Mastering Work-Life Balance as Freelancers and Business Owners
As new video production freelancers, finding balance between working on a business and personal wellbeing has required some trial and error. Our blurred home/work lines make it all too easy to let business dominate. But we’ve learned some key lessons in carving out fulfilling personal time.
Our Typical Schedules
My daily schedule (Niall) revolves around VFX/Animation work, networking, and my long-time passion for athletics training. Mornings start with administrative tasks and social media engagement before client video editing or meetings take over. I aim to finish working by 5pm to get to the track. However, even after 3-4 hour sessions, I often try and squeeze in more editing at night. Getting to bed before midnight is sadly rare.
Meanwhile, Izzie's routine is more well-structured with specific personal and professional blocks. Mornings involve urgent client emails and replies, taking the dogs for a walk and exercising before editing work ramps up through out the day. Evenings are focus on social media and planning ahead before aiming to allow for personal time and reading before bed. Her calendar keeping ensures everything is done on time.
The Challenges
Despite Izzie's greater calendar diligence, we both struggle with fully disconnecting. Responding to emails any hour comes with the freelance territory. With no hard stops on our day, "just one more thing" can easily snowball, invading time meant for recharging. As people-pleasers who love creating videos, maintaining boundaries is an ongoing effort. The flexibility we desired from self-employment can feel like a double-edged sword.
Other challenges to note:
Feeling "on call" 24/7
Difficulty stepping away from client demands and ever-growing to-do lists
Blurred lines between home and work
The constant temptation to push ourselves when we're passionate about our craft
Navigating the Early Stages:
In the early days, setting competitive prices and managing a deluge of inquiries tests our mettle. The pressure to secure a steady client base can lead to overcommitting – a precarious balancing act. Finding that sweet spot between sustaining income and avoiding burnout is a lesson learned through experience.
Why Balance Matters
For us, balance is a must. Without shutdown rituals separating work and personal time, business bleeds into all aspects of life. For example, my creativity, mental clarity, and even physical health decline without time to recharge away from video projects.
Having space to cultivate interests outside client demands, like athletics, directly fuels the inspiration I bring back to paid creative work. When I rush between editing straight to the track and back home to more edits, everything suffers. Burnout looms.
Most importantly in our case, balance protects intimacy in our long distance relationship. Carving out time together demands mitigating constant work encroachment from our business partnership and our relationship.
Our Best Tips:
Calendar Blocking and Honouring Hobby Time: Organizing our schedules ensures dedicated time for our passions outside of work.
Setting End-of-Day Alarms: This simple trick helps us transition and leave work behind mentally.
Email Boundaries After Hours: Forcing a break from the inbox when the workday is done.
Regular Outdoor and Social Breaks: Moments of fresh air and social interaction keep us energized.
Planning Multi-Day Vacations: Protecting those breaks from work commitments.
Mixing in Lighter Tasks: Balancing intense projects with lighter, more enjoyable tasks.
Key Takeaway
The harmony between business and personal requires ongoing effort as video freelancers. It’s not one size fits all, but there are lots of lessons you can learn from others.
Allowing yourself to have a split between work and personal life isn’t a reward, having a rest isn’t wasting time. It’s is what allows the body to be at its best when you are working. There’s still a lot of learn we have to do, but we are getting there.