What to Do With Free Time

December 5, 2009

All of us have different measures of success. For me, I knew I was thriving when I wasn’t working 50-hour weeks anymore. Not to say that a long week is extinct for me, but there aren’t as many of them.

The extra time is something I’m not used to. I watch people around me rush around and never seem to have time to do much. They complain about their overwhelming lives and I remember what that felt like. I’m busy, too, but I’m able to make more time for things that matter to me. This is partially because of the career I’ve carved out for myself.


While I wouldn’t say you have to learn to cope with having extra time, many freelancers have more time to pursue other things—and that can be awkward at first. Whether it’s because you’re getting more money to work less as a seasoned pro, or because you’re in between projects, you may struggle to make use of or comprehend having extra time. Here are a few things to keep in mind if you’ve got a few extra moments.

Embrace extra time

Keep in mind that many people aren’t as fortunate as you to have extra time. Regardless of what you do with extra time, accept it as a part of freelancing. Whether you have time in between assignments, or you are earning enough money not to have to work a crazy amount of hours, having extra time is a gift. And because you were brave enough to enter the freelancing lifestyle, you deserve it. What you do with it can determine your attitude.

Don’t punish yourself

internallyI intend to beat myself up internally, saying silly things like “You must not be working hard enough if you’re able to take the afternoon off.” That’s totally untrue. Over time, I’ve learned to combat that silly talk by looking at the facts: I make enough money to live comfortably most of the time and I work hard at what I do. I’d never been around people who didn’t have to work themselves into the ground to make it, so I tend to want to measure up to that. Good news—you don’t have to. You can work a reasonable number of hours and use your extra time productively. You don’t have to feel guilty about it—not everyone needs to work 40+ hours a week!

Use your time wisely

I tend not to feel guilty when I take an afternoon off because I don’t have much more work to do, mostly because I do something smart with my extra time. Sometimes I relax or enjoy a hobby, and sometimes I take the extra time to catch up on work-related things. I can easily put off accounting, for example, so any time I think, “I don’t have anything else pressing to do today,” I remind myself that I can stay busy and benefit my business by maintaining my accounting records or continuing with my marketing campaign.

Get ahead
One of the most valuable things I do when I notice I have extra time is to do all the things career wise that I normally don’t have time—or make time—to do. For me, this means working on my book or sitting down to dream up a new magazine article query letter. These are work-related things I enjoy pursuing, but they often fall by the wayside because I am wrapped up in deadlines. If you’ve got some extra time, doing work-related things to advance your career is a great way to stay busy and get ahead. This wouldn’t include things like accounting or marketing—think of those other dreams you have yet to achieve and take steps to attain them when you’ve got some free time.

Give back

Now that you’ve got some extra time, why not give back to others? I started volunteering at our church for a children’s program. It worked perfect for me because I go there during the morning when other people are usually at work. I love being able to give back, especially when I know that others can’t due to their time constraints.

Relax

While I don’t think you should become a couch potato, there’s nothing wrong with taking some downtime. If you can take an afternoon—or a few days—off, why not? Take some time to recharge your batteries and your business is sure to respond in thanks.