Writing Success

Finding Balance

I thought I’d share a bit of a personal experience today. I’ve been reading the blogs of a few other successful freelance writers and was disappointed to see that one of my favorite blog writers had stopped updating. She literally dropped off the face of the earth for a couple of weeks. After a while she came back and admitted she hadn’t been feeling well but that she was trying to get back on her feet, but she quickly disappeared again. A month later she announced she might have to shut down her business. Her doctors couldn’t figure out what was wrong with her.

Thankfully, she didn’t end up shutting down her freelance writing business, but she did have to slow down considerably. Want to know what happened? She burnt herself out.

It’s difficult to launch a new career. It’s tempting to spend 12-14 hours per day in front of the computer in order to meet deadlines and drum up new business. It’s also incredibly dangerous.

Those of us who dedicate our lives to sitting in front of the computer writing sometimes forget about the basic necessities of life: food (proper nutrition), water (hydration), and sleep (oh, how I miss you so). The problem is that after we go for so long without these things our bodies start to rebel. We begin to feel tired, irritable, bleary-eyed, and sometimes sick. You may not be exercising (though you should be) but your muscles may start to ache. You may not be eating enough and, when you do take a break to eat, you probably make bad food choices. Over time, these bad habits will come back to haunt you - big time.

I began to notice this in myself not too long ago. I have a pretty decent balance as far as my timelines are concenred, but sometimes I work well into the early morning hours. I started drinking Coca-Cola much more frequently than necessary and wasn’t exactly accompanying my beverage of choice with the healthiest of snack choices. Before too long, I found myself depending on that extra caffeine to get through the day and felt worse than ever before. I was irritable, and the problems I would normally take in stride seemed monstrous. For some reason I failed to realize that my food and beverage choices were depriving me of the nutrients I needed in order to stay active, even if I was just working in front of the computer.

A few multi-vitamins and snack changes later, I’m back to normal and feeling better than ever before. I’d like to believe that the quality of my writing has benefited as well. Of course, I do occasionally have a glass of my favorite caffeinated beverage, but not nearly as often as I was before.

It’s hard to find balance, but you have to remember to take care of yourself. Your freelance writing career is hinged on one important factor: YOU. Stay safe, stay healthy, and be prosperous!