Freelancer tips, time management is one of the most important skills you can develop as a freelancer. If you can’t manage your time, you’ll never be able to do everything that needs to be done. But every freelancer knows that time management is a challenge. You don’t have the benefit of someone else setting parameters for you, and there are so many distractions – from phone calls to household noise, like the neighbour’s dog barking while you’re trying to concentrate.
It doesn’t matter if you’re a business owner or just doing freelance work on the side, managing your time is one of the most important skills you can develop. Without time management skills, your productivity will suffer, and you’ll scratch your head at the end of the day and wonder why you didn’t get more done. Let’s look at some ways to better manage your time as a freelancer, and why it’s so important.
Prioritize Effectively
Freelancer tips first step toward being productive is knowing what you need to do and why. If you don’t know where to start, ask yourself these four questions:
What’s my most important task?
Which tasks will have the biggest impact?
What tasks make me feel most excited about working?
What can I do right now?
Once you’ve answered these questions, break down your list into actionable items with due dates or deadlines attached. Then prioritize each item in order of importance (from high priority to low priority). Finally, set aside time every day — even if it’s just 30 minutes — to work on your top priority task until it’s done (or at least 90% complete).
Set realistic deadlines and expectations. Another challenge many freelancers face is setting realistic deadlines for themselves and their clients alike. Setting unrealistic deadlines will only lead to stress and disappointment when things don’t get done on time — or worse yet — at all! Instead of setting unrealistic deadlines, think about what’s realistic given your current workload, and then plan accordingly.
Create a Schedule
If you’re like most people, your day is full of meetings and appointments.
But what about when you’re not meeting with clients or colleagues?
How do you organize your time?
The best way to stay on track is to set up a schedule. Even if you work from home, it’s important to have a schedule so you know when it’s time to stop working and start playing. Set aside specific times for lunch and dinner, as well as mornings and afternoons. Keep track of how much time each task takes, so you know how long everything will take, and can adjust accordingly if something changes. You’ll feel more productive if you make these periods sacred — don’t allow yourself to be interrupted during them. And when those times are over, leave work behind and enjoy yourself.
Schedule Time for Administrative Tasks
Schedule time for administrative tasks (everything that’s not billable work), or it can quickly grow out of control. This includes emails, phone calls, meetings with clients, updating your website or blog with new content, researching new ideas or strategies to help boost your business, preparing invoices or contracts to send out (or any other type of paperwork), etc. Admin isn’t something most people want to spend time on, because it doesn’t directly lead to generating income. However, if you don’t put it on your schedule, there’ll never be enough hours left over at the end of each week. So have a schedule for getting through all those little tasks before they pile up!
Use Accountability Tools to Boost Your Productivity
Freelancer tips use tools that help you manage your time. There are various productivity and time management tools and apps to help you better structure your time and hold yourself accountable. Accountability tools like Rescue Time and Monday can help you track how much time you spend on different projects. When you’re working on a project, set a timer and make sure it’s visible on your computer screen or phone, so it acts as a reminder to stay focused on the task at hand.
If you’re not sure whether you should be working on something, ask yourself if it’s important enough to justify the time spent on it. If not, stop working on it and get back to work on something more important first!
Freelancer Tips Be Proactive about Distractions
One of the biggest challenges of freelancing is staying focused on what needs to be done, instead of getting distracted by other things.
It’s so easy to get distracted when you work from home, especially if you have kids or pets around.
First, set up a workspace where you can focus without interruptions. This may be in your bedroom or office room, or even somewhere else in the house, away from everyone else’s eyes and ears. Set up your office space so it’s conducive to working and not socializing. Make sure your desk has enough room for all your stuff, and keep your chair ergonomically friendly. If possible, set up a standing desk so you can change positions throughout the day.
The next step in managing your time better is to determine what activities are wasting your time and find ways to avoid them or cut back on them.
For example, if social media sites are a big distraction for you, unplugging yourself from them may help you focus more effectively on work tasks. Make a list of each time waster and think about an appropriate solution. Keep a detailed record of how you spend your day and work on refining it and finding solutions for wasted blocks of time.
Schedule Breaks (You Need Them)
Taking breaks is important for your mental health and ability to focus. It can help reduce stress, improve your overall health, and make you feel more creative. You might think that taking breaks from work is a waste of time, but it’s crucial for staying productive over the long term. It’s easy to fall into the trap of working 24/7 because you’re afraid that if you stop working now, someone else will step in and take your clients away!
But this fear is unfounded, once you’ve set up a routine with regular client meetings and email responses, there’s no reason why other freelancers can’t take over while you’re on
vacation or lunch break.
Freelancer Tips – Avoid Multitasking
If you haven’t heard it before, here it is again: multitasking is a myth. It’s impossible to do two things simultaneously. What people call “multitasking” is actually quickly
switching attention from one task to another, which uses more of your
limited brainpower than focusing on just one thing at a time.
Multitasking can also be a way to procrastinate or avoid important tasks
a sure sign that something isn’t right with how you’re managing your time.
Focus on one task at a time and devote all your mental and physical energy to it. You’ll get better results!
Freelancer tips Conclusion
Time management is important if you want to be successful working as a freelancer. Because there’s no one telling you what to do, it’s up to you to figure out how
to manage your time–and that means making sure every minute counts.
With these seven time management tips, you can achieve a work-life balance
that suits your needs and priorities and get more done.