During the last few years freelancing became even more popular. Now it is not just an opportunity to earn a bit of money for kids and moms at home. It became a real chance for anyone to get a job with an opportunity to work from any place you want to.

But besides all tempting perks of being a freelancer, there are also lots of challenges. And one of those is the need to organize your time.

In this case, an office job would be a lot easier. Basically, your boss would tell you what and how to do. But if you want to become a successful freelancer, you will have to learn how to organize your day on your own.

So let’s begin with a few basic things to keep in mind:

Productivity Tips for Freelancers

1. Get a schedule for your day

Never underestimate the importance of having a strict daily schedule.

Now that you are your own boss, you have to organize your productive time yourself.

There are plenty of apps and programs on the Internet that could assist you with that. Or you could just use a notepad and write down everything you have to do during the day.

Try to plan things ahead. This way you will avoid being stressed out by deadlines.

Also, it is important that you wake up early. If you get up at 6 am, even after 8 hours of work, you will still have plenty of time to yourself. This way you will increase your productiveness.

2. Work out

It is a proven fact, that exercising at least once a day could significantly increase your productivity.

Now that you are a freelancer, you can choose which part of the day is more fitting for your workouts.

Many gyms offer a discount to their clients if they visit only during the first half of the day. This way you would get a great productivity boost from the very beginning of your day.

You could also include yoga practice in your weekly schedule, it would help you relax and get more energy. Do not forget about quick stretches during the day – your spine needs rest as well.

Read also: 10 Productivity Hacks to Get More Done

3. Separate work from play

It is very tempting to “watch this one YouTube video and get back to work”. But usually, you just end up spending hours wasting your time.

The best idea in his case would be taking short breaks every hour or so. This way you will not get tired and will be able to shift your attention.

To increase productivity freelancers often use a method called “Pomodoro”. This technique was invented by Francesco Cirillo in 1980s.

The main idea is that you have to choose a few tasks you have for the day and set a timer for yourself. Every 25 minutes of working on a single task you have to shift to another one. You are also allowed to take short breaks in between, but no longer than 3 minutes.

After you work on each task for four “pomodoros” (your 25 minutes of hard work) you can take a longer break.

4. Eat healthy

Think of your body as of the machine that needs a quality fuel to give the best performance. If your daily meals consist only of junk food – you will constantly feel tired and sleepy.

Try to break all your daily food consumption into at least 3 complete meals and 2-3 snacks.

Choose only clean and healthy foods, include into your meals lots of fruits and vegetables. And do not forget to drink water! If you follow a healthy diet, in no time you will notice how much energy you have.

5. Reward yourself

You will be much eager to finish the job in time if you know that there is something awesome waiting for you afterward.

After all your tasks are done go take a walk, eat ice cream, meet your friends – anything that you would look forward to during working hours.

You can also set bigger goals. For example – a big trip after a few months of hard work. This way even if you feel down and want to procrastinate, you will know that it will all be worth it in the end.

6. Do not get distracted

It would be best if you could put away your smartphone during work.

It is very tempting to check your social media once in a while, but there is a great chance your focus will shift.

Give yourself some time to talk to your friends and check your timeline before and after your working hours.

Read also: The 6 Most Common Mistakes Made by First-Time Freelancers

7. Create a comfortable working space

Most people’s mood during work depends on how their workplace looks. It would be really great if you could decorate a whole room as your home office and work from there.

If you will try to work in bed you might get a bit confused and not nearly as productive as you could be. So spend some time to make your office look inspiring to you so that you would want to spend time there.

Try to make it bright and spacious, choose light colors for the walls and include minimum furniture. This way your working space would implement greatly into your productivity.

8. Get a pet

This advice is not for everyone as lots of people are allergic to animals. But if you have no such problem, just keep in mind, that pets are great helpers when it comes to reducing the stress. And sometimes freelancer’s job can be pretty stressful.

Take some time to spend it with your pet and you will be surprised how peaceful and full of energy you will feel afterward!

Conclusion

All in all – being a freelancer is hard, regardless of what anyone might think. You have to take care of a million things and keep your productivity level high at the same time.

Hopefully, these pieces of advice will be of great help to you. And who knows, maybe if you raise your productivity high enough – you might even invent something! So keep these in mind and enjoy your work!

About The Author

Erica Sunarjo graduated from South Texas College majoring in Marketing and Creative Writing and is working her way to being a multilingual copywriter. She keeps track of the latest trends in IT and technologies, blogs about efficient strategies in education and business coaching, holds educational webinars. Right now Erica is the most effective writer at The Word Point.