Up until now I’ve been lucky enough to have stayed really busy with work since I started freelancing in April. However, I was fully aware that eventually I would probably experience the dreaded quiet spell. That is where I find myself now – busy enough to keep ticking over but quieter than I have been so far and quieter than I am entirely comfortable with.
As it’s my first experience of the freelance quiet spell, I can’t really offer any advice to other freelancers on dealing with the situation. I’d welcome some from others though. However, there are some strategies I’m employing to avoid running out screaming for the jobs paper just yet.
Firstly, I am making a concerted effort to stay calm. I’m forcing myself to pause the panic because it’s hard to tell if the quiet spell is just a natural part of the ebb and flow of freelancing, or whether it’s due to the current financial Armageddon - you might have read about it once or twice in the paper. I know I have to be patient, which isn’t a virtue I am especially blessed with…But sit things out I must. After all, I could sign up with the nearest temping agency or spend time filling in application forms only for freelance work to look up again a week later.
I’m also focusing on the work that I do have. Things are quiet but I do have some work to keep me going and that is a positive. I also know that if I allow myself to start flapping, the ongoing work I do have could suffer.
Bizarrely, I think that now more than ever I have to manage my time effectively. You’d think time management was more important when things were busy. While it is important then, when things are quiet, like now, or looking like they might be, I am apt to spend all my time looking around for new work and it’s not fun or very productive – although you do find some weird and wonderful nooks and crannies of the internet when you’ve been googling about for three hours. I am setting limits on my work search activities to avoid internet trawling myself into a mania.
To make the most of my allotted time I am approaching finding new opportunities in a planned way. For example I am setting myself regular targets to work towards, such as contacting five potential clients per day or working up ten pitches per week. This makes me feel like I am actually getting somewhere, whereas a more scattergun approach would just leave me feeling stressed and directionless.
As part of this time management strategy I am also trying to allow myself to enjoy the breathing space that the slight pause in proceedings has afforded me. Since becoming a full-time freelance I have hardly had the opportunity for time off bar the odd day here and there. So, as long as I have done the self-set homework I mentioned above, I am making an effort to then enjoy the odd lie-in or afternoon film without feeling too guilty.
I’m making the most of new marketing and development opportunities too. I went speed networking last week and this weekend I am taking a course which I am hoping will provide me with some new tips, fresh ideas and renewed confidence that the work is out there.
The main things I am trying to do, though, are stay positive, look upon the situation as a challenge and keep my determination to continue freelancing intact. If I start to think the end is already nigh, things are liable to go from not that bad to considerably worse. So for now, I’m not giving up on freelancing because of my first dry spell. Who knows? The dreaded dry spell could end up leading me to new places and projects that I might never have pursued were I completely snowed under. Here’s hoping!
How do you cope with a freelancing dry spell? Do you have any tips on staying out of panic mode?
Feb 18, 2009
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