10 Reasons Freelancers Need to Take a Break Once in a While
August 28, 2009 by Deb Ng
Filed under Work/Life Balance
Note: This post is a blatant rip off. I’ve been spending a little time at Men with Pens, reading about James Chartrand’s vacation. It prompted me to write a bit about my own time off.
This summer, for the first time since I was 15 years old, I took the summer off. Sure, I blogged for FWJ a bit and worked on some personal projects, but I didn’t take on any client work at all. I wasn’t planning a vacation. I simply wanted to downsize for the summer. So I spent my mornings working on my projects and the afternoons swimming, opening juice boxes and snack packages for a bunch of 7 year olds, and simply enjoying my family, friends and the season. I realize not every freelancer can blow off work for the summer, but even a couple of days make a difference.
Unless you’re one of our Aussie friends, summer time is over. However, if you can arrange to take at least a little time off next summer, I highly recommend you do so. I realize freelancers are supposed to be flexible, but most of us are so busy working or finding work we don’t have time for beach days and picnics. Here’s why I think it’s important to vacate, if only for a week or so.
10 Reasons Freelancers Need to Take a Break Once in a While
- Recharge: My vacation allowed me to take a break and rejuvenate. I was stress free for the first time in 30 years. I didn’t have any deadlines or have to worry about being home to take a phone call. I could step away from my desk for a few hours without worrying about whether or not a client or “boss” will be upset with me for my absence.
- Remember What’s Important: Yes. Making money is very important, especially if we don’t want to dumpster dive for sustenance. However, spending every afternoon in the pool with my son reminded me of something even more important than money. How many of us work at home to spend time with our kids, but spend more time hunched over our laptops than playing Monopoly?
- Personal Projects: This was the summer of personal projects. I jumpstarted FWJ and really worked on building up traffic and revenue. I also worked on my next ebook, have a great project coming up with my friend David Peralty, and even put a plan in motion for a premium service for FWJ. I couldn’t work hard on any of this stuff with a full time client load.
- Get into Shape: I’ve especially been working on getting the junk out of my trunk. It’s happening slowly but I’m working out and eating right and it feels real good. It’s time to step away from the roly chairs, people. Take a the dog for a walk or enroll in a spinning class. Maybe it’ll take 30 minutes or 60 minutes out of your day but you’re no good to anyone when you’re unhealthy.
- Enjoy the Weather: About ten years ago, when I worked in the accounting department of an upscale retail chain, I remember staring out the window on a beautiful summer day. I told myself if I was ever in a position to not have to go into an office every day, I’d enjoy every bit of every beautiful day. Well, freelancing kept me inside too. Not this year though. I really did stop and smell the roses.
- Enjoy People: Instead of telling friends and family I was busy, I enjoyed my time with them. If I bumped into a neighbor at the supermarket I didn’t rush off saying I had to get back to work. I went out to dinner with friends and enjoyed family picnics. The old sociable Deb came back in full force and workaholic Deb gladly hung out on the back burner.
- Reassessed my Situation. With FWJ finally turning a profit, did I really need to work for gigs I didn’t enjoy? I got rid of the stuff I wasn’t feeling.
- Do Something Absolutely Frivolous: I got a manicure, something I rarely do because I can’t justify spending the money. I also did a little shopping, something I never do because I never really need anything for me. I didn’t go overboard, but just enough to feel special.
- New Ideas: All of this time spent away from other peoples projects, allowed me to focus on my own. I have so many new ideas. Not just for FWJ but for many different projects. Stepping back allowed those creative juices to start flowing again.
- Make it About You for Once: Freelance writers spend all their time catering to others. If we’re not trying our hardest to please clients, we’re working at pleasing our families. Sometimes we need to make it about us. If there’s one thing I learned this summer, it’s that I’m not selfish for wanting to do a few things for me.
I don’t know if I’ll be able to take every summer off. I do know this, though. Whether it’s two days, two weeks or two months, it’s important to step away for a few days to remind ourselves what’s important.
I can truly relate to this article. I am fairly new to freelancing and I’ve been spending the past four months building everything up. I’m at the point now where I’m earning a pretty decent amount and I realized the other day that my writing seemed mechanical and uninspiring. I decided I needed a break after getting two DS articles rejected over reasons I should have picked up on. While I’m not taking too much time off, I am going to step away from the computer for the next couple of days. My boyfriend and I are also planning a winter vacation for just the reasons you stated.
Thank for all the articles on this sight. I realize I am doing really well because of all the great advice posted here.
I’m so pleased has been so helpful, Kelly. Sometimes we’re so busy working we don’t realize we’re also burning out. Even two days off can make a big difference.
I did the very same this summer and I have loved every minute of it. My children are only 6 and 3 so spending the entire summer with them was amazing. School starts back this Tuesday and while I am looking forward to getting back into a routine I think I will also miss all the fun and games we played too. I had forgotten how much fun it was to actually sit down and play with your children, getting you hands dirty in the mud, pretending to be a princess, or even a fireman. It really does take years off you. I also got to take some time to reassess my own website and blog too. I have now decided that I am down scaling on client work too. I plan on working only during the hours that my children are in school and if necessary an hour when they are in bed.
I definitely recommend that all freelancers especially those with small children take some time out every once in a while to truly enjoy the reality of getting to stay a home with your children.
Amanda
I had the best summer in years. We swam, we hiked, we took in a couple of movies, played games and read to each other. More than that though, I really just needed time off from clients. I refueled, regrouped and remembered what was important. Kudos to you for doing the same!
In May, a friend who had been after me for years to accompany him to Japan called up on a Thursday night and said “I have next week off – let’s go to Tokyo.” I thought long and hard about it, and I came to the realization that one of the reasons I chose to become a freelance writer was so I would have the freedom to live my life on my own terms. It was time to put that to the test. I got on the plane Saturday and spent 8 days in Tokyo, having an amazing time and keeping up with my current workload, which was fairly light for that week.
While I was able to work during the trip, I certainly didn’t obsess about it, and everything went very well in terms of keeping up. It helped to show me that I could embrace freedom responsibly while still taking care of my clients and maintaining my career.
Exactly one year before I had received a similar travel offer and turned it down because the timing wasn’t right. I was glad that this time I was brave enough to trust myself and embrace the adventure.
Rock on, Benjamin. Our flexibility gives us the ability to take time off as needed. Rather than being afraid of losing work, we should be more afraid of losing our family, friends and even our sanity.