How Freelancers Can And Should Avoid Agency Fatigue

Agency fatigue happens to the best of us. But if you’re a freelancer, agency fatigue when you feel exhausted, burned out, and generally demotivated by your work can eat away at your productivity and even compromise the quality of your deliverables.

Agency fatigue can happen in various ways: maybe you have a hard time managing client relationships; maybe you have trouble staying motivated when working on several different projects at once, or maybe you’re simply not getting paid enough to justify the stress involved in working with clients directly.

No matter its cause, agency fatigue can make it difficult for any freelancer to be successful but some things can be done about it. This article will discuss different ways that freelancers can avoid agency fatigue by taking care of themselves and their clients more effectively.

Secrets to charging more as a freelancer (and making more!)

Takeaways
Prioritize self-care and establish boundaries
Manage workload and avoid taking on too much
Communicate effectively with clients and agencies
Practice effective time management
Recognize warning signs of fatigue and burnout
Take regular breaks and incorporate self-care
Seek support from fellow freelancers and networks

Table of Contents

Limit The Number Of Clients You Have At Any One Time

When it comes to the number of clients you should have at any one time, there are two main schools of thought. The first is that you should only take on as many clients as you can handle. This means that if you have a few great clients and they all need something done right now, then it’s okay to take on another client who needs their project done in a month or so.

The other school of thought is much more strict: it says that freelancers should never have more than three projects going at once. Some freelancers recommend limiting themselves to just two projects at any given time (one active and one inactive).

This allows for flexibility during the negotiation process when setting deadlines and pricing rates based on how many hours each project requires and also makes it easier for your brain to stay focused on what matters most without getting burned out by too much work at once!

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Hire A Partner To Help You Out When Needed

If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the workload, or if your business is growing and you need help keeping up with everything, bring on a partner or hire a virtual assistant (VA). Someone who can work on the business side of things and handle administrative tasks so that you can focus on taking new jobs and working with clients.

A VA can also help with social media management so that it doesn’t become another time-suck for freelancers

Take Time Off (This Is The Key)

As a freelancer, there’s no better time to take a break from the hustle than your first week on the job. This is because when you first start working with an agency, they’ll be doing most of the heavy lifting while you figure out how everything works.

If you’re like me and prefer not to answer emails or pick up phone calls during the weekend (or whenever), then this will be a good opportunity for you!

You should also consider taking some time off between projects, after all, it wouldn’t make sense for them to continue paying me if I don’t have any more work lined up. The longer we wait until our next project starts, however, the more likely it will be that another agency has scooped up our client by then and that would suck!

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Have A Vacation Policy And Stick With It

While you may be tempted to take every project that comes your way, this could lead to total burnout. You won’t be able to work as efficiently or effectively if you’re tired.

A vacation policy is something that all businesses should have, whether they are full-time or remote workers. If you don’t have one yet, set one up now! Your clients will appreciate knowing how much time needs to pass before they can expect a response from you and so will your friends and family when they need help with their home improvement projects!

When it comes down to it though: take vacations! Even if you’re not taking another client on until 2020 (which would be awesome), there’s no reason why people shouldn’t get away from their desktops for a few days every once in a while (or weeks). If anything taking time off will make the work better when it does come back around again because there’s less chance of burnout happening due to overworking yourself during those long weekends.”

Let Clients Know Your Availability Hours, Rate, And Preferred Method Of Contact

The number one way to avoid agency fatigue is by being open and clear about your availability, rate, and preferred method of contact. If the client knows this information before working with you, then they can make an informed decision about whether or not to work with you.

It’s also important for freelancers to be aware of their availability so that they don’t accidentally overbook themselves or become overwhelmed by too many clients who want them around at all times of day or night.

Get Clear About What You Can And Can’t Do For Clients

To avoid agency fatigue, it is important to get clear about what you can and can’t do for clients. This means getting clear on what you are good at and what you are not good at, as well as knowing the difference between a good project and a bad project. It also means knowing what kind of work interests you, to avoid boredom or burnout.

If you don’t know how to use Photoshop or Illustrator but have an idea for an awesome illustration that could be used for your client’s marketing campaign (or anything else), then find a designer who can help out with this particular task.

If there’s no budget available for hiring any additional contractors or freelancers, make sure that the client understands upfront that they’ll need to pay extra if they want something beyond your expertise set (which might end up being less than the total cost anyway).

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Stop Reading Emails At A Certain Time Of Day

Most of us tend to check our email first thing in the morning and last thing at night, which can make getting work done difficult. Set aside a specific time to deal with emails, so you know when it’s okay to check them and when it’s not.

If you’re working as an independent contractor for several clients, you might find that checking emails every few hours throughout the day is better than checking them all at once. This way, you won’t feel overwhelmed by new messages.

Turn Off Notifications On Your Phone Or Computer

One of the best ways to avoid agency fatigue is to not be notified when an email comes in, especially if you’re using a desktop email client like Outlook or Apple Mail. If you get an alert every time a message arrives, it can be hard not to check your inbox frequently, even when there’s nothing new in there that requires immediate attention.

