While I was completing my M.A. in journalism, I had a professor who was talking to us about ethics. He said that it was important to have “FU money” saved up so that if we were asked to do something we felt was wrong, we could say no. The thinking was this: While you won’t always be fired for something you refuse to do, the chance is there, and you need to be prepared to walk. You can’t walk if you don’t have anything saved up.

This can apply when you are working from home. It can apply when you are negotiating a freelance project or when you refuse to do something you find questionable. The idea is that you should work up to a position where you don’t “need” any one client or project. You should save up some money (in something like an emergency fund) so that you can get by. You should also have some diversity in your projects, clients and income streams so that the loss of one does not result in a devastating situation.

In the end, it’s about the freedom to turn down projects or orders that don’t pay what you’re worth, cause you an ethical dilemma, or that you just don’t have time for. Build up your resources over time so that you have the ability to do what you want to do, rather than always being at someone else’s mercy.