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How To Manage Your Mental Health As A Freelancer [Guide]

Steffy Alen

Introduction

Many of us have had to adjust the way we work over the last few years. From working from home to ditching our office jobs, the work world looks completely different from how it did pre-pandemic.

Though freelancing comes with a range of positive aspects too, such as being your own boss and giving you the freedom to pick and choose work, it also has some struggles too. Some studies have even shown that remote working has increased workloads by 57.36%. Though we are working in our comfort zones, the hustle has gotten even more intense.

There’s no doubt that increased workloads and isolation from co-worked can damage our mental health. Luckily, there are some tips and tricks you can try to boost your mental wellbeing and settle into remote working better.

Keep on reading to explore the best ways to manage your mental health as a freelancer.

Why Is Taking Care Of Your Mental Health Important For A Freelancer?

Before we jump into the guide, we think it’s important to discuss the importance of looking after your mental health when working on a freelance career path. Though you should take care of your mind no matter where you work, certain aspects of freelance life can make burnout or anxiety more common.

Since freelancers and self-employed workers operate on their own terms, there’s usually less structure and a weaker work/life balance. This includes more pressure, responsibility, less job security, higher work hours, and isolation too.

Many freelancers have been open about their mental health struggles when working alone. Anxiety and depression are common complaints from those who work from home, so we must talk about these issues in public! There’s no shame in speaking out and we can all help each other to work through these issues too.

This may make freelancing sound unappealing, but you must remember that freelancing is also rewarding as you are in complete control of your career. Just remember that to stay mentally healthy you have to be honest with yourself and check in with your needs.

What Can You Do To Improve Your Work/Life Balance?

A key area to examine if you’re feeling down about your career is to examine your work/life balance. Many of us choose the freelance path to have more time for the activities we love and more time to spend with family friends. Unfortunately, a lot of freelancers see their work lime ratio slide in favor of work as deadlines become so demanding that you have to give up your evenings and weekends too.

If this sounds familiar, it might be time to cut back on some demanding clients and big projects. When freelancing, it can be tempting to take on extra projects to earn as much as possible – even if they pay below your standard rate. Though this strategy sounds great initially, it will leave you feeling overworked and burnt out.

Instead, prioritize projects and clients that pay you well and don’t ask for unpaid work or constantly email you outside of working hours. This can be tough, as saying no to work will make many freelancers feel guilty, but reclaiming your rest time will result in higher productivity and a better mindset too.

The Best Ways To Manage Your Mental Health When Working From Home

Whether you’re new to freelance life or not, it’s always a good idea to re-examine your relationship with your work. Here are some of the top tips to keep your mental health in check when working remotely or from home.

Listen To Your Gut

A tip that we can’t repeat enough is to listen to your gut. Often, if a job is too demanding or a client is not the right fit for us, we want to ignore it so we can complete the work. However, working in conditions that don’t suit your needs as a freelancer can take a toll on your mind and cause unnecessary stress.

When you look back at less-than-ideal work relationships, many of the times you knew something was “off” going into the contract. To save you energy and stress in the future, really evaluate each job before saying yes. Is the project too big for your current workload? Are you and the client on the same page about deadlines and pay? Be critical about projects and your future self will thank you!

Talk With Other Freelancers

Speaking about your work issues or stresses can help, it’s never good to leave frustration bottled up inside. But, who do you talk to when your friends and family aren’t self-employed or work office jobs?

Talking to other freelancers can often make a big difference to your mental health. Just knowing others are experiencing the same issues and frustrations as you can make it easier to vent and often experienced freelancers will be able to help you with any issues. Lending an ear to another freelancer in need is essential now and then, especially as freelance work lacks the casual conversations an office has.

If you don’t know any freelancers, you can always join forums and Facebook groups to find like-minded individuals too. There are many freelance groups online where you can casually chat, ask questions, and find more handy work guides like this one! You never know, you could find some new friends in these groups and even collaborate in the future too.

Make Time For Self-Care

It’s also important to add some self-care time into your weekly schedule. Some of us love self-care, however, many people are hesitant to try this trend as it often looks too “indulgent”. While you shouldn’t be spending your time buying lots of clothes and accessories because you feel down, it is important to treat yourself to something nice now and then too.

