Many people look at me with envy when I say that I am a freelance SEO copywriter and I can just imagine what is going through their heads. They are probably thinking how lucky she is to work from home, she has flexible hours to do what she wants when she wants and she reaps in the money, little do they know that what I do is a lonely process, while it is flexible it is long hours and I need to keep myself motivated for long periods of time.
When you work in an office environment you always have someone to chat to, you take set lunch breaks and at a set time you go home, your life is organized, it’s fun and interactive and you get to meet all different people.
Love What You Do
The life of a SEO copywriter is not at all glamorous, easy or rich as people think it is. I crawl out of bed each day, grab a cup of coffee and sit down at my desk. I then gaze upon the piles of work which requires deadlines and I start to write. Thankfully I love what I do, so not interacting with people all day isn’t the end of the world, but there are quite a few obstacles and disadvantages that you need to overcome.
Working from home you are self-employed and this really isn’t an ideal situation to be in in this day and age, every business is suffering after the recession and work from home businesses are suffering too. Luckily customers always need copy, so you are guaranteed that there will be some income coming in, but it’s not all glitter and glamour as people believe it to be.
If you had to walk into my house when I’m working you will soon see that, I don’t have to go to work so I don’t bother with makeup, I sit in my comfortable clothes and I work, that’s what I do. As for flexi-time, yes you are in control of your time but when you think of the deadlines you have and how much work needs to be done, that flexible time goes out the window very quickly and before you know it you are a complete workaholic.
Take Time Off
It took me years to calm myself down and make a promise to myself to take weekends off to spend with my family, so much for flexi-time. I try so hard to keep my promise, though often I end up having to do one or two articles quickly on the weekend which has an urgent deadline.
Then there’s motivation, this is something that only you can achieve. You will sit alone all day as the world passes you by, your partner is off at work, kids are at school and you have the dog, a cup of coffee and your computer for company. It’s so easy to find things to do around the house rather than work, you need to keep your creativity flowing, you need to be able to last extended periods without seeing or talking to anyone and you need to know that sometimes you can work very long hours.
This all said and done, I find that motivation isn’t a huge problem for me, because I love words and I love to write, what I do find difficult at times is the loneliness, the fact that my friends are enjoying jobs where they interact with people all day and I sit here alone and work, but there is one consolation to all of this, some of them hate their jobs and in all honesty, I absolutely love mine.
About the Author: This article is brought to you by Chris Hoole. So if you’re thinking of becoming an SEO copywriter, you need to take all the considerations into account before jumping in head first only to find out that it’s not what you expected it to be.