Since leaving my office job two months ago my working life has seen many changes. Far from being the ‘easy life’ working from home, I’ve found myself busier, more stressed, and more productive than ever before. In the early stages of freelancing there’s a lot for me to learn, and what a steep learning curve it is! Not only am I handling the huge responsibility that comes with being your own boss and running your own affairs, but I am working in the world of business for basically the first time in my life (I’ve worked in companies for short bursts in the past, but the main bulk of my work experience is in the public sector). I think this transition may be one of the most challenging of all, and I hadn’t anticipated quite how difficult I would find this.

The other challenge I’m facing at the moment is how to juggle my two jobs. My mind is literally awash with a mix of my English students’ grammar problems and my own translation deadlines. I currently teach English every afternoon, and on one day of the week I’m more or less out of the office all day teaching. I’m glad to have a bit of financial security at this stage, but the extra work is clearly compromising my availability as a freelance translator, and to be honest is a little more than I’d like to be away from my little home office. As such I plan to reduce my teaching time substantially by the summer. I read this post by Susan Johnston last month, and really identified with it. She is coming from the perspective of a full-time copywriter who writes in the evenings, so the issues are slightly different, but she some excellent suggestions which could be useful for anyone who faces the challenge of having commitments to one job whilst striving to maintain a professional image in another.

So, you may ask, is all the extra stress worth it? The simple answer is, most definitely, yes. To be honest, I just haven’t looked back. Now, I’m not someone who believes that hard work is the route to happiness, but there is definitely something to be said for being in a job which stretches you and provides clear career goals.

I’ve decided to spend much of this week (when I’m not teaching) taking stock, and catching up with myself. Now that I’m my own boss, I have a lot of paperwork and accounts to get in order…