“Don’t you miss the security of a regular paycheck?”

Workers are discovering that the perceived primary benefit of a permanent job — stability — doesn't exist anymore, said author Dan Pink who published "Free Agent Nation" in 2001, quoted in an article from the Dallas Morning News. "There's a base amount of insecurity in the work force, period," Pink said. "I can either manage that insecurity on my own or let someone else manage it for me and lay me off whenever they want." More boldly, some even say, “The idea of security in working for one employer is a lie!”

Everyone works for themselves. The difference is in how many clients you have. As an independent consultant, I have many clients. As an employee, I’d have one client, which is like the classic, “all your eggs in one basket.” Plus, as an independent, my income is not limited. If I need more money, I can choose to take on more client work. Few employees have that option.

Almost 20 years ago, Ray I. Scroggins, APR, President of Scroggins Associates, LLC in Wisconsin, was a partner and Vice President at an ad agency. He left to start a virtual PR firm, a term he says hadn't yet come into play two decades ago. “I had two kids in college and two others in high school, so it was a leap of faith, yet I couldn't see simply re-inventing another agency that would have had me managing instead of doing what I really enjoy,” Scroggins said. “As time went on, I specialized more in the areas where I found pleasure, and the business has been very successful. Today, I specialize in developing and managing programs to generate feature editorial coverage for business clients, which include a couple of big multi-divisionals and several smaller firms across the US.

Scroggins admits he might have earned more money in the large agency, but adds “I am making ‘enough’ this way and enjoying it a lot more. I believe a person has to decide whether it is a sacrifice or freedom to choose how to carry out your mission in life. If people do what they truly enjoy, as much as their situation allows, they will make a good living because they will become good at their chosen area of expertise.”

Independent professionals have been turning traditional business thinking on its head and are becoming thought leaders in the concept that there is plenty of work out there for talented professionals.

Call it an abundance mentality.

Nick Williams writes in The Work We Were Born to Do: Find the Work You Love, Love the Work You Do. “If you took all the money and wealth that exists in the world right now, and put it in an obviously huge pot and then shared it out equally, there would be enough for all 5 billion people on the planet to have over £1 million each! Our thoughts of money being scarce are simply not accurate. We may experience a personal lack, but this is very different from there simply not being enough money overall.”