We freelancers cherish our flexibility. We enjoy sleeping as late as we want, packing up and going to the shore at a moment’s notice and working wherever our laptop takes us. This doesn’t always work in our favor, however. With flexibility comes a whole other assortment of issues, including people who don’t respect our time or job and the loss of ability to stay focused.
Though it sounds like an oxymoron, freelancers might consider having business hours. While this might make us a little less flexible, it has it’s benefits.
- People respect your time more: For some reason people don’t believe freelancers have real jobs. A lot of this is because we might not be keeping regular hours. We’re working on our gardens at 11:00, grocery shopping at 1:00 and ferrying kids around to activities throughout the day. No wonder friends and relatives think they can drop in for a cup of coffee every time. Setting daily business hours, even if it’s only a couple of hours each day, and enforcing those business hours will have folks more respectful of your time. Tell your loved ones you won’t answer personal calls or do any visiting during that time and they’re bound to give you your space.
- Helps us stay focused: When I lock myself in my office during my business hours, I’m not thinking about television or what’s in the fridge. I’m thinking about work. Having business hours increases my focus because I know once my time is up, I can go back to having fun again. Many freelancers who don’t have business hours jump up and down all day as they juggle family, errands and work. How can they keep focused when they have to continuously leave projects mid stream several times a day? Regular hours keep us on track.
- Clients aren’t calling or expecting work at all hours of the day and night: Do your clients call at dinner time? Do they want to make 7:00 p.m. conference calls? If they know you have business hours, they’re more likely to accommodate you. That isn’t to say you shouldn’t readjust your schedule occasionally for your client’s benefit, but if they know you work from 11:00 to 3:00 they’re more likely to keep your appointments to during that time.
- Separates family time from work time: You can freelance and still have your flexible family time. When you have regular business hours and your family knows it, they’re less likely to bug you while you’re working. Of course, for younger kids, this doesn’t always work, but even if you make your business hours when the kids are sleeping, you’re still being more productive.
- Allows us to get in the proper frame of mind: Having work hours puts us in the work frame of mind. Knowing your shopping will be done during shopping time, your family fun will happen during family time and that you have these three or five hours to devote solely to your work helps to separate us from all of our other obligations.
Business hours don’t have to be nine to five. I remember waking at 4:00 a.m. and working until 7:00 when my son was a baby. Many parents work during school hours and others prefer nights. Find the blocks of time that work best for you and stick to those same hours each day. You’ll find an amazing boost not only your productivity, but also to the way others view and respect your time.
I’m working in the middle of the kitchen right now trying to figure out how to block out the noise of the 3 year old’s tv show, the hubby washing dishes, the older boys asking questions ever minute and now the washing machine. Having a place where I could close the door and say “I’m at work” would be amazing.
Although I always would have heartily agreed with setting regular hours in the past, I was the worst daily offender of these principles. Since I was recently forced – by relatives who didn’t believe that writing could consist of real work – to develop and stick to a schedule, ignoring the goings on behind me with a set of headphones and some willpower, my productivity has shot through the roof. I can now finally say that I am a freelancer with a mission, and that mission progresses steadily each day. Thanks for the great post as always Deb!
I completely agree with your take on work hours, especially regarding family and friends respecting your time. I had to firmly establish a time for no personal or friendly phone calls. It says to the people who know me, “This is my business. In order to make money, I actually have to work.” Plus, it puts that idea in my own my mind as well, and gives me the drive to keep going. It gives credibility to my “jobless life” and makes me feel productive, not flustered and chaotic. Oh, and I also threatened to shave my youngest daughter’s head while she slept if she didn’t stop telling her friends to tell their parents they could just drop their kids off over here during the summer because, “My mama doesn’t have a job.”
I completely agree Deb. I’m new to full time freelancing and I have had to be really strict with visitors and phone calls during my working hours. It seems like as soon as people found out I was working from home they started dropping by, calling and trying to get me to make plans when they know I should be working. It has gotten better in the last few weeks since I have made it clear what my schedule is. Now I just need to figure out how to make it clear to my two dogs….
If you believe establishing firm business hours isn’t right for you, there is that old (and true) adage: give them an inch and they’ll take a foot. If you do not establish business hours (and stick to them), you’ll have clients calling you in the morning and in the evening. This despite knowing it is outside the standard 9-5 timeframe.
Many clients have this impression freelancing means you work sort of loosey-goosie hours and are at their beck-and-call. Establish hours. Get voice mail. Work, but also have a life.
Thank you very much for this blog post, Deb. When my son starts school next week, I plan to set my business hours between 9AM-2:30PM. My productivity has suffered during the summer because my work hours are all over the place.
thanks for this article. i was just thinking yesterday that i need to set up regular working hours every day. of course, with a 4 year old, a 1 year old and a 7 week old, it’s not that easy! i think i’ll start with naptime… =)
Good tips here. I’m currently in my office (a modified bedroom) with the door closed and wearing earplugs. I can still hear some of what’s going on with my husband and kids, but the earplugs help tremendously.
I totally agree with what you wrote here, Deb. I like items 2 and 4. Keeping regular work hours just helps me stay focused as a freelancer working for multiple projects on multiple freelancing sites. Also, it helps me separate work from play, specially that my home is my very work place. Nice sharing!
.-= Issa´s last blog ..Should You Outsource Your Social Media? =-.
I KNOW that you are right because when I manage to keep some regular hours and work in the same space I do so much better and get so much more done. Some days though, trying to convince my gypsy spirit that work hours are a good thing is more of a challenge than I am up for!
Danielle McGaw´s last [type] ..How Dare You Write for Peanuts