Many productivity experts recommend turning off all notifications on phones and computers so that they don’t pop up constantly throughout the workday and distract you from working productively. (And if you need some help doing that for yourself personally it takes some practice!)

Schedule Calls During Set Times Of Day

You’re far more likely to be productive when you know that the call starts at a particular time. If you have trouble staying focused, schedule calls for times when you are most alert.

Schedule calls for moments when your brain is clear of other tasks and distractions so that you can give your full attention to the client’s needs without any interruptions or shifts in focus.

Know When To Say No

If you are a freelancer, then you must know that your time is valuable. You have to decide how much of it should be spent working on projects and what kind of projects will bring in the most revenue for your business. But even if you don’t want to put a value on your time (and who could blame you?), it’s still important that you’re honest with yourself about how much work each client would require from you.

Remember: there will always be more clients than hours in the day for anyone freelancer! So when someone approaches with an offer, consider whether or not they fit into your current workload before accepting the job. It doesn’t matter if they’re offering $50 or $50000 if they require too much work at this time, then say no!

Don’t Answer Emails Immediately; “Batches” Them Instead

There are two ways you can handle this. You can either “batch” your emails so that they’ll all be answered within a set period on certain days of the week or over a certain number of emails. Or, you can create rules in your email client that automatically files away certain types of emails until they’re ready to be read. This is especially useful if it’s going to take more than one day or week to get back to the sender.

Don’t Be Afraid To Use Email Templates

Email templates can be a great way to save time. If you’re sending the same email over and over, why not save yourself some time by creating a template that can be copied, pasted, and then personalized with just the recipient’s information?

Email templates can also be used to save time on different types of emails: if you send lengthy emails regularly (such as project updates or monthly newsletters), it might make sense for you to create one template for each type of message so that all of your recipients will see the same thing each time they receive an update from you.

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Accomplish As Much Work In-House As Possible

The thing to remember is that you don’t have to do it all yourself. There are plenty of other freelancers out there that are just as talented as you, and they’ll be able to help you get a big project done in no time at all. If you’re not good at something, find someone who is and work with them.

And don’t forget about working with companies that might be able to handle some of your workloads for you if things get too overwhelming. If this sounds like something you’d be interested in, here are some tips for finding the right people:

Be specific about what kind of work needs to be done; there’s no point in hiring someone who can do everything if what we need is a graphic designer!

Find someone who has positive reviews from previous clients; it’s always best to make sure they’ll give us exactly what we’re looking for before making any commitments!

Set Expectations From Day One By Sending A Brief Style Guide Or Project Outline

You need to set expectations from day one. While you may think that your style guide is obvious, there are a few things you can do to make sure the client understands exactly what they are paying for.

As soon as you have a meeting with your clients, send them a brief outline of your process, including how long it will take and what they can expect. Send an example of work in your style guide so they know what you can do. This could also be used as an example of the sort of tone or topic matter that will be included in the work when it’s done (which we’ll discuss later).

Determine What Makes Someone A Good Client For You And Keep That In Mind When Accepting Jobs

Determine what makes someone a good client for you and keep that in mind when accepting jobs If the person hires you for a project, make sure they’re involved in giving back to the community, supporting charities, or making the world better (i.e., not just wanting to get rich).

When working on projects that don’t align with your values, ask yourself whether what you are learning from this client is worth it or not; if not, walk away!

Look For Clients Who Are Involved In Giving Back To The Community, Supporting Charities, Or Making The World Better

It’ll make the work you do more meaningful. If you’re looking for clients, look for ones who are involved in giving back to the community, supporting charities, or making the world better. It’ll make the work you do more meaningful, and it’s a great way to connect with other freelancers who care about those same things.

Use your blog as a way to speak directly to your audience and use content marketing techniques to generate leads. Not only will this get potential clients excited about working with you, but they’ll also already be familiar with your brand.

Your blog is a great place to do this. You can write about what you are passionate about, the topics your clients are interested in, and topics that will help you build a community.

The last point is particularly important because it’s one of the reasons why so many freelancers fail at content marketing it’s hard! But once you’ve built up some momentum, your blog will become a valuable resource for prospective clients and employers alike.

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Final Thoughts

It’s important to remember that everyone experiences agency fatigue once in a while, but what matters most is how you choose to deal with it. The key to success is creating an actionable plan for combating it, and then implementing it when the time comes.

You can start by defining what you want out of your career as well as short-term goals (like making a certain amount of money or getting more sleep) so that you have something tangible to work towards. Finally, always keep those long-term dreams close at hand – they may seem far off right now but eventually, they will become reality!

Further Reading

Here are some additional resources that you may find helpful to explore further:

Tips to Avoid Freelance Fatigue: Discover practical tips and strategies to prevent fatigue and burnout while freelancing. Learn how to maintain your energy and motivation throughout your freelance journey.

Creating a Productive Work Environment for Freelancers: Explore techniques and best practices to establish a productive work environment as a freelancer. Discover how optimizing your workspace and routines can enhance your focus, creativity, and overall efficiency.

Developing Agency-Freelancer Relationships: Gain insights into the dynamics and development of agency-freelancer relationships. Learn about effective communication, collaboration, and building strong professional connections within the freelance industry.