Self-care isn’t just about retail therapy though, it can also take the form of skincare, cooking a nutritious meal, going for a run, or even chilling out for some needed Netflix time too. Self-care activities let your brain turn off from the day-to-day work stresses, allowing you to decompress whilst making yourself happy at the same time.

For some, self-care can also include living an intentional healthy life, practicing good hygiene, and taking time to see friends or family. In reality “self-care” is a catch-all term for any activities that improve your quality of life and make you feel better mentally.

Popular self-care activities include:

If you’re unsure what self-care means to you, try reading online tips and tricks. You can also take time to make a list of activities you enjoy. Pick 2-3 of these and incorporate them into your weekly routine to make sure you get some needed “me” time.

Create A Plan

Most freelancers already work with a weekly or monthly plan, but how often do you stick to your work plan? With the rise of hustle culture, working from home can make us try to do more than we physically can. Instead of packing our timetables with endless jobs, it’s important to be realistic about what you can achieve in a week.

When creating a realistic business plan, make sure to add in lunch breaks and evenings off so your brain can switch off. This doesn’t mean you need to drop lots of projects, but be realistic with your time when planning the future.

Plans are a great tool to keep you on track, so if you don’t already use one, it’s time to get started! This can keep your mind and business organized, keeping you from any work overlaps in the future – perfect for anyone who gets anxious when deadlines are approaching.

Tackle The Tough Jobs

This tip isn’t anyone’s favorite, however, it’s one of the most important ones in this guide. When it comes to protecting your mental health while freelancing, make sure the tough jobs are completed and not put off until another day.

It can be easy to brush off doing your taxes, finance plans, or sending important emails, but instead of doing these jobs tomorrow, get them done now. Not only will these jobs make your life easier in the long term, but once they’re complete you’ll feel relieved and less anxious too.

If you have a lot of admin work to do, try picking one task and day for a week and see how much you get done. By the end of the week, your head will be much clearer and you’ll feel on top of your freelance business.

Stay Hydrated

Staying hydrated seems simple and less important than other elements of this guide, but being dehydrated can take a toll on your mental health. Experts suggest that we should drink approximately 8 cups of water a day, so make sure you get these beverages in!

If you find staying hydrated difficult (many of us do – don’t worry!)It can be good to invest in a large hydro flask water bottle that reminds you to keep drinking. You can also drink decaf herbal teas too if you want some extra flavor too, these are essential for the winter months when working from home!

Eat Well

Similarly to staying hydrated, staying on top of your nutrition will also make a big difference when it comes to mental health and work. Your diet affects your mental wellbeing more than you may realize, so always ensure you’re eating balanced meals throughout the day rather than snacks.

We know how easy it can be to opt for a quick bag of chips, but once you swap these for healthy alternatives you’ll feel a big difference when it comes to your mood and brain fog too.

Some of the best healthy work snacks include:

Try adding these snacks between meals to boost your health and your mental wellbeing too!

Get Moving Daily

If the pandemic taught us one thing, it’s that sitting still in one position for a long length of time is difficult! As humans, it’s natural for us to want to get up and move during the day. Fighting this urge will leave you feeling stressed out and your concentration may dip too.

If you can, break up the time between projects and take a daily walk or do a mini-workout. This will get your blood pumping, your endorphin levels will rise, and you’ll feel much better. Though this sounds like a chore to some, it’s worth trying as studies show daily workouts (no matter how small) boost your mental health too.

Monitor Your Screen Time

Keeping an eye on your screen time sounds odd, especially since working from home involves a lot of screen time – but hear us out. For freelancers who rely on their laptops for work, it’s super important to take breaks from screens.

Constant usage – whether it’s your laptop or phone, is proven to cause higher levels of anxiety and depression. To avoid any extra stress, set limits on your screen time and make sure you put down your phone an hour before you sleep to take some time to de-stress away from blue light.

Schedule Time For Friends And Family

Finally, our last and possibly most important tip is to make time to connect with your friends and family. Working from home as a freelancer can leave you feeling isolated, so it’s important to break the cycle of working alone and meet your loved ones for some real-life interactions       (if this is safe and possible of course).

The Takeaway

Navigating life as a freelancer can be tough, especially if you don’t have a good mental health plan. Some suggestions in this guide are more practical and others focus on your wellbeing, we suggest that you combine them for a mix of business and self-care practices to help you thrive as a freelancer.

Do you enjoy remote work? Let us know your top tips for working as a freelancer in the comments!

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