I want to start off by emphasising that the strategies I’m about to share are not just generic tips. They are tailored to my own lifestyle and have proven to be effective for me. I firmly believe that what works for one person can also work for many others, though not everyone. The beauty of these concepts and processes is that they can be tweaked and modified to align perfectly with your own unique schedule, personality, and lifestyle.
At the end of this article I share a document that will help you create your own Freelancer Fundamentals Framework.
The 80% Rule
On our best days, we do our best work, but how often do we feel at our absolute best?
Sahil Bloom believes…
“You’ll feel great on 10% of days, okay on 80% of days, and terrible on 10% of days.
Sahil Bloom – 10 Lessons from 100 Days in the Cold
It’s easy to be disciplined and consistent on the 10% when you feel great—and even on the 80% when you feel ok—but it’s hard on the 10% when you feel like crap.”
As a freelancer, your day requires a high level of commitment and self-discipline. As your own boss, you’re responsible for your own performance. Being consistent is the most important metric you should be measuring to ensure success in your career.
Establishing a routine can be an invaluable tool. Repeating the same steps every day leads to a habit that can be performed with minimal thought.
We must be adaptable to change whilst maintaining a level of consistency to propel us forward.
Set The Fundamentals
Consider this – how many of your working days are 80% similar? This refers to days when you perform similar tasks and actions – get up at the same time, do client work, have lunch, stay in the same location, etc… If the answer is 4 out of 5 days in a week, then establishing a daily checklist of fundamentals could be invaluable.
In the editing phase of this post, James Clear sent the following question in his weekly newsletter which is very worthy of mentioning:
What lifestyle do you love 80% of the time?
James Clear – 3 2 1
No lifestyle is perfect 100% of the time. I love having a few days each year to relax on the beach—but I wouldn’t want to do that every day, or even most days.
What lifestyle feels ideal for you most of the time? Cultivate that.
By keeping a list of basic tasks and actions to perform daily, you can gauge your success based on the number of tasks completed. Not all of these actions are work-based, however.
For me, the most crucial action of the day is getting a full 8 hours of sleep. By accomplishing that, I provide myself with the best opportunity for a successful day.
While we may have different personalities, tastes, and interests, as humans, we all share the fundamental needs for sleep, food, and water to function. Get these basic requirements right, and we have made a good start in setting ourselves up for success.
Add on to these basic needs – exercise and walking daily, as well as socialising with friends, family, and peers, and we are now creating a winning formula.
What if we could create a simple formula for ourselves to ensure we can almost always have a great day?
Freelancer Fundamentals Formula
Think of a great work day you had recently; what actions did you take, and what made it great?
Whilst this is a very personal exercise, I believe that the following 10 actions, performed daily (or as often as possible), will set you on a consistent and achievable path to success.
- Get 8 Hours of Sleep & A Consistent Bedtime Routine
- Wake Up Early And Get Your Morning Routine Right
- 30 Minutes of Walking Outside
- Drink Plenty of Water
- 4 hours of Deep Work
- 30 Minutes of Exercise
- Eat 90% Healthy Whole Foods
- Socialise With Others
- Learn Something New
- Create Something New
At the end of this article, I share a framework you can use to create your own Freelancer Fundamentals Formula.
Get 8 Hours of Sleep & A Consistent Bedtime Routine
A great morning starts the night before. Building a habit of going to bed at the same time each night will help your circadian rhythm and, in turn, boost your mood and energy levels.
The circadian rhythm, also known as your internal body clock, is a natural system that regulates sleep-wake cycles. It repeats roughly every 24 hours and is influenced by environmental cues, like light and temperature. Maintaining a consistent sleep schedule helps to keep your circadian rhythm in balance, which in turn can improve your sleep quality and overall health.
Circadian Rhythm description by ChatGPT
You can read more about why your circadian rhythm is so important in this post by Dan Go.
Wake Up Early And Get Your Morning Routine Right
Since you went to bed at a reasonable time and got your 8 hours of sleep, you can wake up early, too! My bedtime is 10:30pm, wake-up is 6:30am. I try to be in bed before 10pm each night to give my body time to settle down from the busy day it had.
What you do immediately after waking is crucial – apart from the obvious shower, get dressed, etc… here are some ideas you can adopt into your morning:
- No screens for the first hour – leave your phone alone.
- Drink up to 1 litre of water before touching caffeine.
