There is no doubt about it; being a freelancer is stressful. You have no job security and you have to constantly be on your toes just to make enough money to stay afloat. However, there are good things about being a freelance worker too. For example, when you work for yourself, you can run your own schedule and make your own decisions. You don’t have to be subservient to someone else. That can only be positive, but if the pressures and stress of freelance life are getting you down, here’s how to beat them and get back on track.
Closely Regulate Your Work-Life Balance
Getting your work-life balance right is one of the most important things of all when it comes to working as a freelancer. It can often seem like you never have the time to do the things you want to do. It’s about time you starting paying more attention to your work-life balance. You will only cause yourself problems if you allow this balance to get out of kilter. No one wants to be working all the time at the expense of their personal life. You need to regulate your time and set work boundaries for yourself.
freelance life balance
Get Help from Others
Getting help from other people is not about meeting defeat or giving up. Instead, it’s all about making the most of your time and freeing yourself to focus on the things that matter most.
You can outsource some of the dull, repetitive and time-consuming tasks to external companies. If you have a vital IT system in place, you could use managed it services from itWORKS!. And if you don’t know how to manage your own money, you could hire an accountant. These things mean spending money, but if they free up your time, they could allow you to make more money too.
Stop Taking on More Work Than You Can Handle
If you are taking on more work than you can handle, you will end up under pressure and stressed out. That’s the last thing you need when you’re trying to run your freelance company in the right way.
It’s easy to do this because when you work for yourself, there is no one there to manage your workflow. Doing that is entirely up to you. You should work out how fast you work, and how much money you need to make, and then regulate your own workflow and work schedule from there.
invoices
Don’t Accept Underpayment of Missing Payments
Unfortunately, underpayment or missed payments are still very commonly experienced by freelancers. It’s shocking that people think that they can ask you to do work for them and then stall when the time comes to cough up the cash. Most freelancers have experienced this at least once. You should have a one strike policy in place, and warn clients of it beforehand. If payment is not received by an agreed upon deadline, refuse to work with them again. That’s the only way to get the message across to people who want to rip you off.
I also ask for all or half of the payment upfront from new clients to be sure I get at least some of what I'm owed.