Smart freelancer: Ideas to keep you from burning out.

Being a smart freelancer is never a walk in the park. It calls for intricate, well researched and well written content that is presented in a way that will definitely attract readership.

You have to work hard on each blog post to ensure that you have high views at the end of the day.  This can be very energy draining and time-consuming if you do not do it right.

If you want to be a smart freelancer writer who is good at his or her work, then these tips will see you succeed.

Planning your day.

A good work day starts with a plan.

Write down your working hours and create a set of tasks to accomplish. You can save time over the course of week by planning for days in the office and days spent running errands and meeting with clients.

Assigning in-office and out-of-office tasks, you can save time and keep organized. Destruction is real, be realistic while setting out time.

As a smart freelancer, make simple and workable plans.

Being up to date.

Learning is the only way to adapt to any change. Never stop learning. Things are evolving pretty fast these days. Meaning you have to be at par as well.

Learn something new every day to improve your skills, be it in technology, design, products or services. Perfecting them should be your top priority.

There are plenty of free online resources that will help you such as blogs and tutorials. Attending to workshops or seminars can be an excellent opportunity to learn with experts and worth the investment.

Take a break.

Working at irregular hours with lots of pressure to meet deadlines is what a freelancer’s life is all about. This can be unhealthy and you could find yourself being a lone ranger.

Smart freelancers maintain an active social life which is good for their health and work as well. Freelancing is not a lonely business after all.

Go outside and breathe some fresh air. Do not be locked in your home-office all the time. Get time to exercise. Also, do not forget to start the day with a balanced breakfast to give you that energy and a good mood for the day.

Create time for family and friends. Take vacations, local tours can work as well. This will enhance your performance.

Connect with other freelancers.

Smart freelancers connect with those of their caliber.

This helps you share knowledge and ideas, learn new things or useful techniques. In essence, collaboration with fellow freelancers will help you grow your freelance businesses.

Talk of referrals; some freelancers can get you new projects, for example, when they get a new project from a client that falls outside their expertise or when they are too held up to accept it.

By making smart connections you can get an accountability partner who can help you check your progress and stick to your goals by discussing recent challenges and accomplishment.

Get it done.

Working from home and managing your own schedule sounds great but these flexible working hours give freelancers too many reasons to procrastinate, to push till tomorrow what they can do today.

The struggle with procrastination is one that can frustrate and discourage most freelancers.You need to be efficient and work wisely in order to accomplish more.

Set a timer for 15 or 30 minutes and challenge yourself to finish a certain assignment.

Self-discipline comes in handy here. You will be surprised how much you can get done when you give yourself a specific time frame.

It’ll be easier to focus on that particular task by removing unnecessary distractions. If you are unable to finish a task within your set time frame, it’s okay to add a little more time. But make sure you don’t move away from this task until it is complete.

Build a reputation.

People have to associate you with something positive.  You therefore have to work hard to earn a good reputation.

Start with social networks, forums or your personal blog. Join in the conversation, be engaged and add value to your industry.

Think of yourself as a mentor and try to help people who are starting in your field. Something like creating a course or writing e-books can be good ideas.

I am a chief believer in the mantra that the only way to get what we want in life is to
Always have an opinion and bring new inputs.

Managing expenses.

As a smart freelancer, you need to know your finances daily. You must have a record of your cash inflows and outflows all times.

This includes filing invoices, keeping track of receipts and expenses and paying any dues or bills that accrue along the way.

Separate your freelance finances from personal accounts for ease of review. Keeping track of the financials can be difficult for some freelancers, especially those in more creative fields.

Don’t blow away all the money you get from freelancing. Put aside some, to invest and market your content if you want to grow.

Track your time.

Time is an invaluable resource, to smart freelancers. How much time are you spending on your freelance business versus other elements vying for your attention?

You might be surprised at the results if you happen to account for all the time you have spent. Many freelancers get caught up in social media, personal issues, even chores when they work from home.

By physically tracking the time spent on work projects you can better determine how much time you are actually working.

There are several time tracking apps for freelancers which you can use to help in this.

You can then wisely tell how much you giving towards the work and get to fix the time wasted.

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