by Leo Wiles
04 January 2017
I’m heading into my fifth year freelancing and I’ll be honest with you – 2016 was the worst work year I’ve had by a long shot. I wish I could say I’m approaching 2017 bright-eyed and bushy-tailed but nothing could be further from the truth. I’m tired, over dealing with crappy clients and wary of having another year like the last. What’s your advice to boot me out of my funk? And if List members want to share theirs too I’m all ears! Kylie
I hear you. Last year wasn’t great for many of us, and chances are there are many freelancers out there like you who would like to be jumping into the new year raring to go, but are similarly jaded. And let’s face it: that’s not a great way to approach the new year when you’re in business for yourself.
Of course, you’re going to have to do what you normally do – chase work, network, keep in touch with clients, market yourself and so on, but I reckon it’s what you do on the fringes that’ll make the most difference to how you feel, and to cultivating a positive mindset. Here are six strategies I use when I’m feeling low and less than motivated that I hope can help you, too.
It can be all too easy in this business to forget why we chose to do what we do in the first place. I found myself seriously depleted after years spent speed-reading newswires, magazines and newspapers as an editor in London – and later on, churning out thousands of words per day for decades as a reporter and feature writer led to the demise of my creative writing on the side. Now, working as a photographer – another long-time passion of mine – I actively engage in new genres, techniques and locations to keep my love for it alive outside the client arena. It keeps me happy and those creative juices flowing.
You might think it’s just a hassle packing up your gear and going to work somewhere other than your home office – but do it. A fresh outlook can give you and your productivity a noticeable boost. Sometimes I work standing up at my desk, other times I might switch rooms, go outside or head to a local café which has the added bonus of counteracting isolation through interaction, and potentially triggering new ideas by being exposed to new stimulus. Oh, and if you’re on deadline and struck dumb by writer’s block, even switching your font and or point size can help get your brain moving again.
Following the same old routine day in, day out is a fast-track to boredom – and as a freelancer, we have the luxury of creating routines that work for us and changing them when we want to, as well! So if you have kids you need to drop at school, return home via a different route. Pick a new barista, or visit a different cafe every day for a week. Switch news outlets for a few days. Instead of hitting the gym, go to an indoor climbing place, or swimming, or to a dance class. Pick a handful of new titles you want to pitch to. Find new clients to work for. Do a few courses that interest you on Lynda.com (and become more valuable to clients at the same time). Breaking out of your boring little box / comfort zone can be scary, but it can be revitalising, too.
Just about every freelancer I know finds it hard to take time off – much less enjoy it. We’ve written before about the need to build a nest egg to cover emergency living expenses and invest in your ability to enjoy life more, but I want to go one step further and actually advise you to plan more breaks in your year so you have something to look forward to. So often as freelancers, we say yes to everything and finally hit the end of the year wild-eyed and thoroughly burnt out. But if you plan for breaks throughout the year, you may feel more motivated to slip your work hat on and knuckle down knowing there’s a light at the end of the tunnel.
When you’re tired and jaded it’s all too easy to get sucked down the social media rabbit hole, spending potentially hours procrastinating while reading inane tweets, Facebook posts about what your best friend had for lunch, and of course those endless funny cat videos. The result, though, is feeling slightly guilty at all the wasted time, especially if you haven’t used any of it to market your business or yourself. Set yourself strict limits and the rest of the time, switch it off. No alerts or notifications popping up on your phone to distract you. Similarly, a digital detox from 9pm every night can ensure you do other things – like read, meditate or get to bed early. All of which can only help your mood and mental state!
By that I mean, avoid negative people, and avoid negative words. If you’re a writer, you’ll know the power of words, but you might not realise that peppering your day-to-day conversation with phrases like, ‘I can’t…’ / ‘I won’t…’ / ‘I shouldn’t…’ / ‘I’ll never do XZY…’ / ‘That’ll never happen…’ etc, does your mindset no favours. It just reinforces your view that things are crap and are going to stay that way. Actively reframing what you say and how you think can have a massive impact on feeling positive. Try it and see!
Over to you, Listees: What do you do to pull yourself out of a freelance funk?
