Mental Health Day

Here are the main insights:

• 61% of new freelancers reported their mental health had improved during the year they moved to self-employment. And 85% responded that freelancing overall has a positive benefit on their mental health.

• 54% of people didn’t think about the effects on mental health before switching to freelance. This often led to a ‘shock to the system’, such as feelings of isolation or worries about irregularity of income.

• 80% of our group said “imposter syndrome” caused them stress or anxiety during the year.

• 63% of the group don’t feel they have adequate support for their mental health in freelance work.

• 56% of the those who have two jobs (freelance + office or freelance + remote) said they weren’t able to work because of poor mental health, compared to 39% in only self-employment (with one job).

• 75% of the self-employed took less than 28 days off in the last 12 months. 40% of those who took less than 21 days off reported poor mental health having a negative impact on their work, compared to 28% who took more holiday.

• 41% of freelancers said that at some point during 2022, they were unable to work, due to stress, anxiety or poor mental health. This number drops to 30% for those who say they have an adequate support network in place.

• 87% are concerned about increased cost of living and only 11% of freelancers feel supported by the government as a small business owner. Because of it 55% of the responders considered leaving self-employment during 2022.

• 77% of the freelancers are feeling positive about 2023, and 68% feel it will be a better year for their mental health.