Do more with less 🍎

Happy New Year, and welcome back to reality! Are you feeling refreshed after your holiday hibernation—or has time lost all meaning?

One theme that has been top of mind for us lately is, yeah, things may be screwy, but there are all these hidden reasons for optimism. We’re talking about silver linings. Little nuggets of possibility.

Like  the fact that while tech layoffs are making headlines, a Ziprecruiter study found that 79% of workers recently hired after a tech-company layoff landed their new job within three months of starting their search. Most laid off workers and landing on their feet. That’s a good thing, there, hidden under the doom and gloom.

But it's tense out there—no denying it. After months of belt-tightening, companies will need to identify the things that really matter and focus on them. Everyone has to learn how to do more with less.

Maybe we’re optimistic because we at A.Team spend so much time thinking about and talking with with independent workers. They're a uniquely optimistic bunch (more on that below).  

Keep reading. You’ll see why we have a funny feeling 2023 has hidden potential. 

— Benjy, Joe, May, and the MISSION team

CHART OF THE WEEK

Remote Work Job Postings Are Down—But Interest in Remote Work Remains High

In a recent chat with Satya Nadella, LinkedIn CEO Ryan Roslansky pointed out how 2% of jobs on LinkedIn were listed as remote before the pandemic. That number went up to 20% in March 2022. Now it’s down to below 15%. But that's not the fascinating part, Roslansky said. What's fascinating is north of 50% of all job applications on a daily basis on LinkedIn go to that 15% of remote job postings.

Remote work opportunities are scarce and highly competitive. Highly-skilled workers climb over each other to chase after them. But companies haven’t adjusted to this new reality. If only there were a platform that connected elite remote teams to the companies that need product and engineering firepower. If only!

FUTURE OF WORK

Freelancers Are Happier With Their Pay Than Everyone Else

Freelancers aren't just a small group of people on the fringes of the economy anymore. They made up 39% of the workforce last year—up 3% from 2021. That means 60 million Americans did some form of freelance in 2022, and earning $1.35 trillion doing it.

What’s even more surprising, though, is that freelancers report being happier with the money they make for the work they do than the rest of the labor force. This contradicts the whole narrative of companies using contract work to take advantage of workers.

To find out what the heck is going on, Upwork did a survey of 3,000 working adults, freelancers and full-timers.

Part of the story is that over half of freelancers are providing knowledge services, such as computer programming, marketing, IT, and business consulting. Twenty-six percent of all U.S. freelancers hold a postgraduate degree, up from 20% in 2021. Meaning that high earners make up a larger chunk of the freelance workforce and must be tipping the scales in terms of worker satisfaction.

That’s the thing, satisfaction is off the charts. Well, it’s on the charts—but it’s higher for freelancers across the board. Sixty-six percent of freelancers say they feel more stimulated and 68% say they feel happier by the freelance work they do compared to a traditional job.

McKinsey echoed these sentiments in the latest iteration of its American Opportunity Survey, where 5,280 respondents who identified themselves as independent workers revealed a distinctive common characteristic: Being far more optimistic, both about their own futures and their outlook of the economy, than the average American worker.

Which is also bonkers, considering how everyone else is freaking out about a recession.

Part of the story here is that freelancers are diversifying their incomes—68% of freelancers report having more than one employer, job, or contract at a time, which means less reliance on a single employer’s performance, a factor that certainly matters in the current economic climate.

But it’s not just economic wellbeing. The majority of freelancers also reported that independent work has helped them stay healthier, better support their families, and strengthen personal relationships.

MISSION MUST-READS

How to Hire Amidst Uncertainty, According to 5 Top VC Partners

Tech’s 'Hiring Crisis': It's Time to Rethink Way More Than WFH

‘DIYers’: How the Great Resignation Created the Worker of the Future

‍PARTING TWEET