Q. How to deal with quiet spells?

It’s a simple reality of freelancing that you will not be working full-time.

Even with the most effective new business pipeline, there will be periods where finding work is harder, and in certain situations, these dry-spells can last for weeks, even months.

It’s important to recognise that not every quiet period is a failure of your business.

Right now, the economic challenges in the market mean that freelancing is experiencing a rough time: higher supply, lower demand, and fewer projects generally - many many freelancers are finding it incredibly hard to find work.

That doesn’t mean you’re doing something wrong - it just means you’re facing the reality of the market.

Likewise, just assuming that you’ll find some work if you wait long enough, is also not a sensible strategy.

You’ll need to continue investing in business development, making new connections, creating opportunities for new work, or exploring additional and alternative revenue streams, so you’re not reliant upon a single source of business.

That said, no matter how pragmatic you can be about quiet spells, it can hit your confidence.

We’ve developed a longer guide on Dealing with Quiet Periods when Freelancing which might help.