Many of us employed in the nine-to-five life have thought to ourselves ‘I wish I had more free time,’ or cringe at the idea of spending day after day in the same office, with the same people, for years on end.

Then there are those who are able to make a living in freelance, casual, or permanent part-time positions.

Engelbert Schmidl, 34, is a journalist. For the past eight years, he has been working part-time jobs, for shifts ranging from three to six days a week. While he hasn’t made much money, or receive benefits like paid vacation and sick days, he has been able to “have fun” and “live cheaply”.

Schmidl was also a student for a few of those years, and grew accustomed to the part-time lifestyle.

Looking back on his jobs, he says “I haven’t wanted to commit myself to that nine-to-five drudge”. He thinks working forty hours a week would “kill” him.

Some of his friends agree, and like the idea of contract work because they can enjoy the “honeymoon period” and never have to get involved in office politics. In a couple of months, their time is up, and they move on to another job.

Schmidl says he never really enjoyed his past work experiences, which in part has contributed to his attitude against full-time work.

Schmidl makes working part-time sound liveable, but Bo Hill thinks it requires skill, contacts, and money to be a freelancer.

Hill, 30, is also a journalist. Currently, she works at a radio station, but is employed on a part-time contract. She enjoys the work, but is unsure about her future at the station.

She says most people she knows who freelance need another job to make it financially viable, or are extremely talented in their filed. She likes the idea of freedom and flexibility. Some people she knows freelance because like Schmidl, they don’t enjoy full-time life.

“They don’t want to work for the man…they want to have freedom”, Hill says.

“You have more control over selling your assets…you have more control in your end product”, she says.

But not just anybody is cut out for full-time freelancing. Hill says that people who do it are really passionate, motivated, and talented in their field of interest.

Schmidl says some people can’t afford to do it, because they have families to support.

So, where does that leave the rest of us average folk? An ideal situation for me would be to find a full-time job I like, and spend some time volunteering, writing, or producing radio programs. My flatmate works four days a week, and spends her day off volunteering, or relaxing. Ideal situation, perhaps?

While the freelance work I do know isn’t a way for me to make a living, it gives me something to look forward to after a day at the office, or time studying. Maybe one day I’ll get the best of both worlds, or learn to live life on a shoestring (yeah, right). Until then, I’ll be a slave to the man.