This is interesting. I think (having worked freelance in some capacity for 25 years now) that the most important thing is to listen to your mind and body and learn their rhythms. I have realised that the winter months and the summer months are both necessarily slower and less productive for me than spring and autumn, for example. In winter, the short days and the dark make me want to huddle at home and I find it harder to do any work (or other activities, actually) in those months that requires me to interact a lot with other people. In spring and autumn I get huge waves of energy and fit in more walking, more socialising and work that includes interaction, and usually can happily fit in many more hours.
Another thing I find useful is combining habits. So, if I want to send out emails to art directors, if I tell myself to do so just before I stop for lunch, or when I come back to my desk from lunch before getting on with the afternoon's main tasks, I'll be more likely to do it. Or, if there are tasks I can do from my iPad/phone, squeezing in one or two after doing my morning Duolingo lessons - such as uploading recent work to my portfolio or a stock site; responding to some Substack or social media comments, etc.
And the thing I do almost always is use a (Dodo Blank Pad) notebook and plan. I tend to plan on Sunday evening or Monday morning for what's coming up in the week and what I'd like to get done and what I have to get done. Depending on what variety of jobs I have on, and there are usually multiple, I'll create boxes for different projects and then other areas, like art business admin, portfolio building, outreach, family, household tasks. And I'll put estimated hours/minutes next to each thing, as well as any deadlines (usually in different colours). And then I'll plan at the start of every day. Usually, I'll aim for a handful of quick tasks that can be easily ticked off (booking an appointment, sending out an invoice, replying to an email) and then 2-4 blocks of focused time. This, again, depends on what I'm working on - some projects lend themselves to a few quick sprints (this could be typesetting a certain number of PowerPoint slides, drawing 5 quick spot illustration, checking and updating a tracker) and others need a steady few hours to get deep into something (this could be editing tasks, sketches or project-setup deep thinking). And I almost always include a couple of tasks that it would be good to do but don't have to be done that day. If there are things left at the end of the day, they usually get an arrow added to them before I leave the desk pointing to the next day. Then they're likely to go to the start of the list the day after - not always, though.
I have tried a variety of ways to organised myself, including multiple different apps and I always, always, come back to this paper-based one (I do also have multiple spreadsheets to track individual projects and overall schedules when we have a bunch of work going on) and I have a drawer full of old full notepads that I should really recycle but I actually kind of love looking back at them. They are usually full of doodles, but also a wide variety of notes about all sorts of things. Not quite as interesting as reading back over a diary, but still interesting.
Thank you for writing such an in-depth comment Tasha! It is absolutely about learning your rhythms and being comfortable with what you find too! Everyone has different times of the year they find inspiring or motivating, Spring and Autumn are mine too! This time of year, I am very much in survival mode!
Interesting you mention about sending emails and doing it before lunch or other key times of the day. I wrote an article called "Why does it become so serious?" back in May about a very similar thing. I have to do the mundane tasks first in my day, or they won't get done.
Yes! Friday afternoons are my designated planning time for the following week, I write in my diary, I schedule things in Trello and it really helps come Monday morning. Don't feel you have to get rid of them, if they bring you reflection and can still spark ideas then keep them.
This post was so interesting. I used to work as an Executive Assistants for Chief Executives and you’d be up there when it comes to organisation! So many useful tips.
The thing I loved to read about and resonated with was 1. Paper and pen for list making and notes. I do love filing systems and use notes on my phone regularly. But I will never abandon a notebook and pen. And 2. Seasonal living.
Which is why I was never going to get on in the corporate world and ultimately burn out. So many of us are trying to make ourselves live out of sync with nature and it’s harming us. And it doesn’t have to be complicated either. I use to think I had to know about the Turning of the Wheel before I could connect with it; but what I’ve come to understand, is that is less about knowing through books and more about remembering through the body.
I am so pleased you found it interesting Louise, and Tasha added some great tips too! I think the key is becoming comfortable with the fact that not everyone can, or wants, to work in the way corporate jobs make us.
Yes, society is all about productivity and speed and money and our bodies often can't deal with it. It's taken me decades (and I'm probably still not fully there) to understand what works for my body and mind. I really hope my kids get there a lot earlier.
These are great tips Abby! I find a fake commute really helps. I go for a walk every morning so that I’ve left home and arrived at work even though they’re the same location!
I like to hear that I'm not the only one to start work at 10am(ish)!! Like you I also tried to get into an earlier rhythm, but it didn't work for me. I finally decided to stop my guilt streak and to follow my own rhythm. I now set my alarm at 8am, make a cup of tea and take time for myself until 10am. This usually involves snuggling in bed, having breakfast in bed or watching a series in bed (or in the sofa, under a blanket). I then deal with all of my admin (emails, finances, contracts, invoices, website updates, etc), have a small lunch, and finally start creative work until 5pm. The pleasures of being self-employed!
Yes!! You are not alone in that rhythm. Exactly that, being self-employed means we can do things in our own time, and in a way that suits us. Not the other way round. I battled for a long time doing what I thought I should be doing, starting at the times others were and it just made me so miserable and so unproductive because, physically and mentally, I just wasn’t able to do much.
