There’s a great deal of freedom in working as a freelancer or sole contractor. Not only can you pick and choose your clients (that is, if there’s a great volume of work available), but you can sometimes set your own hours and plan how you prefer to work. Of course, that doesn’t mean you won’t have to work hard. In fact, those who plan to work on their own terms will usually have to be even more productive in doing so.
That’s where some of the assumptions about freelancing or working independently can be a little incomplete. There’s such a thing as too much flexibility as a freelancer, and it’s best not to fall into that. If you’re a “I’m productive when I feel like it” type of person (don’t worry, most people would prefer to work when they wanted to also), that can be a good way to seem unreliable or uncontactable at appropriate times
This is just one example. That’s why in this post, we’ll discuss a few measures to avoid over-flexibility as a freelancer, and potentially help you overcome those issues:
Set Contact Hours
Some clients might expect you to respond to emails at midnight or jump on a call on your day off. But the truth is, you’re still allowed to have set hours. In fact, you should! It not only helps you keep a routine, but it also sets expectations for your clients.
After all, if clients know you’re reachable between, say, 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., they’ll be less likely to bother you outside of those hours. In a way this means training your clients expectations, but also training yourself to adhere to certain timelines too. You’re not doing anyone any favors by being available 24/7 as burnout is real. So we’d recommend that you set your hours, stick to them, and make sure your clients know when they can (and can’t) reach you.
Register As A Limited Company
If you’re freelancing regularly, you might want to consider registering as a limited company. It’s not as scary as it sounds. By doing so, you separate your personal finances from your business, which can protect you if something goes wrong down the line.
Just make sure you register correctly, such as by using online assistance for EIN application to get your tax ID. You’ll also look more professional to clients, which might open up bigger opportunities should you be registered on the business listings.
Understand Your Sales Regulations
Freelancers often skip this part, sometimes out of innocence, but if you’re selling a service or product, you’ve got to know the regulations. This is especially true if you’re working internationally. Each country has its own rules about what you can sell, how you need to price things, and how taxes work.
It can be a bit overwhelming, but understanding these rules is key to staying out of trouble. Of course, nailing selling to your local market is important first. If you’re running a kitchen out of your home, for example, like selling homemade kimchi, then these premises will need to be inspected and you need a hygiene rating. That’s just one example.
Set Your Realistic Work Volume & Delivery Timeline
This is perhaps the most important advice you could ever hear: be honest with yourself about your capacity. It might help to sit down and figure out how long your usual tasks take. If designing a website takes you 20 hours, and you only have 40 hours in your workweek, that means you can’t realistically take on more than two big projects a week from different clients.
It’s also good to factor in a buffer for unexpected delays or emergencies, because they happen to even the biggest and most dependable firms. After all, life has a way of being more important than business. Giving yourself some breathing room will help you know that you’re not constantly scrambling to meet deadlines, which makes you more reliable in the long run. Clients love a freelancer who can deliver on time, every time, without excuses, and if that means asking for more time for a job well done, then that’s what it means.
Keep Your Branding Simple
Don’t go overboard with the branding despite all those decisions being entirely yours. Keep it simple. Your brand should reflect who you are and what you do with only a few little frills. If you’re a graphic designer, maybe you have a clean, visual website that showcases your portfolio. If you’re a copywriter, perhaps you let your writing speak for itself through your online presence and previous testimonials. Don’t think you need the flashiest UI. Just let your work speak for itself.
With this advice, we hope you can avoid over-flexibility even as a freelancer.
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