4 Things to Know as You Manage the Transition from Full-Time to Freelance

Changing jobs or careers is a big transition in life, one many people experience. Less might be written or noted about people transitioning not just jobs or careers, but changing the way they work. If you’ve worked full-time for many years and are adjusting to freelancing, that’s a significant shift. While it may seem easy on the surface — you’re gaining some hours, in theory — there are plenty of things to know and do to manage this change.

Here are a few:

1. Free Time – Most full-time jobs require you to work specific hours. You come to work at one time, leave at another. If it’s shift work, your work schedule may change some days, but it’s still a block of hours dedicated to work. Moving to a part-time role or freelance may feel like a rush of freedom, but beware. Those hours disappear so quickly, as time does. If you are moving to a part-time position with set hours, this maintains your life schedule. How will you use those other hours? If you’re reducing work hours for a purpose such as homeschooling, you may have less free time than anticipated. First-time freelancers often find themselves with a lot of free time at the start; it takes time to drum up some business. But if you don’t spend those hours working on your business, you won’t see much money at the end of it. Check out this post about setting deadlines for yourself.

2. Scheduling – The way you schedule things will change. When working full-time, you might go to the grocery store on the way home from work. If you’re now freelancing, you can choose to go at 10 a.m. if you want. You can schedule your work hours the way you prefer, whether that’s 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. or 8 p.m. to 2 a.m. While this seems fantastic on the surface, it’s also hard to escape from work without a dedicated schedule. You might try setting “office hours” for yourself to make sure you’re not slacking and to keep work from creeping into your personal time.

Another scheduling note for yourself: You’ll need to schedule time not just to work for your clients but to work on your business. Many new freelancers don’t realize the effort required at the start. You’ll probably need to set aside time to:

• Learn new things or take online classes
• Set up a website (or pay someone to do it)
• Manage bookkeeping and quarterly tax payments
• Get your LLC or other business licenses if needed
• Spend time networking so you can find new clients.

When considering your billable hours, it’s smart to assume you won’t work a full 40 per week for clients. At least five of your hours, maybe more, will be spent on the business itself. Of course, you can choose to work 45 hours to handle that, but that’s up to you.

3. Boundaries – Speaking of work creep, office hours are an excellent way to set a boundary not just for yourself but for your clients/customers. If you have set office hours, you can point to those as when you will respond to emails or answer the phone. Otherwise, your clients (not all, but some) may try to take more of your time than you wish. Another boundary to consider: Are you handing out your cell phone number, or will you set up a virtual office number?

4. Office Space – For some, part of the appeal of freelancing is working from home. You might love sitting on the couch to do your work, depending on what type of work you do. There’s nothing wrong with your dining room table if that’s what you have, and it works for you. However, many people discover an office of some type, or at least a desk or work table, puts them in the right frame of mind for maximum productivity. You might also use your office as a physical boundary, a cue, for others in your home who may want your attention. If you need space to meet with clients, a home office, or even one you pay for outside your house helps set a tone of professionalism.

Are you switching from a full-time job to freelance? What time and space management did you observe when transitioning?