Freelancing Meets Friday the 13th

Freelancing Meets Friday the 13th

I’ve never been superstitious. I walk under ladders, put new shoes on the table, and laugh at people who salute magpies. But this Friday the 13th did its utmost to change my opinion. What was supposed to be a morning of skiing followed by an evening of work ended up being a stretcher ride down a ski slope, a visit to A&E, and a wonderful new leg splint!

“Torn ACL” are two words that active people dread, and I’ve had the pleasure of hearing them countless times over the past couple of weeks. It has (to put it lightly) put a bit of a spanner in the works for my plans of another year of climbing and travelling. Instead of new climbing destinations, I now have MRIs, surgery, and countless physio sessions to look forward to!

Joking aside, the past couple of weeks have hit me hard. ACL recovery is a notoriously long and slow road. I, however, have chosen to live life in the fast lane for the past couple of years, so it’s come as a bit of a shock to the system. After a few days of moping around, feeling sorry for myself, and mourning my original plans for the year, I’ve decided to pull myself together, work my arse off, and come back stronger.

I recently said I was going to catch up on case studies and was wondering where I was going to find the time to do so. Well, I should’ve been careful what I wished for, because I now have upwards of a year freed up. There are some positives that come out of re-learning to walk aged 29 — not many, admittedly — but I’m focusing on them wherever I can and am determined to make the best of this era, laugh wherever possible, and kick down the hurdles this next year throws at me (although only with my right leg for the time being!)

How does this relate to work, you ask? Great question. I don’t really know. But I do know that my work and personal life are pretty intertwined since going freelance, so a change in one inevitably has an impact on the other. This week I’ve designed website pages with my leg up on ice and finalised brand concepts through gritted teeth while working on my leg extensions.

Freelancing has been a godsend during all of this. If you’d told me I had to work on a set project from 9–5 this week, it just wouldn’t have happened. Emotions all over the show, motivation unpredictable — freelancing has allowed me to spend God knows how many hours filling out a travel insurance claim document midday on a Monday; work on brand concepts at 11pm on a Tuesday because I had a sudden burst of creativity and enthusiasm; spend several hours on the phone to friends for a pick-me-up on a Wednesday afternoon; and put together several email marketing campaigns at the weekend because I was lacking the motivation to do so earlier in the week.

The level of flexibility this life has given me is unmatched, and I’m so incredibly grateful for it every day. This isn’t a one-sided benefit either — I don’t feel forced to work when I’m not in the right headspace to do so, so I only work at times when I genuinely care and am excited about the project. This ensures better outcomes for my clients too.

Lessons to take from this:

• Firstly — ski faster, you wimp! Arguably, if I’d been skiing with any pace, there would have been enough force on impact to pop my boot out of the ski. My knee wouldn’t have had to take the twist, and none of this would have happened.
• Secondly — buy the goddamn health insurance. I was fortunate enough to have travel insurance, which has covered the basics. But the MRIs, ongoing sports physio, potential orthopaedic surgery… boy, do I wish I’d completed the purchase when I was sat on the Bupa page earlier this year. You can never plan for when you’ll need it — and when you do, it’s too late.
• Thirdly — always factor in contingency. Something I’ve banged on about for years, both in previous job roles and since going freelance. I always factor in contingency time when proposing a new job. If I think I can deliver a job by Wednesday, I’ll say Friday. If I think I can deliver a job by Friday, I’ll say Monday. No extra cost — just a bit of extra breathing room, because life doesn’t always go to plan. Sometimes another client will demand something urgent midweek that throws out your timeline. Sometimes you’re having a bit of creative block and aren’t in the headspace to deliver your best work. And sometimes you’ll rip your ACL on a ski slope somewhere in rural France. Nine times out of ten, this means I deliver a job ahead of schedule. But it also means I never miss a deadline — no matter what life throws at me.