A commenter on last week's open thread mentioned how hard it is to juggle finding projects with actually doing projects. I think that's one of the toughest parts of freelancing, because marketing and business development requires a different mindset from immersing yourself in a magazine article or a logo design.But if you don't take the time market yourself while you still have paying projects, it's tough to bust out of the feast or famine cycle that keeps so many freelancers on edge. Some freelancers I know designate a few hours a week or a certain day of the week specifically for sending out queries, even when they're crazy busy. Others, like me, use anchor clients to sustain them while they seek out new projects. Or when business slows down, they'll check in with past clients and follow up on warm leads, since those gets projects can typically amp up more quickly than brand new ones. What about you? How do you balance the creative side of freelancing with the need to find new clients and new projects?
Flickr photo courtesy of Pedro Moura Pinheiro