Even veteran freelancers have rough weeks (yes, really)

Sometimes we spend an hour or two of our workday having an ugly cry

Hi Friend,

Let me start by saying that freelancing is awesome… most of the time. But even those of us who’ve been in the game for years, who have our systems down and (theoretically) know our worth, have rough weeks. Really rough weeks.

Don’t have the time or capacity to read the article? You can listen to it (and hear my dog barking in the background, I think. Enjoy!

Case in point: In the past month, I lost two projects worth a total of around $4,000 a month, both of which were anticipated to go on for about a year. We weren’t at the exploratory stage—one project had been going on for a while and the other had already begun. Oh, and a short $1,200 project? Yeah, that got cancelled too.

I could have whiplash from all the projects that fell through in the past month or so.

Real photo of me hiding from more bad news Photo by Alex Skobe on Unsplash

Now, this isn't a "run for the hills" kind of post, I promise. But I’m sharing this because I think we need to be real with ourselves and others about the highs and lows of freelancing. Being a seasoned pro doesn't make me immune to hard times. I might have some systems in place to identify and avoid red flags, but that doesn’t mean I catch all of them.

In the cases of the projects that fell through, there’s literally nothing I could have done to have prevented the collapse. Two of the projects were client work through a marketing agency and I have no control over the agency’s interactions with their clients. As far as I can tell, everyone was very happy with the work I was doing.

I honestly can’t tell if that makes me feel better or worse. (It does highlight one of the negatives of working with marketing agencies—the lack of control over client relationships.)

In one case, the problem was that I worked with one particular client’s competitor. And even though the markets didn’t exactly overlap, and they wanted an expert, and the only way to become an expert is to work within an industry (and yes, sometimes the competition), they didn’t like it. And so they asked for a new managing editor.

(It happened in front of me. They asked in a kick-off meeting if I worked with any other banks—I said I did because I’m honest—and they said to the marketing agency’s account manager, “We can’t work with her then, sorry. We have a non-compete clause for all our vendors and service providers.” It stopped our kick-off meeting cold and felt like a punch to the gut.)

Don’t fall for the hype

Freelancing isn’t all sunshine, glory, and working from fancy beaches, despite what social media influencers might have you believe. Most of those people posting perfectly curated lives are exaggerating (or just straight-up lying) about their success.

Freelancing is hard work. It’s a slog. If you fall for their nonsense, you’ll end up feeling worse about yourself when things aren’t picture-perfect. So don’t. The reality is, those Instagram-worthy setups and “six-figure month” claims don’t reflect the grind it takes to build something sustainable.

There are weeks when it’s tough to get out of bed, when you question why you chose this path, and wonder if there’s an easier way (there probably is, but it likely involves winning the lottery and I’m proving to be a failure at that). There will be clients who vanish or delay paying invoices. There will be exciting projects that fall through at the last minute. And yes, there will be weeks when you wonder if you’ll ever find a new client again.

These will also be exacerbated if—like me—you have additional stressors in your personal life that are taxing your energy levels to the max and making you feel like koala who’s eaten too much eucalyptus and now you need to sleep for a year. Or more, if possible. (Can a human hibernate without being in a coma? I might volunteer to be the first.)

Me for the next few months Photo by Jordan Whitt on Unsplash

There will be moments when you Just. Feel. Done.

And that’s okay. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t freelance, it means you’re human, and freelancing—like virtually every career—is a grind.

Because that’s the truth. As great as freelancing is, it’s a career. And every career has its ups and downs. Its highs and lows. Its “I’m the greatest” moments followed immediately by “I’m a fraud and I’ll never make another client happy again” moments.

Don’t pretend things are great when they aren’t

The trick isn’t to slap on a fake smile and say, “It’s fine, everything’s fine!” (because, let’s be real, sometimes it’s not). It’s about acknowledging those feelings. Feeling the disappointment. Sitting with the frustration for a bit. Then, getting up, dusting yourself off, and figuring out what’s next. Planning out your next steps.

Did I have a good ugly cry about losing the clients? I sure did. Have I wondered if I should take an in-house job somewhere? I sure have. Have I questioned every decision I’ve ever made? Aggressively, vehemently, yes.

But here’s the thing: Because I work from home and am a freelancer, I was able to take some time away from my computer to cry, without worrying about coworkers seeing me or bosses being concerned about my emotional state. I could take time to come up with my next steps and develop a plan to move forward. A plan I’m excited about.

Freelancing is a rollercoaster, and getting comfortable with the ups and downs is key. If you’re hoping for a bump-free career, consider something else. Like becoming a houseplant. But if I can survive a $5,000 hit in a month, I’m pretty sure we can all bounce back from a lot of what freelancing throws our way. Maybe in a few months, I’ll even look back at this time and marvel at how I overcame it.

We’ve got this, even if we need a cry before we feel ready to take on the world again.

Feel like sharing a disappointing outcome in your freelance journey? Share in the comments.

And now, a request. If you were a student in my SFU courses or have taken my webinars and enjoyed your experiences, I would be deeply appreciative if you would write me a short testimonial. I’m in the process of building Happy Freelancing into a bigger resource hub and offering webinars, and testimonials would be incredibly helpful. If you’re willing and able, please send them to heidi@happyfreelancing.ca.

You have my deepest appreciation.

Here’s to better days, and your ongoing freelance success,

Heidi