Main Career and Side Hustle
I want to address the myth that all freelancers or entrepreneurs hate their day job. All too often when I read about freelancing, side hustling, and entrepreneurship, the content is about how to plan your exist strategy from your day job. Not all side hustles are born from lack of job satisfaction. What about those side hustlers that are simply looking to turn a profit from their passion while keeping their rewarding career? Here are a few tips to thrive at work while building your freelance business:
Free time is Freelance time. Yes there are going to be sacrifices: happy hour, tv time, maybe even sleep or exercise time depending on the deadline or assignment. Building out a schedule and mapping the work is important to achieve all of the things you want in a day. I read this book called Writer with a Day Job. In the book the author and writing coach Aine Greaney shares all of the times one has to write: lunch time, on the commute to work, even under the hair dryer. I am a big believer that you have time to do whatever it is you choose to do. When people ask me how I found time to read 112 books in a year, my answer was simple. I found the time because completing the challenge was important to me. I was always prepared to read. Now I have my computer or iPad or iPhone wth me all the time and I’m always prepared to write when I have free time. I prepared the notes for this podcast at 7am in the morning, after my 6am run and I have to be to work at 9am today. We all have 24 hours in a day. 8-10 of those hours (on average) belong to you employer. NO employer is going to understand why you are freelancing on their dime .Trust me, you have plenty of time before and after work to handle your own business. Which brings me to the topic of productivity.
Finding and sticking to the workflow that is best for you. I am obsessed with workflow and productivity tools. Whenever people start talking about big ideas or a vision, I go straight to the “how” something is going to get accomplished. I love reading about and listening to podcasts on the subject of productivity. Right now, my favorite method is the “Getting Things Done Method” by. and I use Omni Focus which is a productivity software usable across Mac, iOS, and Apple Watch. I set the tasks of my life in there: work, freelance work, school work, workouts, everything in that app. In that app, I can also set times for when things are due. I have learned to set proper expectations for clients regarding deadlines and when I can respond to emails and such that are freelance related. Since I am a student, its also important that I maximize time in between semesters. I set up work and projects the will hopefully be profitable and ongoing when I resume school for the summer semester. I go “fishing” in between semesters.
Kill. It. At. Work. I can not stress this enough. A professional, high performer is something every leader wants on their team. If you are underperforming at work, the jig is up. I’ve worked places I hated (banking) and places I loved. My passion totally shows in my work. I go hard all the time. I can say with confidence there is not a single boss I’ve had that would not give me glowing reviews for my work ethic and focus at work. I’m proud of that reputation and I want to keep it.
This week is Small Business Week. Visit sba.gov for resources as well as national/state/local events.
