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You left corporate so that you had the freedom to thrive in both your work-life and your life-life. So why do you still feel trapped?
When we start out working for ourselves, it's not unusual to imagine having time to explore our ideas, our other interests and working from wherever life may choose to take us on any given day. No plans. No must-dos. Just freedom.
But what many a freelancer r will tell you is that the lack of an enforced structure can be weirdly restrictive.
Here lies the freedom paradox: to feel less trapped by your business you might need more boundaries and more stucture, not less.
Now you run the shop, it's down to you to create the boundaries and structure that work for you.
When JFDI Did Not JF'ing happen
True story: Back in my corporate days, I worked for a CEO who was so frustrated by the barriers that were stifling key projects, he launched a new project team to counteract the roadblocks.
The new project was called “Just F***ing Do It” (JFDI). The plan? There was no plan! Just freedom to cut through all the red tape and let ideas and solutions soar. No more procrastination, no more waiting around for approvals. Just getting stuff done and getting results.
Reader, they had to cancel JFDI.
Giving people complete freedom to get things done without providing any structure to help get things done did not get anything done at all.
What you need (and don't need) to find the freedom to fly
If you want your ideas, hopes, and joy in your business to truly take off, you don’t need:
Bureaucracy for bureaucracy's sake
Software for software's sake
Meetings for meeting's sake
To wrap your business in so much cotton wool that it weighs it down.
Systems and procedures gathering dust in the cloud, adding to the mental load rather than eleviating the workload of all the tasks you need to crack on with each day.
A rigid, inflexible routine
What's far more useful is:
Launch pads: clear, simple, on-a-page checklists you can find easily and follow as second nature when launching a new service, idea or strategy.
Safety nets: to give you confidence to fly as high as possible with that new idea, knowing that if it crash lands, your business is protected.
Standard procedures for core processes to relieve the mental load of day to day tasks and to help you delegate with ease.
A little routine to kick start each day and close each day down in a way that feels good.
The confidence to flex, change and respond quickly: this agility is, after all, a key strength you have over your larger competitors.
The Key to Stop Feeling Trapped by Freelancing
As is often the way, it's all about the balance —stripping away the unnecessary barriers, while acknowledging that you still need a simple, functional 'machine' to run your business effectively. The great news now you work for yourself you can create a machine that works for you!
Yes, the wrong systems designed in the wrong way can bog you down and hold you back. The right systems - right for you, that is - they can set you free to do what you love.
Here are some ideas designed to free your expertise, rather than stifle it:
Time blocking your tasks: Keeps you focused without feeling overwhelmed.
Little and often: Break tasks into small, manageable chunks.
Scheduling tools: Automate your calendar and keep your time sacred.
Book your time off: Guard your personal time like you guard your client time.
Honour personal development: Treat time for learning like a meeting with a VIP—you are the VIP.
Invest in your relationship with your business: Like any healthy relationship, it needs consistent care and attention.
Budgeting: Freedom starts with knowing your finances.
Set easy-to-track KPIs: Measure progress in a way that doesn’t feel like a corporate ball and chain.
Automate reminders for recurring tasks so you can focus on the big stuff.
Ditch, delegate, and automate: Put systems in place so these things don’t pile up and bog you down.
Freedom needs a trellis (not a cage)
The right kind of structure isn’t a cage; it’s a trellis, giving your ideas the light and the unobtrusive support they need to grow.
The secret to feeling free in your business isn’t tossing structure out the window. It’s creating those systems that support your creativity and protect your time.
Are you ready to trade cages for freedom?
If you are feeling a bit trapped by your business and want to feel free: free to be the type of founder you want to be while living the kind of life you want to live then give me a call.
We can find the boundaries and build the structure that works for you, without boxing you in.