As a professional writer, finding the right freelance jobs online that can help you maintain your standard of living while giving you some flexibility in a busy schedule is key. There are a number of strategies you can use to keep yourself on task even when you have a full plate. Here are some ideas:
- Give yourself boundaries
This could mean a number of things, whether you choose to work a certain number of days, set professional hours or put other things that can quickly balloon out of control into focus. Limiting the amount of time you spend on email, social media and the Internet is a good place to start. You’d be surprised at the amount of time wasted just by surfing the news or forums when you could be putting in productive time.
- Give yourself time
When you’re always busy, it seems as if you don’t have enough time to do the little things. Don’t neglect yourself and work too hard. It causes you to lose focus and lose sleep, which will both have detrimental effects. Carving out time for yourself can also be hard to do, but you will thank yourself later. The mind needs a break from time to time, and you will learn to appreciate the break.
- Learn how to say NO.
That two-letter word is so difficult to say when you’re depending on certain streams of income, but when you take on too much, you won’t have enough time to recoup your losses because you’ll be too busy putting out fires.
- Set realistic goals
Everyone has goals, and you may have a few. Make sure that they are all measurable and can be reached within a certain timeframe, even if it’s later than what you originally established. Creating a personal strategic plan or vision board can help you see where you want to go, what you need to change, and whether or not your goals are in line.
- Automate Tasks
There are some things you can do to increase the amount of time you have in your schedule. Automating certain tasks is one of them. If you can use bill pay, this will alleviate you worrying about paying bills, because it’s already done. Setting reminders to ring throughout the day or week to keep you on schedule is also a good way to develop a personal check system that runs on auto-pilot.
- Don’t overdo it
You may write for a number of platforms. Distributing time among them all can be hectic. Creating a schedule to concentrate on a few at a time may be a better solution that keeps those eggs in your basket, but gives you much-needed time and flexibility.
Using these strategies will help you as a freelancer in both your personal and professional life. It’s easy to get bogged down when you’re an entrepreneur, but having some protocols in place to keep you in line is well worth the time and effort.
Writer Bio: Allaire W is a professional writer with a love for the written word and a sweet tooth that turned a hobby into a business. You can find her “cooking” up assignments while covered in cake batter.
