Even the most seasoned and skilled freelancer can sometimes get stuck in a rut, whether creatively, a lack of focus or direction, or simply feeling stuck on a hamster wheel doing the same thing, working diligently but not seeing any real meaningful progress.
Here are 6 ways to help you get out of a freelance rut.
Take a break
If you are a freelancer in a creative rut and the ideas just aren’t flowing, one of the best things you can do is take a break.
It can simply be to leave your desk and go on a nice walk, take a nap, or even shower (all the best ideas seem to come to us while we’re in the shower!).
Alternatively, consider a longer break away, such as a vacation, weekend break, or pamper day. Anything to restore the mind and allow you to chillax and recuperate.
This sounds counter-intuitive, but a break away (no matter how long or short) can help to refresh your mind and allow your super-powerful subconscious mind to do the problem-solving and heavy lifting.
Remember your purpose
Remember why you went freelance in the first place and the deep-seated reason why you wanted to work for yourself.
It may be that you were passionate about your craft and wanted to use your skills to help others and, in return, create a life of abundance for you and your loved ones.
Refocusing on why we are following a course of action can help us realign and get inspired once more. We can even uncover other routes we may want to explore to make our freelance business a resounding success.
There are no rules saying you cannot refresh your path or even pivot. Your business, your rules.
Review your prices
Now that you have gained more experience, it might be time to review your prices. It can be easy to be afraid of increasing your prices or worry that you’ll lose clients.
However, if, for whatever reason, you are not charging appropriately, you could find yourself disincentivized, feeling overworked or even resentful. All of these things will likely impact on the outcome and finished product.
It’s much better to feel positive and know you are getting fair pay for your work. Then, you can do your best for your client, and everyone will be happy.
Get inspired
One good way to get back into the buzz again is to surround yourself with other supportive freelancers who’ve likely been or are going through the same thing.
Talking through your issues with other like-minded folk can help and lead to exciting conversations and ideas. It can genuinely help you get excited about things again!
In addition to the people you surround yourself with, think about what you consume online and offline. Reading something inspirational or journaling can both be ways to generate ideas, get back into a positive and productive mindset, and put things back into perspective.
If you are a bit down in the doldrums think about past wins and remind yourself of the glowing client testimonials you’ve received – read through them.
You’ve done it before; you can do it again.
Get specific and visualize
If you are struggling with a lack of focus, consider getting super specific on your goals—you could even niche down further. This will provide you with a laser-sharp focus on exactly what you do and for whom.
Think about the type of client you enjoy working with, what you are best at and how you can best service that client and industry. You can look at past client experiences or take time to research what’s happening in the market. Is there a gap that you could fill? What exciting opportunities lay ahead?
Getting specific with your goals and visualizing the outcomes can be an extremely potent way to break out of a freelance rut.
Automate business processes
It could be that you are overwhelmed with tedious admin tasks that take up a lot of your time and prevent you from doing the work you love (and make you a profit). If this is the case, it makes sense to outsource and automate as much of it as possible.
There are many online tools available that can help you automate business processes and set up effective workflows.
When it comes to invoicing, Invoice Ninja is a leading free invoicing software for small business invoicing, online payments, tracking expenses and billable tasks. It also includes attractive, professional invoice template designs you can customize with your logo and brand colors.
What’s more, Invoice Ninja lets you connect to thousands of apps via our platform integrators, such as Zapier, Make, Pabbly and more – further speeding up your workflows.
Take a look at some of them here.
And try Invoice Ninja for free at the link here.
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At the end of the day, remember you are not the first or the last freelancer to feel like they are stuck in a rut. It can be a normal path to growth. The key is recognizing that you are in a rut and then taking positive action.
You’ve got this!