- Journal
- Exercise
- Go for a Walk or at least get some sun exposure (read this post on light exposure for more information)
My morning includes feeding my chickens before joining my Morning Accountability Group.
30 Minutes of Walking Outside
This doesn’t need to be in the morning, but scheduling a walk into your calender and doing it at the same time each day will help you stay consistent.
I have a reminder set at 5:15 pm every day to go for a walk. As my work primarily involves sitting at my desk, I don’t naturally get much walking in during the day. It’s also a myth that you need to hit 10,000 steps. A brisk 30-minute walk, along with regular movement away from your desk every hour or so, is all you need.
Drink Plenty of Water
Staying hydrated will help with concentration levels. Aim for at least 2 litres a day.
Maintaining proper hydration is crucial for numerous bodily functions, and one key benefit is enhancing one’s ability to focus. When your body is well-hydrated, it can function optimally, leading to improved cognitive performance and higher concentration levels.
If you struggle to drink water, try adding cordial or an electrolyte tablet or make a herbal tea.
I’m obsessed with Sparkling Water, which I drink more often than not.
Others may disagree with me, but the water in your regular tea or coffee will count towards your daily goal, too—just don’t make it the only thing you drink!
4 hours of Deep Work
The idea that we can work at full capacity all day is a myth. Apart from the occasional day when a single, all-consuming task captures our attention, it’s unrealistic to expect peak productivity at all times.
Try to find a 4-hour window during which you can do deep work. This time should be when you minimise distractions and complete the non-negotiable task/s for the day. Do this every day, and you will be performing at the highest level.
30 Minutes of Exercise
Yes, this is in addition to a 30-minute walk. Whether you hit the gym, go for a run, cycle or workout from home – committing to 30 minutes of any exercise a day is only going to do good.
I schedule strength training during my lunch break each day. At 12pm, I break my fast with a protein shake and then do a moderate strength training session for between 30 and 45 minutes. I try not to break a sweat so I can resume work at 1pm without needing a shower.
Eat 90% Healthy Whole Foods
The better the quality of food we consume, the better performance we can expect from our bodies. By aiming for 90% healthy whole foods, we are choosing to lead a balanced lifestyle.
A useful exercise to ensure you are eating the right amount of food is to find your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) – this is how many calories you burn each day without doing any activity. To calculate your approximate BMR, multiply your weight in kilograms by 24.
Any additional active calories you burn throughout the day can be added to this number to get your maintenance calories total. I track my active calories with an Apple Watch. Typically, I burn around 400 active calories a day, not including exercise.
If you are planning to make significant changes to your diet, please consult a nutritionist or your doctor.
Socialise With Others
We often don’t realise the power of a good chat with another person. Many freelancers (myself included) spend the majority of their day at a desk (often at home) with little to no human contact.
It’s important to make a conscious effort to socialise and engage in stimulating conversations during the day, even if it’s via a video call or over the phone. These interactions can break up the monotony of the day, provide different perspectives, and ultimately improve productivity and well-being.
Learn Something New
The Stoic philosopher Epictetus once said, “Devote the rest of your life to making progress.”
Learning one new (useful) thing a day helps contribute to our growth and continuous improvement.
The author James Clear calls this ‘The Power of Tiny Gains’.
Education is exercise for the brain.
Create Something New
As freelancers, we manage every aspect of our business, from social media to finances, all by ourselves. However, we often overlook our own brand while focusing on our client’s work.
Logo Designer James Barnard has grown his Instagram following to over 500,000. He achieved this by dividing his time equally between developing his own brand and working on client projects.
Sometimes, creating content for your brand might seem fruitless. You might publish several pieces over a month and see minimal engagement. However, consistent posting can yield significant results over time. So, don’t get discouraged if one effort doesn’t pay off immediately. Think of it as a long-term strategy and create content daily.
Remember that the content you create can be evergreen, meaning it will be relevant to others forever. Imagine stacking up hundreds or thousands of pieces of relevant content over the next few years! You’ll become unstoppable.
Your Freelancer Fundamentals Framework
As mentioned at the beginning of this article, these ten steps may not suit everyone. If you disagree with some or all of the fundamentals outlined here, that’s perfectly okay. You can create your own steps that align with your schedule and lifestyle.
Use our Free Notion Template Framework to help you get started in creating your own Fundamentals Framework. As always, please feel to get in touch if you have any questions about this article. You can contact me on Twitter, Instagram or use our contact form.
This article was inspired by a post on Instagram by Christian Thibaudeau.
