How Do You Explain What You Do?

So… what exactly is it that you do?

It’s a dreaded question for freelancers and one that I’ve been hearing a lot lately.

My husband and I are in the process of looking for a new apartment, and of course prospective landlords want to know what we do and how much money we make.

I made such an abrupt transition to freelance work that I hadn’t really thought about how to explain what I do. My husband has a straightforward answer — “grad student” or “working on a PhD” is about all anyone wants to know. But when it’s my turn to answer… people don’t know what to think.

They get that look on their face: confused, a little skeptical, sometimes a little patronizing. And I think by this point, I’ve heard it all.

“Oh, is that a job?”

“I didn’t know people could make money doing that.”

“It must be nice to sit at home all day.”

It’s enough to drive you crazy. But I’ve started figuring out how to respond in a way that makes those looks go away.

How to Explain What You Do to People Who Don’t Understand Freelance Work

1. Be confident

Don’t ever start with “Well, I’m trying to be…”

Say what you are. I am a writer (sometimes I’ll say copywriter instead) and an actor. That’s what I do to make a living.

Some months, yes, I make a better living than others. Some months I have more success with one job than the other. But those are my professions. Don’t beat around the bush, don’t expect people to question your qualifications or credits. (Most people aren’t going to be interested enough to go there.)

Say what you do with confidence and a smile. Be proud of your non-traditional work and you’ll find that you see that dreaded skeptical look less frequently.

2. Be succinct

Do not, do not, launch into minute details when someone asks you what you do. As freelancers, we often have multiple parts of our businesses and crazy, unpredictable days. But no one else needs to know those details.

One to two sentences is plenty. If the person you’re talking to is interested beyond that, you’ve given them an opening to ask questions. I find that telling people I write and act does get a lot of questions, but most of them are friendly and genuinely curious.

And if they’re not interested in knowing more than that, you can move on to asking them what they do. Or complaining about the weather.

And especially don’t say where you work. I work from home is not an acceptable answer to “What do you do?” It just sounds weird. Don’t do it, no matter how panicked you are.

3. Be positive

No matter what stupid questions anyone throws at you, don’t get defensive about your work. You can rant about it to your friends and family later if you need to, but don’t get sarcastic and nasty just because someone makes a stupid joke about “relaxing at home.”

Believe me, I know how hard it is to hold it in. People can say really rude things. But getting defensive won’t do any good.

Every profession prompts stupid comments. You’ve probably been guilty of a few yourself in the past. So when you’re faced with rudeness, keep smiling. Remember, we are damn lucky to do the work we do, on our terms, on our own time. But it’s a new career path, so not a lot of people will understand what that involves.

If it helps, when I get stupid remarks like that, I just tell myself everyone else is jealous.

How do you answer when someone asks, “What do you do?”