Article Holiday survival guide for freelance translators: balancing work and festive celebrations

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, in a lot of people’s books. And we have to admit, we do love the festive season.

We adore all those twinkly lights, cosy evenings and spending time with the people we love, and we’re always up for a Christmas film, or a good party.

But let’s be real here, it’s not all jingle bells and mulled wine.

The festive season can bring stresses for everyone, whether that’s tricky family dynamics, money worries, a to-do list as long as your arm… You get the picture, and we’re sure you’ve been there.

These things are true whether you’re in employment or run your own business, but being a one-person show brings with it its own special concerns.

Whether you’ve been freelancing forever or are new to the game, trying to decide how to balance the festive season and work commitments can be tough.

Which is why we’re here to share a little of what we’ve learned over the years.

Of course, everyone’s professional and personal situation is totally unique, so you might not feel that all of this resonates with you. But we’re still hoping we can help your festive season go off a little more smoothly this year.

Take as much time off as you can

We’re fully aware that this might not be viable for everyone for all kinds of reasons. Perhaps you’ve just taken a long break, or have one coming up in the new year. But that being said, our main piece of advice is, if you can take time off, do!

Taking an extended break every so often is so, so important for your mental health and your motivation levels. We’re talking more than just a long weekend - a period of at least a week (more, if at all possible) during which (ideally) you don’t monitor your emails and can properly check out from your professional responsibilities.

And this time of year is, for most people, a great opportunity to take one.

That’s because a lot of your clients will probably also be taking time off at this time of year, so chances are, your inbox will be quieter than usual anyway.

True, you might miss out on some projects, but you might not! That’s a risk you’re taking whenever you take a break, and you can’t work yourself into the ground without a rest just because you’re frightened of the “what ifs”.

If you’ve been freelancing for a while, you should be able to base your decision on how things have unfolded in previous years.

Have you ever decided to work through the festive season, but actually spent most of your time twiddling your thumbs?

Or were your clients very appreciative of your availability when most freelancers are taking a break?

We’re betting it’s probably the former in a lot of cases, but every business is different!

Tips for balancing work and play

So, you’ve decided to stay at the coal face over the festive season. You’ve got this!

We’re behind you all the way, and here’s our selection of tips for making sure you can still enjoy the fun.

Before the festivities begin

• Review your year in business

We’ve posted before about how to review your year in business, and if you haven’t already, now’s the time to put that into practice.

Wrap up all those loose ends and get some clarity about what the year ahead is going to look like for you, so you can end the year feeling confident.

• Send your invoices

As much as possible, send off all your invoices for December before Christmas and New Year arrive. Because although, if you use LSP.expert, sending invoices is a breeze, we’re sure you’ll have better things to be doing on the 31st of December.

Get them all safely sent off so you know you’ve got payments coming your way in January.

• Give yourself an end-of-year party

Make doing the above more fun by turning it into a bit of a party.

Just because you’re not taking the whole of the rest of the year off, doesn’t mean you can’t celebrate coming to the end of the year. Get into the festive spirit by throwing yourself a bit of an office bash.

Set an afternoon aside, play your favourite festive tunes and crack through the things you need to do to wrap up the year.

Extra points if you wear something sparkly and drink hot chocolate (or mulled wine) whilst you’re doing it. You could even suggest to some freelance friends that they join in on the fun virtually, so you can keep each other accountable.

Taking care of these tasks before the festive period proper arrives means that you can take your foot off the pedal during that time, taking care of client work when it crops up, but not having to worry about all the extra freelance admin.

That means if said client work doesn’t materialise, you can take spontaneous time off, guilt-free.

Once the time is upon us

• Make the most of national holidays and weekends

You’ve decided not to take an extended holiday, but if you’re taking an extra day off here or there, or just sticking to national holidays and weekends, make them count!

Set your OOO if necessary and don’t be tempted to check your email or take a peek at social media. Enjoy your time off, however brief, because you deserve it.

• Create an environment that helps you focus

One of the biggest problems at this time of year can be managing to actually focus, especially if you’ve got kids or extra family members in the house.

Getting your head down when you know other people aren’t working, or when it’s noisy, can be very tricky.

Do what you can to make your WFH set-up as welcoming and motivating as possible, or consider getting out of the house, paying for a day at a coworking space or just heading to a café for a few hours here and there.

• Give yourself festive treats as rewards

Working during this time isn’t easy, so you deserve rewards for getting things done! We’re not advocating spending the entire time snacking on chocolate… but a few festive treats will go a long way.

And festive treats don’t just have to be food. You can treat yourself to an experience or even just an evening watching your favourite Christmas film.

• Don’t forget to get fresh air

Between work and family commitments, things can get busy, so don’t forget to prioritise getting out of the house and moving your body.

We say this a lot, but getting out for a walk whilst it’s light outside needs to be at the top of your priority list, no matter how much is on your plate.

• Be realistic about what you can achieve

‘Tis the season not to take on too much work.

At other times of year, you might be able to get away with taking on overambitious projects and working late nights or early mornings to get them done. That’s entirely your call!

But during the festive season especially, you need to be honest with yourself about what you have the capacity for, and what you don’t.

Follow your gut instinct and don’t be afraid to say “no” to anything that is going to tip the balance from a calm, relaxed workday to a stress-filled race to the finish line.

• Decide what your limits are and do your best to stick to them.

If clients want things delivered urgently over the festive period, then you could consider charging them a rush fee. If it’s genuinely urgent, they should be happy to pay for your time. Or it might magically be fine for you to deliver it in January!

• And if there’s nothing to do, take the afternoon off!

Your admin tasks are under control, so if you don’t have any client work on, close your laptop and enjoy time off.

Normally, we might recommend a spot of CPD or marketing on a quiet day, but at this time of year, the only thing for it is to relax, recharge and enjoy yourself.

Make getting your ducks in a row at the end of the year easier with LSP.expert. Give our 30-day free trial a go in January and see just what a difference it could make.