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This is a post from a member of the Freelancers Union community. If you’re interested in sharing your expertise, your story, or some advice you think will help a fellow freelancer out, feel free to send your blog post to us here. To many, a freelance career seems too good to be true. They are mostly right: it is pretty cool to work and travel and to be your own boss. But it's not just rainbows and butterflies. You have to learn self-discipline and how to create a balanced lifestyle to avoid chaos in your life. Because without it, burnout can easily happen. You probably know what I’m talking about – that phenomenon when your brain is so fried that you can’t process absolutely anything no matter how hard you try. You should try to spot it immediately, as a day can easily turn into a week, and lead you into depression. So what are the signs? ProcrastinationA certain amount of procrastination is normal for a freelancer. But when you’re directionless to the point that you're barely making deadline — or worse — you're in burnout mode. Take it from Writing Expert. Focus problemsAnother warning sign is difficulty staying focused. Sometimes it comes naturally, but other times it feels like our brain refuses to work with you. You lose your difficulty to focus gradually, not all at once. If you notice that every day is harder for you to stay focused on your work, well the burnout is coming. Simple as that. StressBeing a freelancer is all about freedom, which may be considered the opposite of stress. But just because freelance has the word “free” in it, it doesn’t mean that you don’t really have a boss (it's you!), a schedule, or deadlines that are vital to your income and reputation. While a certain element of stress is necessary, don't push through until you’re good for nothing for several days. Instead, listen to the mental cues and rest. Abusive coping mechanismsSometimes, you don’t feel burnout coming, but your body and your subconscious always do — and will react one way or another. If you find yourself eating uncontrollably, over-drinking, or abusing drugs to trick yourself from falling down, heed the red flags. You're burnt out. Now what?As soon as you spot out any of the above-mentioned warning signs of freelance burnout, do the following. Take a day offThis is the best immediate option, especially if that free day is Friday; giving you a break from Thursday evening through Monday morning. Relax as much as possible over your long weekend – go somewhere quiet, and if you live in a city get out of it. This will help recharge your batteries. Change your scheduleWhen you’re about experiencing burnout, it’s obvious that your schedule is chaotic or at least problematic. If it were perfect and effective, you wouldn’t be in this situation. Now that the truth has been spoken, reorganize your life to accommodate what you need — not just what your clients need from you. And be flexible because unexpected things happen all the time. Set goalsAnother way to avoid freelance burnout is to stay motivated. So don't go through the motions: set goals that you really want to achieve. The nature of these goals doesn't matter, just that they make you happy and keep you moving forward. Watch your workloadSometimes, the freelance burnout kicks in after a period of time when you overloaded yourself with more assignments that you could deal with. Earning is important, but not more than your mental health. If you lost that, you won't be able to make a dime, so work at a slower rate until you regain your strength. Assess stressful sourcesStress is the root of most of our problems today — if not all. If you can spot the main sources of stress in your life and work to reduce them, you'll reduce instances of burnout. Treat yourselfTake a spa day! Just picture it: a full day of you time. Today we live such busy lives that we forget to take care and spoil ourselves. We don’t even think that we deserve to relax, viewing our achievements as unworthy. But we all deserve it, so prioritize one day each month for yourself and remind yourself that YOU DESERVE IT! Eugene Eaton is a blogger and a writer who finds inspiration in music and people. via Freelancers Union Blog https://blog.freelancersunion.org/2019/06/26/telltale-signs-that-you-are-burnt-out/
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AuthorI have 5+ years experience working as a medical transcriptionist. When I am not working, I enjoy sports like playing basketball or judo. I love making friends and connections. Archives
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