Leah Salyards, Freelance Writer, Pennsylvania

Leah Salyards, Freelance Writer, Pennsylvania

Leah Salyards doesn’t want to be defined by only one role.

“I’m a lot of things—I’m a wife, a mother, a gardener, a pet owner, a worker. I can order my roles—and my loves—in the order that I’m called to, for that season of life. In some seasons that means work is number 1, in others it means work is number 3,” she says. That sense of ownership of her life did not exist until Leah became a 1099 independent contractor. 

“When I was a W-2 employee, I was not able to rightly order my life,” she explains. “My entire life revolved around an external schedule. I couldn’t pick my priorities.” Flexibility and control became more important than ever to Leah as she grew her career—and her family. 

The mother of two young children, Leah is currently expecting her third child. Her last full-time job brought her joy, but she moved to part-time employment to be more available to her family. Leah’s husband and his parents own and operate a cattle ranch and butcher shop in Bedford, Pennsylvania. 

Leah quickly realized that balancing the commute and in-office obligations of her part-time role with her responsibilities as a mother and the wife of a farmer wasn’t realistic. She needed more flexibility. After taking a summer off to spend with her sons, she decided to pursue freelance writing.

“My skillset is talking—either out loud or on paper,” Leah says. “So, I called around to friends who have creative agencies and did research and started finding clients who wanted to work with me.”

“I work with clients who let me work as much or as little as I want to work. I don’t have to trade off the moments that matter now with my family. Freelancing allows me to work in pockets of time, like when my kids are at school, but then I can pick them up, be there with them for the rest of the afternoon, and then work again after they are in bed,” Leah explains. 

The flexibility that contracting offers Leah is invaluable to her family. “It allows my husband to fully focus on his role as a small business owner and a second-chance employer. If school calls to tell me my kid is sick, I close my computer and pick him up. I can be the priority parent, which allows my husband to fully focus on his job.” 

But if the Department of Labor’s rule restricting independent contractors moves forward, Leah knows her life will change—and not for the better. “If I’m forced to choose to work full time or not work at all, I would have to choose not working at all. I have to be there for my kids. I want to work—it’s a celebration of American entrepreneurship and freedom. Being able to contract, and choose where I live and where I invest, it’s good for the economy. It’s benefitting my rural community. It’s a blessing for my family.”