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How to Create a Flexible Freelancing Schedule

ByAubree Malick June 6, 2022June 6, 2022

Freelancing is the number one fastest growing industry in America right now. So many people are fed up with their 9-5 and are looking for a more flexible schedule that allows them to work from home and be more present in their kids’ lives. Freelancing allows you to have that flexibility and freedom that you desire, but you might be wondering how can I actually find the time to create a freelancing schedule that works for me and my family and my full time job?

As a freelancer you are an independent contractor meaning you get to create your own schedule and set your own rates…a dream come true for most! The dream can absolutely become your reality, but I always recommend that you do this slowly rather than diving in head first. 

In my signature course, The Prep 2.0, where I teach hundreds of women how to launch and scale their own virtual assistant business, I always recommend that you maintain your 9-5 (if you currently have one) for as long as you need to build up a little nest egg of $$$. But with that recommendation comes the question “How do I juggle freelancing while I still have my full time job?”

Today, I am sharing three virtual assistant schedules. The first schedule is juggling a full time job plus freelancing. The second schedule is managing freelancing plus being a work from home mom. And the third schedule is when you have help with your kids whether that be a nanny, daycare, or school. 

Your Schedule When You Still Have a 9-5

When I first started my freelancing journey, I had a full time teaching position plus a two year old at home…oh and did I mention, I was 7 months pregnant with my second. 

I knew that I wanted to be home with my boys and I was ready and willing to do what it took to replace my teaching salary as quickly as possible, especially considering I had two months left before maternity leave. 

I knew 9 hours of my day would include driving to and from school, plus working a full school day. So where in the world was I going to fit in freelancing? 

This took some creativity and shifting what my current lifestyle looked like. It also meant waking up a little bit earlier and going to bed a little bit later. 

This is what a freelancing schedule might look like if you are juggling your 9-5:

When I was putting together my schedule, I knew there were a few things I wasn’t willing to budge on. I was NOT willing to sacrifice my family time and I knew I needed to get 6 hours of sleep each night. As you start to think through a schedule for yourself, always start with the non negotiables. If you need to sleep more like 7 hours a night, tweak your schedule to allow for this to happen. 

One thing you have to remember is that this freelancing/9-5 juggling act is ONLY temporary. Once you have a little bit of money saved and a few freelancing clients under your belt, you will be able to ditch your 9-5 and make this your new reality which in turn means a whole new schedule. 

Your Schedule With Kids at Home

If you are a mom desiring to juggle a freelancing career and keeping your kids at home, you might be wondering what in the world a schedule for that might look like. At first, this is something I wanted. I wanted to have both boys home as well as work in pockets of time on my business. 

So I restructured my schedule to look something like this: 

As you can see in this example, I was still waking up early and going to bed a little later but I was also working 2 more hours a day than I was with my 9-5. For you, you might only need 5 hours a day which means you only need to work the naptime hustle and in the early morning or late evenings, not both.

The reality is, you are in the driver’s seat of what your schedule looks like. You could also choose to work only 3 days a week like this and then one day on the weekend if that fits your lifestyle better.

Your Schedule Without Kids at Home

If you are a mama reading this, you probably started freelancing to have more flexibility and freedom to be home with your kids. I know I did! But I also realized that I need dedicated work time so my husband and I decided to enroll our kiddos in daycare. 

This schedule below does not match what my current schedule looks like as I have one of my little guys in part time care and another one full time. My schedule is a little all over the place so I am sharing a more structured schedule of what it could look like with little ones in daycare or school. 

In this schedule, you will notice that you get 7 hours a day, 35 hours a week of uninterrupted work time. You could also tag on an hour at night and/or in the morning if you really wanted. 

For some, you may have a schedule that looks like this M-W and then Thursday and Friday your kids are home with you so your schedule looks like the second one shared in this post. 

Overall, the options are endless as a freelancer. My schedule has changed with each season of life and yours will likely do the same. You can work in this type of career to any schedule considering YOU are the one creating it. 

