Graduation has come and gone, and with the chances of me pursuing a doctorate degree near zero, it's time to join the full-time workforce. But I won't be getting a job; I'm building up my business.

I've been freelancing since before I started grad school, and it helped me finish school debt-free. Of course, I could get a regular job. But as a trained musician, there aren't a ton of those right now.

Instead, I'm going to take my business full-time. And I have a plan for exactly how to do it.

Whether you're currently in school or haba a day job, you can make money as a freelancer. You just have to have the discipline and focus if you want to make it your main gig.

Here's how I plan to go full-time now that I don't have to worry about school.

Starting With a Schedule

The world of a freelancer varies day to day. But I believe having a schedule in mind will help me focus and get more work done. My schedule may or may not look like yours.

Here's a breakdown of my full-time daily schedule as of now.

7:30am-wake up, get dressed, and get some water

8:00am-write for clients

12:00pm-lunch and personal/professional development

1:00pm-more writing for clients

3:00pm-more business/personal development

5:30pm-prep dinner

6:00pm-eat dinner

7:00pm-relax or finish up the day

I probably won't always follow this schedule exactly. Some days, I may wake up early and want to start working sooner. Other days, I may have more client projects.

Creating a Daily Plan

Each day, I'll evaluate what I have to do that day for clients and my own business. My client work revolves around content writing and SEO strategy. But in my business, I focus on creating digital resources for other musicians.

I also write for Medium and my own blog. I've offered private lessons on flute as well, and I also offer feedback on recordings.

It can be hard to juggle, but I like the variety. If I was always writing for clients, I would probably go insane. And if I only offered one type of product in my business, that would get pretty boring.

As a figure out my work for the day, I can adjust my schedule as necessary. That way, I can still be productive and hit all of my income and business goals.

Slowly Adding More Work

While going from working 15–20 hours one week to 30–40 the next, I knew that's not possible.

However, I did start working full-time days. So instead of working five full days a week, I had been doing two or three such days. The other days, I would work, but I might work about what I had been as a part-timer.

By the end of January, I came close to my goal of working close to full-time hours five days a week. That gave me a month to transition, and I got used to working more and more without it being a huge difference.

Being Flexible

Throughout my transition, I plan on being flexible. Things happen, I get tired, my family asks me for help with something…

While I will set boundaries around when I work, I want to go easy on myself. I hadn't freelanced for 40 hours a week before. I knew I could do so, but it took time to adjust to my new routine.

If you want to make the switch, make sure you have some savings so that you can slowly move to working full-time on your business. Then, you won't have to worry about sacrificing sleep or other things just to make enough money.

Transitioning is clearly possible, or else no one would run their own small business. But that doesn't mean you have to go from part-time to full-time in a snap.

Making It Happen

If you want to freelance full-time, I say go for it. You can enjoy the many benefits of working for yourself, like setting your own hours and making more money than in a traditional job.

But you won't be successful if you don't put it the work and make the transition. Taking the leap into full-time entrepreneurship isn't easy, and it's not for everyone.

If you truly want this, you'll make sure you can transition successfully. And that's exactly what I'm doing.