When something happens in life, like your kitty getting sick, you just phone into the office and tell your boss you’ve got a family emergency and you’ll be in as soon as you’re through with the vet. Your job will be there on the other side, after you’ve signed off on the iv fluids and x-rays. But when you work for yourself, it’s not so easy. So much of freelancing is availability. How responsive are you when a new client gets in touch? What about your on-going projects? When you’re a one-woman show, it’s hard to find the right balance, especially early on.

I suppose with existing clients it’s easier — you’ve developed a rapport with them already and a level of trust. But when you’re establishing new relationships, especially remotely, it’s hard to know the right way to be unavailable.

When I remember, and know my schedule ahead of time, I can change my outgoing message on my voicemail, or create an auto-response to emails letting people know my availability and when they can expect to hear back from me. But in a world where the expectation of email response is in the minutes, not hours or days, I’m not sure of the answer beyond making sure my iPhone is fully charged.

Last Christmas, my father-in-law passed away in Scotland, and alot of my time leading up to that event was spent waiting for hospitals and doctors, and sleeping odd hours. Because of that, I continued my online freelance work from there — it was good to have something I felt confident about when everything else was seemingly falling to pieces. A client at the time inquired as to why I was in the UK, and after telling her, she was astounded that I was so responsive given the circumstances. In a way, I completely agree that work should have been the last thing on my mind. But in another way, the familiarity of it, and the looking-towards-the-future that it entailed, was a positive thing.

I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t really enjoy it, but knowing when to start and stop is a challenge.