5 Things No-one Tells You About Working Solo


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Like many people who have switched to being freelance, Rebecca Seal loves working for herself. Eleven years in, she says it’s one of the best decisions she ever made. It is also, she says, “tedious and monotonous, tiring and nerve-wracking”.

Every self-employed worker is familiar with the slide between the extremes of delight and frustration. Working alone can be challenging and some people cope better than others. That is not necessarily because they are better suited to freelance work, but because they have found the strategies that work for them. Which is precisely why Rebecca wrote her new book, Solo: How to Work Alone (and Not Lose Your Mind), drawing on the latest research and interviews with a range of solo workers.

“The message of the book as a whole is ‘get to know yourself and what works for you,’” she says. “A lot of people just mimic what they did when they worked in an office and don’t realise there are choices.”

Here are five – sometimes unexpected – strategies she says every freelancer should consider.


1. Keep a timesheet

One of the things that many freelancers relish is that they are no longer accountable to anyone but themselves – so why on earth would you bother with timesheets? “It’s really useful to get an overview of what your week actually consists of,” says Rebecca. Particularly when we’re switching between tasks, or weaving household errands into the work day, it can be hard to accurately measure your own productivity. “Often you can feel as if your job is taking over your life – but if you keep a timesheet and track how many hours you are doing, you may realise you’re working far less than you think you are. That’s really liberating.”


2. Set yourself micro-goals

Pretty much every freelancer relies on their to-do list. For some, however, there is an even more helpful tool: micro-goals. They are particularly useful, Rebecca says, for people with a tendency to procrastinate.

“I spoke with one writer who, from the outside, looks like someone who’s really nailed it: she writes hundreds of thousands of words a year, judges book prizes, she’s really clever and accomplished. When I interviewed her, however, she said that she is really lazy and the way she manages her workload is to break tasks down into tiny, tiny pieces.”

So if you’re someone who has difficulty starting something, break it down into separate components, for example: researching, drafting, editing. Smaller components are more manageable, and as you complete each task, you’ll get a boost of serotonin. “You can become addicted to your micro-achievements, which makes you more productive,” Rebecca says.


3. Outsource the money stuff

No-one enjoys chasing unpaid invoices, so why not outsource it? Rebecca says that once you have a sustainable income stream, using some of it to delegate unpleasant tasks can reap huge benefits.

“When my husband and I got an invoice chaser, it was life-changing. I cannot overstate how good it was,” she says. There were no more fears about damaging her relationships with her editors – because no-one likes being hounded – but she also found it brought her peace of mind. “I stopped feeling latent rage towards my editors. I could let go of the stress about money, because someone else was dealing with that for me.”


4. Don’t feel you need to grow

“We are mired in the idea that everybody should always be growing,” says Rebecca, but there is nothing wrong with finding the level of work that suits you and your life and staying there. “Unless you want employees and a whole lot more responsibility, be cautious about pursuing growth,” says Rebecca. “There is only so much you can do in any given week. It’s a good idea to get familiar with the idea of enough – enough work, enough money. Instead of putting more pressure on yourself, when things feel good, it’s all right to keep them that way.”


5. Get outside

Every freelancer has their own rhythm. Some rise with the dawn and head straight to their desk; others prefer a slow start to the day and enjoy working into the night. It is smart to work with your natural rhythms: but whatever hours you work, Rebecca says, it is vital to spend some time outside every day.

“The data on it is so fascinating and so persuasive,” Rebecca says. “It’s clear that we need to spend 120 minutes a week in green space with trees or water. It doesn’t matter whether that time is in big or little chunks – but if you can do this, you will be more productive and get your work done quicker.”


Solo: How to Work Alone (and Not Lose Your Mind) by Rebecca Seal is published by Allen & Unwin.


Words_Ute Junker
Photos_ Steven Joyce {portrait} + Geran De Klerk/UnSplash

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