It's half-term this week in the UK, and I'm on holiday with the family. But when you're self-employed, stepping away from work can be a little more difficult.
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It’s half-term this week in the UK, and I’m on holiday with the family.
But when you’re self-employed, stepping away from work can be a little more difficult.
In fact, 36% took less than 14 days of voluntary leave during 2024, and 32% felt additional stress or negative impact to their mental health by taking time off.
So, how can you handle half-term, if you’re juggling kids, work and your own sanity?
Make sure your current clients know that you’re not going to be around, or as responsive during any half-term holidays periods.
Even if you’re planning to be working, setting clear expectations will help you manage your workload and stress levels.
You can use an auto-responder on your email to let people know that you might be slower to respond too.
Wherever possible, try to reduce your workload during periods where you’re going to be juggling kids and work.
Perhaps you will only agree to doing four days work, spread over five - or perhaps you’ll tell clients you’ll only be available during specific hours.
It’s remarkable what you can get done if you timebox your work - but accepting that you might not be 100% focused on work if you’ve people running around at home, is important.
If you’re planning to not be working at all, but you find it hard to switch off the phone and inbox - try giving yourself a short block of time in the morning or evening to check-in with work, and then put it away for the rest of the day.
This allows you to stay connected, deal with any urgent issues, and then switch off and be more intentional with your time.
Whether it’s friends or family or even a local babysitter, don’t be afraid to ask for some help when you need a few hours of work to be done.
Depending on the age of your children, a cheeky 90 minutes at soft-play or in a local playgroup could be enough to crack through something essential.
Or consider buddying up with fellow freelancers who can step in and lighten the load on your projects. You can agree a reciprocal arrangement, where you both help each other out when you need it.
Whilst it can be tempting to push through and continually work, especially if you’re less busy right now - it’s important to remember that rest is essential. Continually working without periods of time off can lead to burnout, and prevent you from being able to work at all.
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