3 Things That Keep Me Up at Night as a Freelancer, and How I Resolve Them

I left my full-time job and started freelancing in 2018. I never planned for it to last this long, but it turns out that I really enjoy it, and I'm grateful I'm able to make a living on my own schedule doing work I like. 

But there are still plenty of things about freelancing that stress me out or make me nervous, and I have to make an effort to fight against them. Some nights, my mind races with worries about whether I can keep this up on my own. But whenever that voice in my head starts chirping, I fall back on a few reminders to soothe it.

1. Am I saving enough for retirement?

Since I no longer have an employer, I no longer have access to an employer-sponsored retirement plan like a 401(k). Sometimes it worries me that I'm not earning an employer match on a portion of those retirement dollars, which is a benefit many companies offer to their employees. Will I have enough cash socked away when it comes time for me to leave work?

When I start thinking this way, I remind myself that I'm fully funding my individual retirement account (IRA) and Roth IRA every year. Not only that, but I'm also setting aside money each month in a high-yield savings account. Since interest rates have been riding high the past few years, I'm even earning money on that money. And not only that, but I'm also transferring money regularly to my brokerage account. 

Since I still have many years left before I retire, I have plenty of time to ride out any market swings and see that money grow. Over the past 50 years, the stock market's average annual return has been 10%, so my long investing window means I'll likely be in good shape down the line.

2. Am I keeping track of all my income?

As a freelancer, you might have lots of clients, which means lots of invoices, payments, and 1099s to keep track of. It can be stressful to keep an eye on everything and make sure you're getting paid what you're owed for the hard work you've done. (I can't tell you how many times I've had to chase down my payment for a project weeks or months after it was completed.)

To ease my restless mind, I set up a spreadsheet early on in my freelance career to track every invoice: when I sent it, when payment was due, and when I was actually paid. I'm able to see how much I bring in every month so I can better estimate what my future income will look like, and I can keep an eye on every dollar I've earned.

If you'd prefer to have a little more structure in the process, you can even look into getting accounting software. 

3. Am I going to keep getting work?

This might be the one that nags at me the most. There's very little job security with freelancing; the businesses I work with have no requirement to keep sending me projects. If a particular editor I know leaves a publisher, maybe their replacement won't use me as often. Or if someone on the team doesn't love how I copy-edited one book, they might start offering me fewer and fewer projects. Or maybe they just have so many freelancers in their pool that I don't get offered as much work as I used to.

Other than doing the best work I can on every project, these worries are mostly out of my control, so I've found that I can calm my mind a bit by taking action in other ways. I make it a point to ask for feedback from the editors I work with so they know I'm open to hearing what improvements I could make. By being proactive, I find that I can nip any issues in the bud rather than finding out about them after they've gone on for a while.

I'm also proactive about asking for work. When I see a lull coming up in my schedule, I reach out to the publishing companies I work for to see if they have anything for me. That keeps me top of mind when new projects are available. 

I've also made sure to build up my emergency fund so that if I do happen to have a long dry spell, I'll be able to keep covering all of my expenses. Having that safety net is a great source of relief.

Like counting sheep

If you have a racing mind, you know there are a million concerns that could buzz through your head when you lay it on your pillow. It's not surprising that these three are ones I deal with regularly, but I try to drown them out with the lullaby of knowing I'm doing plenty to counteract them.