Well, summer’s officially here. In our area, most kids are out of school. The neighborhood pools are open. And is seems like everyone’s on vacation or mentally checked out.
For many freelancers, summers can be tough. With so many clients on vacation, projects often get put on hold. Tracking down prospects can be tough. And it seems like no one wants to make a decision because “Pam is out for two weeks, and once she gets back it will take her another 2 weeks to catch up!”
So, what’s a freelancer to do with the idle time? Here are 8 ideas to consider as we enter the dog days of summer.
#1: Clean your office. Throw away old files, purge old magazines and newsletters, reorganize desk drawers and clean up your email inbox. Don’t know about you, but my office is a disaster right now. Getting it organized has become a top priority.
#2: Catch up on your reading. If you love to read as much as I do, you probably struggle with too many books and not enough time to read them. If your workload is a bit light right now, use the extra time to catch up on your reading.
#3: Re-evaluate your technology. How’s your computer holding up? Do some of your software applications need updating? Now is a great time to install and learn new software or migrate to a new system.
#4: Strategic planning. With 2009 nearly halfway over (can you believe it?!), this is a good time to evaluate your progress toward the goals you set back in January. Which goals need further attention? If you’re behind on some of them, draft a realistic (but aggressive) action plan for the next 6 months.
#5: Create an information product. If you’ve been thinking about putting together an e-book, audio product or other information product, now is the time to get it done. I created my first e-book over a 3-week period last year when workload was light.
#6: Meet friends and colleagues for lunch. This is a wonderful time to reconnect with people you haven’t talked to in awhile. Call your friends and colleagues. Meet them for lunch or coffee. Share ideas, insights and plans.
#7: Volunteer your time. The economic downturn has had a dramatic impact on charitable and religious organizations. Donations are way down while the needs of many have increased sharply. So, if you find yourself with idle time, why not do some volunteering? Sure, a cash donation is always welcome, but your time and talents are just as (if not more) important.
#8: Spend undivided time with your family. Make it a point to spend more time with your kids, spouse and loved ones. Go on a family vacation. Head out to the pool, the beach, the park. Take the kids fishing. Work on some puzzles. Relax. Turn off the TV (yes, it actually has an “Off” button) and have a few sit-down dinners as a family. Show them how much you love and care for them.
View your spare time this summer as a gift. Use it wisely. If you’re doing the right things, you’ll soon be busy again…and you’ll wish you would have used that time better.
What about you? What are you planning to do with some of your idle time this summer?
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Ed Gandia is the co-editor of The Wealthy Freelancer and author of the popular report “7 Steps to Landing More Lucrative Freelance Projects.” You can get a free copy (a $29 value) by subscribing to his biweekly newsletter, The Profitable Freelancer at www.TheProfitableFreelancer.com.
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
I also plan to keep developing business and developing how I develop business!
Lots of good tips there Ed, thanks. I’m planning on creating my first e-book this summer and starting work on a website project that will hopefully become another income stream. Oh, yes, almost forgot – and take an actual vacation out of the house!
I plan on planning. But it’s also such a wonderful time of the year to be out on the bike, sleeping nights outside, reading what you didn’t get read and hanging out with friends. I still want to get more in the day than is possible.
@Marie-Claude: That’s great news! Glad you mentioned your other website project, because my point was really about creating other income-generating projects, not necessarily creating an e-book. Vacation out of the house? What a novel idea! I’m dying to do the same. Waiting for my wife to confirm some dates so I can begin planning a REAL vacation (you know, the type where you’re not more tired when you get back than you were going in). Have a great summer!
@Sharon: Man, bike rides in the early AM sound great about now! We’ve been having such nice weather over here. Looking to buy a bike this month. Haven’t had one in 15 years! Here’s another one for your list: concerts in the park with a nice light meal and a bottle of chilled New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Yummy! Doing that tomorrow night. Enjoy your summer!
Sharon — you’ll be sleeping outside? You mean like camping out in the backyard? Cool. I’d like to do that with my little guy this summer. (He’s almost 3!)
Me… I’ll be getting up earlier so I can finish an hour earlier each day and enjoy some sunshine and outdoor fun with my family. Im also planning a targeted direct mail campaign of my own, and I’m writing a book! Gonna be busy, but fun.
Thanks for sharing your summer plans!
This is the first summer in probably the last 4 years that my summer hasn’t been slammed. My business is typically slow around the holidays and into early February and as the year rolled on I became more and more busy right into summer. This busy period extended right up to the end of the year. Usually when the holidays hit I was ready to take time off and therefore did not really accomplish much during my slow time.
This summer I am taking time to enjoy the family, develop a new line of information products and build up my marketing materials as well as doing some more reading. I also managed to squeeze my first vacation in already last week, hopefully get at least one more in before the end of the summer.
Thanks for the great suggestions. I think another great thing to focus on during downtime is marketing. Maybe try something new while you have the time – speaking at local events, creating a newsletter, participating in online forums, or even some targeted advertising.
Traci – That’s a good point. Most of us resort to the same marketing tactics year after year. It’s worth taking a risk every once in a while and trying something new. It could make all the difference in your income this year.
My only suggestion would be to make sure there’s solid reasoning behind the decision. For instance, advertising in a local creative directory just because many other freelancers are doing it is not a great reason for making that investment. Neither is unfocused direct mail, speaking to a group that’s not rich with prospects, or spending hours on Facebook without a plan.