The feast and famine cycle is the norm for most freelancers. It means that you are oscillating between periods with too much work and periods with not enough work.
It’s a stressful, draining way to work because you are never really happy. When you have too much work you worry that you don’t enough hours in the day, that you will let your clients down, or even worse, that you will burn out.
And of course, when you don’t have enough work, it’s hard to relax and recharge after the “feast” period. You’re too busy scrabbling around and looking for work, and wondering where your next paycheck will come from – which is probably even more stressful.
Table of contents:
- How to avoid the feast and famine cycle?
- Diversify your income
- The Freelance Roadmap book
- Related articles
How to avoid the feast and famine cycle?
The way to do this is, firstly, to retain as many clients as you can, and secondly, to maintain a stream of new clients.
Obviously, the sweet spot is when you have a mix of different projects – short-term or one-off projects, long-term projects and retainers. This might sound too ambitious, but it’s possible to achieve this balance or at least come close to it.
But to do that, you need to be consistent with your marketing, even when you are busy. It’s so easy to let your marketing slip when you have a lot of work. But when you do this, you feel the effects of it a few months later – when the famine period comes.
So when you are working on lots of projects and earning money – that’s great, and you should probably set aside a percentage of it to outsource your marketing. When your marketing keeps going, so do new leads and potential clients keep coming in. And then, instead of oscillating between feast and famine, you are having a consistent and sustainable stream of work.
Diversify your income
Another way to fight the feast and famine cycle is to diversify your income streams. That way you can ensure that you have money coming in, even when you don’t have client work.
You want to aim to diversify your income strategically – for example, allocate a percentage of your total income to specific sources, and allocate your time and efforts to work on those sources accordingly.
The Freelance Roadmap book has hit the digital shelves!
The Freelance Roadmap is a complete guide to building your freelance business and living life on your own terms.
This book will teach you how to develop a clear vision for your business, use storytelling that makes others want to work with you, develop a rock-solid freelance mindset, build the confidence to bring your ambitions to life and more!
Related articles:
Passive Income Ideas To Help Freelancers Increase Cash Flow
What You Need To Know About Passive Income As A Freelancer
The Not-So-Secret Ingredient For Freelance Success In 2023
The Best Business Books For Freelancers And Solopreneurs
Ultimate Guide To Setting Your Freelance Rates And Pricing
Leave a Reply