It’s the unofficial start to summer. A time when vacation schedules are blown up by deadlines, laptops are packed along with beachwear, and conference calls happen from the car.
Such is the life of a freelancer. Or not. How about not?
My summer is already mapped out. I have three months of traveling, with some minor breaks in between where I get to come home and throw out what will probably be dead plants. But I’ve started warning clients now that my availability is going to be spotty. I’ll be around and I can do the project, but I’m not going to be as easy to reach.
That’s as it should be, don’t you think? You don’t? Is your throat closing up at the thought of not pleasing that client? Let me share something that may change your mind.
You’re working at the 9-to-5 job as an employee (bear with me, we’re pretending). You book a trip a month out. Maybe at the same time, you let your boss know you’ll be out of the office.
What happens next: You get the work done that has to be done before you leave, then you leave.
Now let’s look at that same scenario from a freelance perspective:
You book a trip a few months out, or even a few weeks out. You let your clients know you’ll be out of the office and when.
What happens next: You get the work done and meet your deadlines before you leave. Then one or more clients say, “Can you do this before you go?” But then one client tries this: “I really need this project done the week you’re away. Can you take a call on that Wednesday, say around 2 pm?”
Or this happens: “You’re going again? Didn’t you just have a vacation?”
That feeling you have is guilt. But it should be outrage.
No client — NO client — has the right to judge what you do or when you do it.
Moreover, your guilt doesn’t apply. Know why? Because you’re not an employee.
Repeat:
You’re not an employee.
Besides, the majority of employees aren’t given that same caustic response to taking time off (and if they are, they’re in a toxic workplace).
But we freelancers, we feel guilt. We’re running a business — our baby. We can’t just leave that baby behind!
Yes. Yes, we can. And should.
[bctt tweet=”How to manage your summer schedule & still work with #freelance clients.” username=”LoriWidmer”]
Ironically, all of the above has been said to me during the course of my freelancing. Yes, my freelancing. No employer ever gave me grief for taking time off, nor did they expect me to work while out on vacation (because by law, they can’t).
So how do you handle clients like that?
How I handled them:
- The one who asked for extra work prior to leaving was actually more than one client over the course of the last 19 years. If I can say yes, I do. If I can’t, I don’t. They understand. They’re just asking.
- The one who wants to schedule it while I am out of the office: In one case, I acquiesced. BIG mistake. Not only did they cancel the call without telling me (making me wait 30 minutes for them to show), but they also stopped working with me.
- And yes, it was the same client who said, “Didn’t you just have a vacation?” Just because he worked until midnight didn’t mean I had to. And how dare he, right? I’ve never been so glad to be let go by a client. If he hadn’t cut ties, I would have.
Because my summer will be nuts with traveling, I’ll be working on the road. Literally from the car in some cases. That’s my choice. That’s never a client’s choice. But one regular client will have my attention for 20 minutes in the car this summer. As long as I’m traveling through Kansas, I might as well do something other than count silos. (There are a LOT of silos.)
Most clients get that you need time away. They’re human, too. They’ve just lived through the same pandemic lockdown. Needing time away shouldn’t even be a discussion point anymore.
For those who think they need to know where you are at all times, I suggest:
- Leave them with the contact info (and put it in your automated email response) of a trusted freelancer.
- Give them ample warning, including a few extra reminders before you go.
- Suggest alternate dates for when you can work on whatever they’re asking about.
- Reinforce your boundaries.
Even the most congenial client can try to get you to get on “just one short call” while you’re out because hey, their backs are to the wall sometimes. Resist the urge to rescue. You might have to say it’s not possible as communication is spotty and your schedule is too sporadic. For me, that’s true in nearly every case. Like Kansas. I hope I have coverage, but when you get to the western part of the state, it’s dicey.
So as vacation season kicks off, here are your tasks:
- Find a trusted freelancer who can serve as a backup for your clients should they need something urgently
- Reinforce your boundaries around your down time
- Enjoy your time off
Writers, how do you handle time off?
Have you ever had a client hassle you about not being there?
Did you ever lose a client because of a vacation? (And if you did, they weren’t worth keeping, I say)
3 responses to “Tuesday Freelance Take: Taking Time Off”
I hope any exceptions include a double- or triple-pay, like an employee would get for working on a holiday.
I always try to take the last two weeks of the year off. I’ve turned down work, but haven’t lost any clients because of it. But last December I missed out of what would have been a cool interview with an actor who was also on his holiday break. The problem was the only time he had free was when I was going to be with family. So, sorry. I think the editor did that interview — someone did, because his quotes were added to the copy I’d filed a few days earlier.
It’s all about prioritizing yourself and your time.
Exceptions do pay more, yes. Love it, Paula.
I think we need to set expectations by respecting our own time first. There are some clients I would give exceptions to. There are others in my past that I wouldn’t have made any exceptions for (hence they reason they are in my past). I’m flexible, but I’m also human. Sometimes I just need to disconnect entirely. We all do.
I’ve never been a good vacationer. When I had “real” jobs, I was too poor to have proper vacations. In the last few years, I’ve been experimenting. Last year, my daughters, their families, and my husband and I all went to the beach for four days. That was fun, and I managed to get most of the work I normally would have done during those four days completed before we left. A couple of years ago I took a full two weeks off at the end of the year. This year, I’ve leveled up a bit, and have a fair amount of new business and I’m not quite ready to tell them I’m taking off. I’m hoping by the fall a week away is possible. (there’s so much more to why it may or may not happen than guilt! I don’t feel at all guilty for taking time off. Just….harried? stressed? I’m not sure.)
Enjoy your travels this summer!