Freelancers and Paid Holidays or Not

As a writer I always do my best to communicate to my audience as required by my clients.  When I write for myself, I always strive to be as reasonable and informative as possible; like when I write about being a freelance writer, for example.

Occasionally, writing like that proves more difficult than you might think.  It isn’t that I have a built-in bias, or that I can’t detach myself enough to write an useful and informative piece, it’s just that sometimes, it is hard to remember those things that I have grown used to.

I’m going on my second year now as a full-time work from home entrepreneur whose primary business is freelance writing.  So, it is easy for me to forget many of the things that where new and different to me in the beginning because they have now become second nature.

Freelance Business and Holidays, Vacations, and Days Off

One such area is the concept of holidays.  For those of you joining us from outside the U.S., today is Martin Luther King Jr. Day here in America.  Martin Luther King was a civil rights crusader and a key figure in that movement.  He is honored in traditional American fashion with a holiday on the Monday closest to his birthday.

American holidays fall into two main categories, those that virtually everyone gets, and those that are observed primarily by banks and government.  MLK Day falls in the gray area, being observed by more institutions than something like Veterans Day, but by fewer than something like Memorial Day.

My wife is an employee of a state government and therefore has today off.  I, on the other hand, am working.

Why?  As a freelancer, don’t I set my own hours?

One of those realities of freelance life that you tend to forget about over time is that unlike salaried employees, a freelancer earns money only when they bill hours or complete a project.  Thus, while my wife will earn the same amount of money this week for working only four days instead of five, a freelancer would theoretically earn 1/5 less for the week by not working today.

In other words, holidays equal less pay or more work on other days. 

Freelance Writing and Time Management Scheduling

A beginning freelancer will often adjust their schedule for most anything.  They figure they can always make it up later.  This is completely true if your business pipeline is not running a 100% capacity.  However, if fully booked, there is no making it up.

So, while I will undoubtedly take some time off this afternoon to be with my wife and daughter on this beautiful January day, I will  be back in my home office tonight, wrapping up the projects I need to complete to not only earn the income we need/want, but also to keep enough time available for later this week to meet upcoming deadlines.

I wouldn’t trade freelance writing or the work from home life for anything, which is why my articles on freelance writing and freelancing are usually positive.  However, in the ubiquitous Pros and Cons list, there are some Cons.

I just can’t always think of them off the top of my head.

Happy MLK Day, everyone!