--- title: "A Day in A Life of A Freelancer: Ron Villagonzalo" description: Meet Ron, a freelancer for over 8 years. He’s a dad who wanted greater control over his time so he can prioritize his kids. He took the leap and tried freelancing. --- [Maya Stories ](https://www.maya.ph/maya) # [A Day in A Life of A Freelancer: Ron Villagonzalo](https://www.maya.ph/maya/ron-villagonzalo-freelancer-paypal-promo/) Written by [Karmel](https://www.maya.ph/maya/author/karmel) | 1/10/17 1:00 AM Interested in what it’s like to be a freelancer? We talked to four freelancers from the Philippines to share their story.  Meet Ron, a freelancer for over 8 years. He’s a dad who wanted greater control over his time so he can prioritize his kids. He took the leap and tried freelancing. Hear Ron’s story below: # Q: As a freelancer now, tell us about your passion. What does a typical day look like for you? There’s technically no typical day for a freelancer, especially when you’re working for two or three more clients. If you’re not on a fixed schedule, you’re more on performance-based *‘dun sa ginagawa*. *Ang masarap*, you’re not tied up to a specific eight-to-five job. I don’t have to wake up at six am to travel all the way to the office. I wake up at five am in the morning because I need to bring my kids to school. *‘Yun ang masarap sa freelancing, yung flexitime mo.* # Q: What’s the best part about being a freelancer? There’s basically two things. First, freedom *sa* time, I’m not tied down to an eight-to-five job, [and] I don’t have to commute to the office. I work at home or in a coffee shop, a restaurant with Internet or I bring my own mobile data so you have flexibility of time. *Pangalawa*, unlimited up to a certain extent *‘yung earning potential*, *kasi* I’m not tied to a fixed salary on a monthly basis. I know a designer who earns $75 per hour, sa bahay lang siya nagtatrabaho. So those two things are very important for me especially because I have kids. # Q:What was the turning point that made you decide to be a freelancer? When I was working, I remember *nasa *KFC* kami ng *officemate* ko*, *tapos* I saw this dad come in at 12 lunch time. He had his child with him, and* sabi ko* I want to be like that, ‘*yung tanghali pwede ko kasama yung kids ko*, so after I left my job at Clinical Trials, *nakahanap na ako ng *freelance gig*, sabi ko, ang sarap ‘yung *I can spend time in the house*,* I can be the one to actually rear up the kids, *palakihin yung mga bata.* Then if you have enough skills to do what you want to do, keep getting projects, and you have the drive, freelancing actually works. # Q: What advice would you give to those who are considering freelance? Don’t do freelancing if you can’t discipline yourself. *Kasi nasa bahay ka or nasa labas ka, *so if* tinamad ka,*nothing’s going to happen. I also don’t recommend newly grads to go into freelancing right away, especially if they’re not mature enough. You need to experience corporate life, *‘yung masigawan ng boss mo, ma-*stress* sa *boss* mo, kasi marami akong natutunan sa *corporate life* ko na *I’m using now* sa pagiging *freelancer*. *S*o andun ‘yung disiplina, kahit wala kang tulog, tatapusin mo yung job mo, ‘pag wala kang kliyente, maghanap ka ng kliyente*. One of the questions freelancers ask me, in seminars is, “How do I get started?”, “Where do I find clients?”, “How do you keep your clients?”.  If you’ve never had corporate work, ‘*di mo alam gagawin mo eh.*  I’m lucky I came from sales and marketing so I was mentored by very good people.  Of course you need your own set up, your own work at home spot, *kailangan meron ka.* # Q: What do you look for in a payments partner? First, *‘yung *ease of use for me and my clients, especially* ako may clients ako na matanda so ayaw nila yung matrabahong sistema kung pano ka padalhan ng pera*. Second*, kung gaano kabilis mapunta sa’kin ‘yung cash*. As a freelancer, given micro small businesses, the key factor for you to survive in the market is liquidity, so cash flow. *Hindi pwede ‘yung 30 days bago mo makuha yung pera or *five days to 10 days*, tapos nakuha mo yung pera, ang laki naman ng kaltas.* It’s the speed and efficacy and of course access, *dapat madali.* # Q: How has PayMaya made your life easier as a freelancer? Well , when PayMaya first came out and I saw it was Visa, *nag-email agad ako sa customer service.* I asked, “Can I withdraw my PayPal funds to PayMaya?”, and they said yes. *Triny ko*, and ‘*yun mabilis*. If you withdraw from PayPal to bank, that’s three to fiveworking days, *kapag minalas ka pang mag-*withdraw* ng *Thursday, Monday or Tuesday* pa ‘yun papasok sayo. Nag-*withdraw* ako ng *$100*, ‘pag *refresh* ko ng *PayMaya app *nand’un na kaagad eh, so malaking tulong na *you don’t need to wait* na matagal pumasok ‘yung pera sayo.* # Get 80% off PayPal withdrawal fees Good news! Transfer your PayPal balance to your PayMaya account and save PHP200 on withdrawal fees*. You can then use your PayMaya app to shop online at any Visa-accepting merchant or withdraw your cash with a PayMaya card at any Bancnet ATM. **Promo period is from September 22, 2016-March 21, 2017. ** *PayMaya will credit PHP 200 to your PayMaya account within three (3) business days of PayPal fulfilling an eligible withdrawal. [Terms & conditions](https://paymaya.com/terms-and-conditions-paymaya-paypal) apply. Read more about the promo [here](https://stories.paymaya.com/get-80-off-paypal-withdrawal-fees-transfer-cash-paymaya/).     # Get 80% off PayPal withdrawal fees. No PayMaya yet? Download the free app below:   [View full post](https://www.maya.ph/maya/ron-villagonzalo-freelancer-paypal-promo/) ```json { "@context" : "http://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Karmel" }, "dateModified" : "2019-06-20T08:07:12.614Z", "datePublished" : "2017-01-10T01:00:00Z", "headline" : "A Day in A Life of A Freelancer: Ron Villagonzalo", "image" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "height" : 125, "url" : "https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/3055020/PayMaya%20Stories%20Images/2017/january/Banner%201.jpg", "width" : 400 }, "mainEntityOfPage" : "https://www.maya.ph/maya/ron-villagonzalo-freelancer-paypal-promo/", "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "height" : 60, "url" : "/hs/hsstatic/content_shared_assets/static-1.4092/img/default-amp-logo.png", "width" : 60 }, "name" : "Stories" } } ```