A Day in The Life of a Freelance Artist

I’ve been freelancing full-time for almost 7 years now, so I definitely have my routine. I know what works for me, and what doesn’t. For this post, I thought I’d give you an inside look at what my average day looks like. This article is perfect for anyone considering a freelance career, or existing freelancers who are struggling to find a balanced routine that works (this was me, for YEARS, by the way).

Alright, let’s dive in. I wake up between 8 and 9 am. I know that’s a little late for most people, but I’m big on sleep. Honestly, I can’t think of a better use of my time. If I don’t get enough sleep, I’m an unproductive mess. I consider it a necessity to wake up without an alarm. I also don’t have children, which makes sleeping in easier. Ryan usually wakes up before me and takes our two dogs out.

I’m not a morning person, so I typically stumble out of bed, put my robe on, and make some earl grey tea. I go up to my studio, sit on my daybed, meditate, and read non-fiction. Because I’m not a morning person, I try really hard not to schedule meetings before noon. I’ve learned it’s important to be honest with myself about my natural tendencies, in order to find my most productive schedule.

Around 9:30 or 10 am, I shower, do my makeup, and get dressed. My makeup takes 7 minutes (I’m weird, I timed it), and I don’t really do my hair because it takes too much time. Natural waves or a top knot is my go-to look. I usually wear comfy clothes with fun jewelry to dress my outfit up a bit. I always wear perfume to feel a little fancier too. My goal is to look semi-put together (as in, could hop on a client call at any moment) in as little time possible. After getting dressed, I’ll make breakfast - usually avocado pudding, a smoothie (I love Daily Harvest smoothies for efficiency/variety, though this is not a sponsored post), or fruit & coconut yogurt. The beauty of working from home is that I eat pretty healthy without the bad influence of coworkers - something I never thought about when I considered freelancing. It’s been a great perk though!

Once I’ve made breakfast for Ryan and I, I head up to my studio and check my e-mails. Sometimes, we eat breakfast together if it’s a slower morning. We love eating outside in the summer. Based on what’s in my inbox, I make a list of 3 work and 3 personal tasks to do every day. Guys, this habit changed my life! It keeps me on top of things at all times. I always get comments that I’m super organized. This is why. If I don’t complete something from my list, it rolls over to the next day. During this time, I also answer any e-mails that require a quick response.

After this, I start tackling my list. By now, it’s probably 11 am. I usually start with the easiest items and work my way backwards. I’m big on batching tasks by weekday. If it’s a Monday or Thursday, I print and ship Etsy orders. It takes me an hour or two, and I’m usually printing 10-15 prints. If it’s Tuesday, I write a blog post. If it’s Friday, I may post a new print to Etsy. Friday is kind of a half day for me, because I like to get organized before the weekend. I’ll clean my studio and desktop, do laundry, and straighten up the house. It makes starting a new week that much easier. I also find I can enjoy the weekend more if things are in order.

At some point late morning, Ryan and I usually take a break to walk the dogs. At noon or one, I’ll break for lunch and do 30 minutes yoga on Youtube (shoutout to Yoga with Adriene, my fav). As a freelancer, yoga has changed my life, completely reversing the effects of sitting at a desk all day. Before I got into daily yoga, I struggled a lot with neck and shoulder pain. I’m not a big lunch person, so I’ll just grab a snack on the go. On the days I ship orders, I’ll stop at Starbucks on my way to FedEx for a coffee treat.  

I do the heavy lifting from my to-do list in the afternoon. This typically means client work, because it takes the most brain power. I don’t really have to search for clients anymore, because I’ve been doing this long enough to have a full roster of projects most of the time. I mainly work off referrals. If I have less going on, I just take advantage of the break and work on personal projects. I used to do client work all day, but as my print shop and blog have gained more traction, this is not the case. Client work typically means meetings and illustration/design projects. Around three, I’ll break again for a short walk with the dogs. Frequent walks are also great at reversing the effects of sitting at a desk. These walks keep me balanced. Getting dogs was one of the best things we ever did because they force you to take breaks. I have a new habit of spending 50 minutes a day working on “big projects” (more on that here), which I usually do in the afternoon.

I’m a stickler on ending my workday between 5 and 6 pm. When I’m done, I shut my office door and head downstairs to sort out dinner. I’m not big on cooking because, at this point, I’ve put a lot into my day. Freelancing is more taxing than working in an office because you run on all cylinders. There’s not any coffee room chat time. I’m hustling through every day trying to get as much done as possible. Because of this, we typically make something easy for dinner – like seafood on a salad, or we order food. We also like Blue Apron three times a week (also not sponsored, I’m just a big fan), to cut back on grocery shopping time. I love a kombucha or cocktail with dinner to mark the end of the work day.

After dinner, I’ll shower, put my pajamas on, and Ryan and I will watch TV. I have no shame in zoning out in front of the TV for an hour or two per night. It feels great to rest my brain. I also find shows to be really inspiring, especially design shows or shows with cool visual effects. They give me great art ideas. At least, that’s what I tell myself :)

At 10 pm-ish, I’ll head to bed and read fiction. Reading fiction before bed is another great way to turn my brain off. I also journal before bed, writing down everything I did that day. I started this habit a few years ago on my birthday and, to my surprise, it actually stuck. A great hack is to start habits on your birthday if you want to make them last!

Around 11 pm, it’s lights off, and on to the next day.

Granted, this routine isn’t every day. Sometimes I’ll have plans in the evenings, or my mom and I will hit an antique shop on a less busy day. However, this is most days. I’m super protective over my weekends, because it’s my time to recharge. I try not to schedule more than 1-2 social activities per weekend, and I love to keep Sundays open as a lazy day. On the weekends, I sleep, have movie nights, get outside, and spend time with my family. My porch swing is one of my favorite places. I also read and paint a lot on the weekends.

The best advice I can give new freelancers is to aim for balance over productivity. Most of us are naturally wired to overwork ourselves, especially when we’re our own boss. The struggle comes with accepting how much you can actually accomplish in a day. Often, balance feels like slacking, but it’s not. It’s hard to take breaks and practice self-care, especially when you’re billing per hour. That’s why it’s important to charge enough and have income streams that don’t bill per hour - something I’m always striving towards. If you’re burnt out, and still not making enough, double your rates and try out some new income streams. Find a schedule that works for you, and then structure your income goals around that. This took me years to master, so be patient with yourself. Freelancing can be the best thing you ever did for your health, or it can drive you into the ground if you aren’t careful.

You may be looking at my day and thinking “wow, you actually don’t do that much per day.” Well, people in an office don’t get that much done on an average day either. The difference is that your downtime in an office is validated by those around you. When we’re home alone, there’s no one there to say breaks are okay or give us a pat on the back. On average, I’m capable of doing up to 5 hours of productive work per day. Physically, I can only do 3-4 hours of illustration work max before my hand gets tired. When I speak with new freelancers about what to charge, I tell them not to bill more than 30 hours per week to clients. You need to factor in breaks and time to grow your business when calculating your hourly rate. In my experience, 40 hours of billable work per week is nearly impossible.

In sharing my day in the life, I hope you formulate some new healthy habits and learn to thrive as a freelance artist. For those of you freelancers out there - how do you find balance in your day? I’m always looking for tips and hacks!