage their own pipeline, negotiate rates, deal with rejection. Lucas: That's exactly it. When you go back to a full-time role, you're less afraid of conflict. You've had to advocate for your own value. You know what your time is worth. And you've seen that you can survive without a corporate safety net. Luna: That confidence probably shows in interviews too. I'm remembering a study from Harvard Business Review — they found that people who had entrepreneurial or freelance experience were rated higher on 'initiative' and 'adaptability' by hiring managers. Lucas: Right — and that's the exact language that shows up in performance reviews for high-potential employees. So freelance stints, if framed well, become career accelerators. But we should also be honest — not all freelance periods are equal. Luna: No, of course. If you're doing low-skill, low-impact gigs — like data entry or basic admin — that doesn't build the same narrative. It's about the quality of the freelance work. Lucas: Exactly. And I want to be clear — I'm not saying everyone should quit their job and freelance. But if you're between roles, or you're feeling stuck, a focused six-month contract can be a better career move than rushing into the wrong full-time job. Luna: Or better than staying in a job you've outgrown. I know a lot of listeners might be thinking about that right now — I know we both hear from listeners who say this show has helped them think through a career move or decision. Lucas: And that's honestly the best part of doing this show — hearing that something we said actually helped someone take a step forward. If you've gotten value from Job Hopping with Fexingo, and you'd like to help keep it going — and keep it ad-free — a couple of dollars a month genuinely makes a difference. You can find us at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Luna: Yeah, it's a small thing that adds up — and it means we can keep digging into the real data behind career decisions. So thank you to anyone who has already supported the show. Lucas: Alright — back to the freelance question. Let's talk about how to actually find those high-impact contracts. Because a lot of people don't know where to start. Luna: Networking is still the number one source, right? But there are platforms now that are more specialized. Lucas: Yes — but I'd say the best contracts come from people you've already worked with. Sarah, the marketer I mentioned earlier — both of her freelance stints came from former colleagues who reached out. So keep those relationships warm. Send a note every six months, even if it's just 'saw your company news, looks exciting.' Luna: And when you're on the contract, treat it like a full-time job in terms of professionalism. That's what builds the referral pipeline. Lucas: Exactly. Now, there's a nuance here about timing. If you freelance for too long — say, more than two years consecutively — some employers do start to question whether you can handle structure and teamwork again. Luna: Interesting — so there's a sweet spot. What's the data on that? Lucas: A LinkedIn analysis from 2023 found that people who freelanced for 6 to 18 months between full-time roles had the highest callback rates for interviews. Beyond 24 months, the callback rate dropped by about 20 percent. Luna: So plan your freelance periods intentionally. Use them to build a specific skill or portfolio piece, then re-enter the full-time market. Lucas: Right. And when you're interviewing after a freelance block, don't apologize for it. Lead with what you accomplished. 'I spent six months helping a startup go from zero to revenue — here's what I built.' That's a story, not a gap. Luna: I think the larger shift here is that the stigma around non-linear careers is fading. More employers value adaptability over pure tenure. Lucas: Absolutely. And that's the theme of this whole show — the modern career resume isn't a straight line. It's a patchwork of experiences, some full-time, some freelance, some maybe even sabbatical. What matters is the narrative you build around them. Luna: So if you're listening and you're considering a freelance stint — or you're in one right now — don't stress about the gap. Focus on the impact. Lucas: And if you want to dig deeper into how to frame freelance work on your resume or in an interview, we've linked a few resources in the show notes — including a template for structuring freelance bullet points that hiring managers actually respond to. Luna: That's a good practical takeaway. I think next time we should talk about the flip side — how to transition from full-time back into freelancing without burning bridges. Lucas: I like that. There's a real art to leaving well. We'll cover that in an upcoming episode. For now — if you've got a freelance story, we'd love to hear it. Send us a note. Luna: Yeah, we read every message. Thanks for listening, and we'll catch you next time on Job Hopping with Fexingo.