This is interesting. I think (having worked freelance in some capacity for 25 years now) that the most important thing is to listen to your mind and body and learn their rhythms. I have realised that the winter months and the summer months are both necessarily slower and less productive for me than spring and autumn, for example. In winter, the short days and the dark make me want to huddle at home and I find it harder to do any work (or other activities, actually) in those months that requires me to interact a lot with other people. In spring and autumn I get huge waves of energy and fit in more walking, more socialising and work that includes interaction, and usually can happily fit in many more hours.
Another thing I find useful is combining habits. So, if I want to send out emails to art directors, if I tell myself to do so just before I stop for lunch, or when I come back to my desk from lunch before getting on with the afternoon's main tasks, I'll be more likely to do it. Or, if there are tasks I can do from my iPad/phone, squeezing in one or two after doing my morning Duolingo lessons - such as uploading recent work to my portfolio or a stock site; responding to some Substack or social media comments, etc.
And the thing I do almost always is use a (Dodo Blank Pad) notebook and plan. I tend to plan on Sunday evening or Monday morning for what's coming up in the week and what I'd like to get done and what I have to get done. Depending on what variety of jobs I have on, and there are usually multiple, I'll create boxes for different projects and then other areas, like art business admin, portfolio building, outreach, family, household tasks. And I'll put estimated hours/minutes next to each thing, as well as any deadlines (usually in different colours). And then I'll plan at the start of every day. Usually, I'll aim for a handful of quick tasks that can be easily ticked off (booking an appointment, sending out an invoice, replying to an email) and then 2-4 blocks of focused time. This, again, depends on what I'm working on - some projects lend themselves to a few quick sprints (this could be typesetting a certain number of PowerPoint slides, drawing 5 quick spot illustration, checking and updating a tracker) and others need a steady few hours to get deep into something (this could be editing tasks, sketches or project-setup deep thinking). And I almost always include a couple of tasks that it would be good to do but don't have to be done that day. If there are things left at the end of the day, they usually get an arrow added to them before I leave the desk pointing to the next day. Then they're likely to go to the start of the list the day after - not always, though.
I have tried a variety of ways to organised myself, including multiple different apps and I always, always, come back to this paper-based one (I do also have multiple spreadsheets to track individual projects and overall schedules when we have a bunch of work going on) and I have a drawer full of old full notepads that I should really recycle but I actually kind of love looking back at them. They are usually full of doodles, but also a wide variety of notes about all sorts of things. Not quite as interesting as reading back over a diary, but still interesting.
Thank you for writing such an in-depth comment Tasha! It is absolutely about learning your rhythms and being comfortable with what you find too! Everyone has different times of the year they find inspiring or motivating, Spring and Autumn are mine too! This time of year, I am very much in survival mode!
Interesting you mention about sending emails and doing it before lunch or other key times of the day. I wrote an article called "Why does it become so serious?" back in May about a very similar thing. I have to do the mundane tasks first in my day, or they won't get done.
Yes! Friday afternoons are my designated planning time for the following week, I write in my diary, I schedule things in Trello and it really helps come Monday morning. Don't feel you have to get rid of them, if they bring you reflection and can still spark ideas then keep them.
This post was so interesting. I used to work as an Executive Assistants for Chief Executives and you’d be up there when it comes to organisation! So many useful tips.
The thing I loved to read about and resonated with was 1. Paper and pen for list making and notes. I do love filing systems and use notes on my phone regularly. But I will never abandon a notebook and pen. And 2. Seasonal living.
Which is why I was never going to get on in the corporate world and ultimately burn out. So many of us are trying to make ourselves live out of sync with nature and it’s harming us. And it doesn’t have to be complicated either. I use to think I had to know about the Turning of the Wheel before I could connect with it; but what I’ve come to understand, is that is less about knowing through books and more about remembering through the body.
I am so pleased you found it interesting Louise, and Tasha added some great tips too! I think the key is becoming comfortable with the fact that not everyone can, or wants, to work in the way corporate jobs make us.
Yes, society is all about productivity and speed and money and our bodies often can't deal with it. It's taken me decades (and I'm probably still not fully there) to understand what works for my body and mind. I really hope my kids get there a lot earlier.
These are great tips Abby! I find a fake commute really helps. I go for a walk every morning so that I’ve left home and arrived at work even though they’re the same location!
Thanks Nanette! Nothing groundbreaking but reminders are always useful! I am including myself in that 😆
That is such a good idea! Even if you walk around the block!
I like to hear that I'm not the only one to start work at 10am(ish)!! Like you I also tried to get into an earlier rhythm, but it didn't work for me. I finally decided to stop my guilt streak and to follow my own rhythm. I now set my alarm at 8am, make a cup of tea and take time for myself until 10am. This usually involves snuggling in bed, having breakfast in bed or watching a series in bed (or in the sofa, under a blanket). I then deal with all of my admin (emails, finances, contracts, invoices, website updates, etc), have a small lunch, and finally start creative work until 5pm. The pleasures of being self-employed!
Yes!! You are not alone in that rhythm. Exactly that, being self-employed means we can do things in our own time, and in a way that suits us. Not the other way round. I battled for a long time doing what I thought I should be doing, starting at the times others were and it just made me so miserable and so unproductive because, physically and mentally, I just wasn’t able to do much.
Cheers to being ourselves! 👏🏼