The life of a freelancer can be wonderful, but it can also be incredibly stressful. From managing your finances to being a one-person marketing, customer service, and admin department, it can feel like there’s no time to actually get work done. Don’t even get us started on having work/life balance and finding time for the things you love!
You chose this lifestyle for the freedom it promises, but if it feels like you’re constantly stuck between a rock and a hard place, this article is for you. Read on to discover five tips for taking the stress out of life as a freelancer.
Get Paid On Time, Every Time.
One of the biggest stresses when it comes to freelancing is keeping on top of whether all of your clients have paid their invoices. While it would be nice if everyone just paid up the moment you sent them the bill, that isn’t always the case. This doesn’t mean you’re doomed to be destitute. What it does mean is that invoice factoring may well become your new best friend. By leveraging your outstanding invoices each month, you can level out your cash flow and ensure you’re never caught short.
Outsource Your Marketing.
You can have the best product or service on the planet, but if your marketing isn’t effective, it isn’t going to sell. Rather than stressing about whether the collateral you’ve thrown together is going to have the desired effect, simply outsource it. Yes, collecting a team of copywriters, social media managers, and everyone else who keeps a marketing department flowing will add to your business expenses, but it can also greatly improve your profits.
Organize Your Financial Future.
You probably started freelancing so you can have more freedom now, but your future lifestyle is also important to consider. Concerns about the future are commonly noted by freelancers, so if you’re stressing, enlist a financial expert to get things set up and managed. This will give you peace of mind that you’re doing what you need to do to secure a stress-free future for yourself.
Location Is Everything.
Don’t want clients knowing your home address? Privacy is important, and you shouldn’t have to sacrifice it just because you decided to branch out on your own. Shared office spaces are a great way to separate your work life from your home life and add a professional edge to your client meetings.
Dealing With Staff.
If you’re managing staff or other freelancers under your business, a great way to help reduce the stress of keeping track of them all is to set yourself up with the best workforce management software. Although programs like this are usually utilized by larger enterprises, anyone who manages others in their business can greatly benefit from automating the process.
Prioritize Self-Care.
Finally, it’s important to prioritize self-care. When you’re freelancing, it can be easy to get sucked into working all the time and losing that precious freedom you branched out to get. Make sure you’re scheduling adequate breaks to look after yourself and do non-work things you enjoy. This is time well spent as you’ll find life far less stressful.
Running your own business isn’t easy, even if you only have yourself to manage. These tips have been designed to help streamline your business processes and take the stress out of life as a freelancer. Remember to breathe and just do your best – no-one expects perfection (except, perhaps, for you). As long as you give it your all, you can be proud of what you’ve built, no matter how stressful it may get.
