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The New Year is nearly upon us and it’s that time to reflect on the year that was, prepare for the year that will be and try to justify all those irresistible foods you come across during the Holiday season. Hey, we don’t judge.
When it comes for reflection on 2018 and gearing up for 2019 maybe you are happy with the year that was or looking for redemption in the year to come. It’s natural to dream up a resolution or two. Maybe you are against resolutions entirely, we have mixed feeling on them.
Studies show that only 32 percent of people who make resolutions stick with them for a month or more. Even then, that’s 1/3 of people making it through at least 1/12 of the year – hard to call that “sticking.” This isn’t about making a resolution you can keep (sort of), it’s about making resolutions you can’t afford NOT to keep. Here are three resolutions every freelancer should make for 2019:
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If there’s one thing in life you cannot change it’s the number of hours in a day. It’s 24. Actually, that’s not entirely true, if you moved to Venus a day would last 243 Earth days. But you wouldn’t survive nearly that long on Venus, so stick to Earth. The good thing about those 24 hours is that (for the most part) you can choose what to do with them. In the New Year, try to make the most of your time and your tech.
So try to do more with less. There are apps and sites to help you manage your time but the key factor is changing the way you think. These apps help you track time, block out your calendar, etc – but they are only useful if you get yourself in the right mindset.
Set your times. For work, for exercise, for personal time. Don’t focus on adding MORE tasks to your schedule. Choose 1, 2 or 3 goals you want to accomplish and do them. You have 10, 20, 50 things you want to do and the list keeps growing. Instead, change your mindset. With 1 or 2 things to accomplish you’ll find yourself more passionate, more focused and more productive.
It won’t be perfect. Some days it will still like there are not enough hours in the day. It’s about making something a priority to get it done. Use the tools at your disposal, but not until you choose what you truly want to accomplish this year.
Somewhere between the third grade and University the term “Group project” lost its luster. You went from working with your best friends to worry about everyone pulling their own weight and calculating how much time it was going to take you when/if you had to do everyone’s work for them. Not a fun experience for some.
As a freelancer, you may be bred and attuned to doing it all yourself, it’s the nature of the job. However, if you are not collaborating with others then you are missing out on a lot of opportunities.
With a number of tools at your disposal like Trello, Slack, and Basecamp to communicate and track projects, you can see what others on your team are doing while focussing on your task. Using these you can collaborate with anyone in the world at any time. Save time, meet your peers and get access to more opportunities. The more you turn to others and do good work, the more others will turn to you. It opens you to (literally) a world of opportunity. Don’t go another year with one hand tied behind your back.
The funny thing about the changing of the calendar from December 31 to January 1 is that it only takes one night just like any other and most of us don’t wake up on January 1st feeling ready to take on the world. Maybe that’s why people have such a hard time sticking to their resolutions.
No matter what level you are: yet-to-start, beginner, intermediate or expert, we will have tasks we have been wanting to start or have been putting off for one reason or another. And that can be the hardest thing to do – to start. No many how many times you have started before, it can be a new challenge every day. The hardest part of going for a run isn’t the run itself, it’s making the decision run and actually following through. It’s dragging your butt out of the bed and lacing up your shoes. It’s starting. Once you get going you feel pretty good.
Once you finish you feel fantastic.
Does it make it easier to go the next day? Depends.
So all the time we face this starting phenomenon. So resolve to start. The more you start, the more you finish. The more you delay the more things stay the same and you wish and yearn and dream but you never start. It’s the hardest part because it’s the most important.
A good resolution is one you keep. A great resolution is one that can keep you going. Do not look back wishing you started now. Do not bookmark this post to re-read in December 2019. It won’t help you then if it doesn’t help you now.
The best resolutions are specific, actionable and attainable. Use these to improve in 2019 whether it’s personal, financial or professional growth. They can all be attained using these resolutions. Don’t be a part of the 32%, these can carry you through the whole year.
What are you going to do to improve and make 2019 your best (and hopefully most profitable) year yet?
EXCLUSIVE: Want 100 tips that will help you make your first $100k? Order this freelance guide now. It’s filled with the tips you need to make your transition from a freelancer running an average business to a thriving one.
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