Coping and Prioritizing in Your Freelance Life

July 30, 2010

Freelancers are regularly tested on their focus and prioritization skills. How you cope and deal with time management challenges will impact your business, your wallet, and your physical and emotional health.

Someone invites you to lunch but you know you have to put your nose down and hit that deadline… A loved one needs you but you have to juggle and make them and your client happy, too…. One client wants to be put ahead of other clients that are important, too… A client is being a royal pain in the rear and you need to decide what to do about it… Sometimes the juggling act is tricky! The good news is that it’s your business and you’re in control. Sometimes you need to just remind yourself of that fact. I’ve had to do so recently.

Anyway, here are some tips for prioritizing that I’ve learned in the last few years. If you have any tips you’d like to share, please do!

  • Pad your deadlines. Doing this will give you a bit of wiggle room for emergencies. And, if you treat that fake deadline as the real one most of the time, clients will be delighted at your consistently delivering early.

  • If you’re outsourcing, pad even further! When you have to rely on anyone but yourself, you want some extra EXTRA wiggle room.

  • Overquote. Overquote on money and on time. Give yourself extra time and don’t bid too low.

  • Turn off distractions. Shut the office door, forward the phone to voicemail, etc. When you need to focus, don’t be tempted by email alerts or instant messaging applications. Focus on one thing at a time and the feelings of being overwhelmed will soon be diminished.

  • Find a proven tracking system. Whether it’s a note pad, task lists on Gmail, a big desk calendar, or a digital time management application, find something that works for you and use it consistently so you never miss a deadline.

  • Have a plan B. I’ve had some technology problems lately so I started keeping a small stockpile of offline work so that I could work if my ISP went down. I also invested in a Smart Phone so I can keep in touch with clients on the go. The phone also keeps me more relaxed when I’m away from the office for extended amounts of time. Beware you don’t stay plugged in to work 24/7, though. That’s something I’m working on…

  • Get up early when you’re swamped. (Something I struggle with but when I do it, I always say I should do it more often!) Often the best time to work on a difficult project is to do so before the rest of your house is up and before your clients are calling, IM’ing, or emailing.Why? Fewer distractions and more time in the day to hit that deadline. It’s often said that ‘morning people’ are more productive than nighthawks. Not sure if that’s true but I’m much more relaxed and productive starting work early in the morning to working until the wee hours when I’m under the gun.

  • Get the hardest and most important projects out of the way first. This was a valuable lesson I learned from a writing client who wrote career and life coaching books. It can be awful to feel dread about something that has to be done before you can go to sleep at night and worrying about it will slow you down all day long until the job gets done. Do the hard stuff first thing in the morning. Get it over with so you can move on with your day. If you do the most difficult and most vital things first, you avoid pitfalls of interruptions and being pulled in multiple directions later on in the day and you’ll feel accomplished earlier instead of later!

  • Make time for family. I don’t know about you but there are more family flare-ups around here when I’m overworked. As the peacemaker of the house, if I’m somewhat available and plugged in to the family instead of just my office, the house seems to buzz along more happily and that results in less stress for all of us. Have you had a day off lately? Have you spent time reading a story to your toddler or having a leisurely cup of tea on the porch with your spouse? Keep the home fires burning and work will probably be smoother sailing for you.

  • Speak your mind. If a client is being too demanding, push back a little. If a spouse’s help could make a big difference to you, ask for help proactively (if I ask when I’m calm, rather than wait until I’m on the verge of a meltdown, chances are I get better response anyway).

  • Say No. I’ve said “No” more often lately and it has served me well. Be selective about the writing jobs and personal favours you take on. It’s your business and your life so you need to stay in charge of it!

Sometimes you have to take a close look at your priorities and do some shifting around. I’ve had to do that lately and when I do take the time to make decisions and action plans and then stick to them, I work and feel much better.

Please share your words of prioritization wisdom with us!