What is “work”? The new workforce is throwing out all the rules and forging their own path to a meaningful, sustainable, and entrepreneurial life.

Instead of concentrating in one field or one job title, they’re piecing together multiple gigs (and even multiple careers): 87% of freelancers have more than one gig a month, and 35% have more than four gigs, according to our latest survey of 1,100+ freelancers.

There’s also a large number of freelancers who are simultaneously holding down a traditional 9-5; 73% of survey respondents said that they were or are currently holding down a full-time job while freelancing. 70% of those freelancers did so to earn extra income, while 52% said they wanted to pursue a passion.

What does this all mean?

It means that the new workforce is approaching work in a fundamentally different way: they seek and make their own opportunities from many angles, piecing together multiple work opportunities rather devoting their energy into a single opportunity.

Agile and entrepreneurial, the new workforce isn’t putting all its eggs in one basket.

It’s further proof that freelancers are reinventing “work” and the meaning of success. As our founder Sara Horowitz says:

“Many freelancers rightly see the standard workweek as a prison of the past. Managing your own time isn’t just rewarding -- it’s practical and efficient. Time is a new currency, and successful freelancers manage, save, and spend it wisely.”

TWEET THIS: The standard workweek is the prison of the past: 87% of freelancers work multiple gigs @freelancersu #IChooseIndependence http://bit.ly/1t2oAkE

Read our full report here: “How to Live the Freelance Life -- Lessons from 1,000 Independents (PDF)”