We’re closing out 2018 with a quick talk about something else final…deadlines.
Sometimes they’re soft, sometimes they’re hard, and sometimes your client lets you make them up yourself.
Whatever they look like, dealing with deadlines is an important skill to master as a freelancer…that’s because they can be a source of stress, make or break client relationships, and even have a serious impact on your income.
Learn to Estimate
This might be the most important rule, so we’re going to start out with it.
A big part of freelancing is learning more about yourself, and one of the most important things you can learn is how to estimate how long it takes you to complete a task.
At first this is tricky, because new freelancers are notoriously slow. (I know that even on new projects I’m much slower than once things pick up…but speed comes.)
Over time (if you pay attention and focus on efficiency), you’ll learn how to get a general idea of how long it takes you to complete different types of work.
Sometimes you’ll be over, sometimes you’ll be under, but eventually you should be able to say things like “It takes me an average of 2 hours to complete a 500-word blog for this client.”
That way, you’ll be able to lay out your work in a general order and not get stuck guessing or with multiple deadlines coming down on your head at the same time.
Megan