6 Ways to Improve Your Work When You’re Not Working

1. Get or Update Your Website

If you currently have a website and have some free time, now is the time to update it. Have you added your latest work? Maybe an updated profile image is in order? Also take a look at your bio and see if there are ways to update and make it more appealing to the clients you are wanting to work with.

Whether you are starting from scratch or updating, tending to your web needs is a great place to start when work has slowed down.

2. Reach out to Previous Clients

I know, this is kind of a no brainer. However, reaching out to old clients doesn’t dawn on me right away either when the phone hasn’t been ringing. Partly is because of pride. “Why aren’t they calling me, didn’t I do a good job the last time?” These types of questions are often beside the point. Previous clients may not be calling you, not because they are looking for someone else, but most often they haven’t thought of calling you or were not even aware you were needing work.

3. Revisit Your Annual Goals

One of the things to do in creating and setting your goals is to write them down, via digitally or on paper. Any way in which you can reference back to them during the year. When work is slow this is a perfect time to look back and see what benchmarks you can work on in order to get closer your set goals.

You may find that you wanted to get organized or start a blog, maybe you wanted to work on a side skill like still photography… this slow period may be a perfect opportunity to begin working those items.

4. Pick Up or Revive a Hobby

Whatever hobby(s) you have, begin taking those up or start a new one as things slow down. You will find yourself not worrying about the lack of work you have and may refuel your perspective and give you ideas on how to move forward in the lull periods.

5. Set Up New Systems

A good way to use your slow down periods are to re-think your processes and systems in which you use when you are busy. Write your ideas down and then revisit them when work has backed off some. Maybe it's using a new billing software or maybe you'd like to implement a new data aquisition workflow.

Whatever it may be use the time to begin practicing and implementing those new workflows and processes. When work picks back up, you will have those new systems in place and can begin using them right away and be much more efficient in your productions. Your new work and clients will benefit from your efficiency.

6. Create and Explore

Of course it goes without saying that using some free time to create and explore new ideas is a perfect time to take advantage of such opportunities. Keep an Evernote folder full of ideas to keep those ideas from leaving your memory and to revisit when things are slow and you can begin putting those ideas and concepts into practice.

Conclusion

If you haven’t noticed, some of these points reference things that need to written down. Keeping track of things by writing them down you’re shooting yourself in the foot.

There’s no reason in this day of advanced technology that you should not be writing ideas and thoughts down.

Yes, it may take a few seconds each time but those seconds will be worth more later on.

Evernote is one app that you can use but there are many others.

As long as you use it and it works for you, you need to be doing this simple task. Start today if you haven’t already!