Game of Life of a Freelancer

Will I go bankrupt? Am I a responsible freelancer or a lunatic? In the Game of Life of a Freelancer, you can simulate your wealth and bankrupt risc over time.

This simulation refers to freelancers who work full-time in project-based business. This means that they are placed in a position in a larger company via a recruiter and work there full-time for several months.

The simulation models the financial development of a freelancer based on probabilities. Each simulation runs month by month and randomly decides whether you have a project or not.

You can play around with the presets or enter your own specific parameters!

Scenario Presets

Balanced Freelancer

A typical freelancer with moderate income, reasonable expenses, and good project retention. Starting with 10k buffer, earning 10k/month with 5k expenses.

Simulation Statistics (at end of simulation)

Maximum Money

757.827 €

Min. Money (not bankrupt)

235.703 €

Average Money

520.719 €

Median Money

516.955 €

Max. Debt (when bankrupt)

54.097 €

Bankruptcies

13 / 100

Bankruptcy Risk

13,0 %

Simulation Parameters

Financial Parameters

Initial Money

Monthly Income (when working)

Monthly Expenses

Annual Interest Rate (0-1)

Probability Model

Contract Renewal Likelihood (0-1)

New Project Likelihood (0-1)

Project Duration (months)

Simulation Settings

Simulation Months

Number of Simulations

How the parameters work:

Initial Money: Your financial buffer at the start. The higher it is, the longer you can survive without a project.
Monthly Income: What you earn when you have a project.
Monthly Expenses: Your fixed costs (rent, living expenses, etc.) that always occur - even without a project!
Annual Interest Rate: Return on your invested savings per year (e.g., 0.05 = 5%). Applied monthly to positive balances.
Contract Renewal Likelihood: Chance that your current project will be extended (e.g., 0.8 = 80%).
New Project Likelihood: Chance of finding a new project when you don't have one (e.g., 0.3 = 30%).
Project Duration: How many months a project typically runs and generates income.
Number of Simulations: How many different scenarios are calculated in parallel. More = better risk assessment.

Limitations of This Simulation

Result Variability: Simulation results fluctuate significantly between runs. This Monte Carlo simulation uses relatively few iterations because it runs entirely in your browser rather than on a backend server. Ideally, the simulation should run until results converge to stable values, but this would require significantly more computational resources.
No Economic Cycles: The probabilities for contract renewal and finding new projects remain constant throughout the simulation. In reality, over a 10-year period, freelance markets typically experience boom phases and recessions. This simplified model doesn't capture these economic fluctuations.
Fixed Hourly Rates: The simulation doesn't account for adjusting your rate based on market conditions. In reality, freelancers might reduce their hourly rate when demand softens to increase the likelihood of winning projects. A future enhancement could add a "rate flexibility" parameter - similar to a trading halt at a stock exchange - where rates decrease gradually (e.g., €5/month without work) but only down to a floor price (e.g., €80 if starting at €100), recognizing that beyond a certain point, further rate reductions won't help in a severely depressed market.