One Month of Full-Time Freelance Writing: Lessons Learnt So Far
Of all the things I thought my first month of freelancing full-time would be, busy was not one of them. Despite putting a lot of effort into building a solid client base, I still had the impression I’d be spending some of my afternoons sitting around twiddling my thumbs.
Not the case - in both good and bad ways. And now as we make headway into February, I’m trying to make sure I spend some time reflecting on how my first month went, what lessons I need to take away, and how I can set myself up for ongoing success, both professionally and personally.
A Little Back Story
If you’ve read some of my other articles about freelancing, you might know that for the past 18 months, I’ve been working part-time in my staple ‘career’ as a careers advisor, and part-time as a freelance writer and editor. I’ve always ‘freelanced’ in some capacity with my writing, but it’s only in the last couple of years I’ve become more serious about it. And as I became more serious, I secured more work, and realised that my ‘silly’ idea of freelancing full-time could become a reality.
I’m enrolled back at university later in the year, so now feels like the perfect time to go all in and see if I can make this work. I’m hoping as I begin my studies, I can build a work-life-study balance that genuinely works for me.
January was my first month of working freelance full-time. I’m sharing what I’ve learnt so far, in the hopes of helping anyone else thinking about diving in but also as a good refresher/reminder for myself.
The Lessons
Work-life balance DOES exist, but you need to enforce it.
My biggest learning curve was not making enough time for balance. I think because I had the expectation I’d have some spare time on my hands, I forgot to factor in downtime (fully aware I’ve written about the importance of this as a freelancer previously!).
Because I have clients situated all over the world, I found myself doing catch-ups, reviews and updates at all hours. This isn’t necessarily a problem, as I enjoy working with the clients I have, but I’m conscious I need to create stronger boundaries and ensure I give myself proper downtime. This month, I’ve let my clients based on the other side of the pond (who are 11 hours behind me!) know that I’m available for catch-ups on Tuesdays and Wednesdays only, keeping my evenings free for me.
Find a way to measure your productivity.
With a ‘To-Do’ list that feels never ending, I’ve become one of those anxious people who feels like they’re never getting anywhere, never achieving anything, and never being productive. Which is ludicrous; I know I’ve been productive. But because it’s tick one thing off and move straight to the next I haven’t had a chance to revel in the work I have done.
To rectify this, I’ve started creating a weekly plan of what needs to be done by when and setting myself three goals per day. Just three things that if I get done will equal productivity for me. As long as those three things get ticked off, I’ve had a good day and I’m banned from thinking otherwise.
I’m also setting aside a hour or so on a Sunday night to write down all the things that I’ve achieved that week - both personal and professional - and popping them in a ‘Brag Folder’. I can’t remember where I originally saw the idea, but essentially a brag folder is where you collate all your successes, so if you ever start to feel a bit flat and demotivated, you can take a peek at everything you’ve accomplished so far. I definitely have a habit of doubting myself and thinking I haven’t ‘done’ enough so I’m hoping this will help.
Once you have a plan - stick to it.
Creating a plan helps me feel all kinds of organised and energised - and then I get distracted, go off-track, don’t achieve as much as I wanted to get done and the anxiety sets in. So, I create another plan - and repeat the whole viscious cycle again. Like many of us, I am my own worst enemy.
A vital trait for successful freelancing is commitment. This month, I’m forcing myself to stick to my plan as much as possible, while still leaving little moments of wiggle room.
Three deep breaths are the cure-all we need.
I knew making such a big change to the way I work would leave me a little anxious, but I didn’t realise quite how much it would have me doubting myself. I took on some new clients over the month, and normally this would be fine, but I found the moment I filed copy or content with them I became anxious. What if my work was terrible? What if I had been kidding myself all this time? What if they trashed what I’d done and refused to pay my invoice?
Because this is the first time I’ve relied only on my freelance income for my financial survival, my anxiety went into overdrive.
Thankfully, none of my anxious thinking was accurate and I had to quickly learn to remind myself to take three deep breaths anytime my anxiety began to spike again. This super simple but incredibly effective method helps us to turn focus solely to our breathing and the extra oxygen hits our parasympathemtic nervous system - promoting a state of calm and allowing us to think more clearly.
Definitely needed lots of that in January and I’m hoping I can manage myself better by keeping this in mind through February.
Let yourself off the hook sometimes.
As I got busier with freelance clients, some passion and pro-bono projects feel to the wayside. I stopped pitching my own essays and articles and I haven’t written a single sentence of fiction.
All of this comes down to not creating a stronger balance, as I mentioned above, but for a few weeks I really beat myself up. Sitting myself down and having a stern conversation about not being Super Woman and accepting that I’m still figuring this out was a good move.
It’s okay to forgive ourselves for not being ‘perfect’ or living up to some social media polished version of what we’re ‘supposed’ to be doing or how we’re supposed to be doing it. You do, you.
February is already shaping up to be another hectic month so alongside all this, I’m also adding some gratitude into my day. It’s such a joy to be able to live my life on my own terms in this way, and to have clients knocking on my door asking me to work with them and use my skills to help them add value to their business.
And truth be told, there is no wrong or right way to go about this - just the best way that works for you. If it doesn’t feel ‘best’ for me right now, that just means there’s room for improvement and growth - two things that should never be shied away from.