If you want to learn more about launching a freelancing business to have the flexibility and freedom to create your own schedule, check out my free training on how to become a virtual assistant today! 

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REFLECT!! Are you taking time to reflect on you REFLECT!! 
 
Are you taking time to reflect on your business wins no matter how big or how small?
 
Are you taking time to reflect on what is going well and what might need some adjustments in your business?
 
Are you taking time to reflect on your WHY for starting your business in the first place? Has it changed?
 
As a society, we are constantly moving at a million miles a minute and as a result, we often neglect to reflect. 
 
As an entrepreneur, I try to reflect on all of the above at least once a quarter. I even have a reminder set in my calendar to do so. 
 
By taking time to reflect, to pause, to think, it allows me to progress and grow. 
 
I challenge you to do the same!! 
#workathomemom #momsinbusiness #stayathomemoms #thegreatresignation #freelancingfemales #virtualassistants #formerteacher #workfromhomelife #momssupportingmoms #momsonamission #workfromanywhere
Are you afraid to niche down your services in fear Are you afraid to niche down your services in fear that you will miss out on working with potential clients?

I hear this all the time from my Prep students who are a few months into their freelancing journey. 

They have plateaued in their earning potential and as I advise them to niche down their services, I get responses like “But Aubree, I’m afraid I won’t get clients.”

They feel like they have to offer all the things and be available to do any and all services in order to grow their business but quite the opposite is true. 

By niching down, you are opening the doors for so much more. You are opening the doors to be seen as an expert in your field, as the go-to person for X, as the must-hire for _______ service. 

And with that comes the ability to bump up your prices. If you are an in-demand service provider offering just one service, people are going to want to pay a premium price. They want the specialist, not the Jack (Jill) of all trades that can do it all. 

So if you have been considering niching down to offer just one service, take this as a sign that NOW is the time! 

What do you/or what do you want to specialize in?

#womenentrepreneurs #ceomindset #onlinemarketingstrategies #scaleyourbusiness #virtualassistantforhire
When you are just starting out as a freelancer, th When you are just starting out as a freelancer, there are 4 must-do’s I always recommend. 

First, you want to make sure the legal side of things are set up whether you decide to file for an LLC or sole proprietor. 

Next, you will want to decide what services you will offer. Do you want to offer more general VA type services or do you want to specialize in one specific area such as website design?

After that, it is time to create your packages. Think about what you will charge for the services you provide. How many packages will you offer. Are you willing to make custom packages? Think through it all.

Last, you will want to create a portfolio that you can share with potential clients. Be sure to share who you are, how you can serve them, the services you offer, and what you charge for those services. 

If all of this feels overwhelming head to the link in bio to watch my free training when I go more in depth with each of the above steps. 

#ceolife #workfromhoejobs #workfromhomemomlife #workfromhomemomjobs #earnmoneyfromhome
Did you know you might be missing out on working w Did you know you might be missing out on working with potential clients simply because you are not following up?

I learned the importance of following up very early on in my freelancing journey. 

If you connect with someone in a FB group, follow up with them via email and provide further details regarding how you can support them with the services you offer. 

If you are having a genuine conversation with a potential client in the DM’s and they say they might be interested in the future, follow up with them a month or two later to see if now is a better time. 

If you had an awesome discovery call, sent over a proposal and contract but have yet to hear back, send a follow up email. 

People get BUSY! It is very likely that the person on the other side does want to work with you but because they are so overwhelmed and in the weeds of their business, they forget. You need to do the work for them and follow up. 

I recommend creating some sort of follow up system whether that be in your project management tool like Trello or Clickup or in a simple spreadsheet in Google Sheets. 

Stop missing out on working with dream clients and always, always follow up! 

Double tap if you have a system in place for this? 

#virtualassistantcommunity #workfromhome #virtualassistantmentor #businesssupport #freelancelife #virtualassistance
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