What You Need to Know About “Portfolioists,” a New Type of Flex Worker

By 2020, it’s estimated that about half of the U.S. workforce will be comprised of freelancers. This statistic shows that the world of work is changing dramatically from a structured, in-office, 9-to-5 workday to encompass remote work and flexible work options. But now there’s a new type of worker emerging who is creating his or her own unique workflow: portfolioists.

In the Quartz article, “The Career of the Future Looks More Like a Portfolio Than a Path,” the idea of portfolioism is introduced. Similar to freelancers, portfolioists focus less on having consecutive, full-time jobs and more on having a steady stream of jobs that relate to various talents, skills, and passions they have. It might seem like a hodgepodge of passions mixed with talent, but it’s actually a strategic move, making portfolioists more marketable to a wide variety of employers.

While some portfolioists, like freelancers, might be self-employed, many aren’t. They may even hold full-time or part-time jobs, not a gaggle of gigs. In short, being a portfolioist means crafting a portfolio that equally represents your abilities and interests plus your talents and passions. This just might make portfolioists the perfect job candidates to hire.

It’s not just employers who need to accept the idea of portfolioism—it’s the actual job seekers, new hires, and employees, too. For freelancers, it only takes a bit of fine-tuning to capture the essence of being a portfolioist. For others who are still used to a traditional workplace with typical working hours, learning how to master their trades by taking on various gigs, internships, and flexible jobs can help them create a master career that embodies everything that represents their professional and personal lives.

But if portfolioism is to truly work, the adoption of flexibility is paramount. After all, portfolioists might have one job or five that don’t fit into an antiquated 9-to-5 work model. And as workplace flexibility continues to grow in momentum, the next logical step for workers will be to totally control their work life.

While employers already are preparing for a more freelance-oriented workforce, they need to brace themselves for the next logical evolution, which is the portfolioist movement. That’s why employers not only need to wholeheartedly adopt a flex-friendly attitude, but also welcome all workers, from freelancers to flexers, part-timers to portfolioists.