Freelancing through grief and loss 🥀
Is there any financial support for freelancers taking compassionate leave? How can you look after clients while stepping back to grieve? This is how I handled things after my own recent loss.
This isn’t a video I wanted to make, but it’s one I think the community needs. In fact, it might be far too soon for me to speak on these issues, but I think it could help a lot of people, and if I don’t hurry up and make it, I might lose my nerve.
About four months ago, I lost my Mum to a brutal form of incurable cancer. She was diagnosed in May, and by July, she was gone.
When I found out my Mum had mere days left to live, I went straight to Google. My head was a blur, and I needed comfort. I wanted someone to tell me what to do.
How should I manage my retainers?
How could I inform clients without making them feel awkward?
Would my business insurance cover all the days off I’d have to take?
Would I be eligible for any Government payouts to help me get by?
This is all important shit, and there’s not really enough information out there. So, I wanted to help other freelancers by sharing what I did, so you’ve got some idea of what you can do, too.
1) Fall back on your freelance community
First up, I was in a unique situation in that I knew my mum had a very aggressive form of cancer and that my time with her would be limited. I had warning, so I put the word out to my freelance communities on Slack and Discord.
I warned everyone what was going on with me and asked if anyone would be free to step in and cover for me last minute if needs be. The reassurance and support alone were very heartening.
If you’re going through anything similar, don’t be scared to reach out and ask for help. If you aren’t part of a freelance group and don’t have any close peers, try putting to word out on social media and see if you can find cover that way.
2) Notify your clients and manage expectations
You’ve got a lot to deal with right now, mate. Your mind is elsewhere, and your energy is sapped. No one would blame you for missing deadlines, dropping emails, or handing off work that isn’t up to your usual standard.
That’s why you’ve got to let your clients know what’s going on ASAP.
I dropped my retainer clients an email to let them know my Mum was very ill and that I may need to take sudden time off in the near future. I told them it would only be a few weeks and that I’d already reached out to find cover for them in the interim.
I asked what they had in the pipeline and whether they’d be happy to push it back or wanted cover for the work. Most chose to wait for me, which was lovely.
If you find yourself in this situation without any warning, I’d recommend copying and pasting an email to your regulars letting them know what’s happened. Include a list of writers they can call on if they need something while you’re away.
3) Pipeline and schedule your marketing
I worked ahead to pipeline my videos, blog posts, and newsletters so business development and marketing would keep ticking over while I took time off. I scheduled that shit and stepped away for two weeks.
It’s important to say that this tip comes at your own discretion. You might not give a toss about marketing, given the circumstances. And I wouldn’t blame you! It’s one of the least important items on this list, so sack it off if you need to.
4) Revisit your business insurance policy and investigate bereavement leave pay options
I was set to lose a significant portion of revenue at this point, so I looked into my business insurance (Hiscox) which doesn’t cover bereavement leave or compassionate leave for freelancers in its policy.
I also looked into paying myself compassionate leave; I’m a director of a limited company, and I employ myself. From what I could gather, compassionate leave can be either paid or unpaid — the type you’re entitled to is at your employer's discretion and should be included in your contract.
This kinda meant that I could choose whether or not to pay myself for the time off — there didn’t seem to be a government scheme in place for me. As my own employee, I was in charge of looking after myself.
Luckily, I’d built up a financial cushion in my business account and could pay myself a normal salary and dividends for the month, despite the work I’d lost.
If you can save up at least three months’ salary in your business account, I’d highly recommend it — mine covered me through the pandemic and now through this.
5) Keep clients and community informed
It’s important to stay in touch with your clients and the people who have been kind enough to take over for you — keep them updated as best you can and let them know what’s going on.
On the first business day after my mum passed, I set my out of office so I could catch anyone popping into my inbox and manage expectations. I left a note saying I was on bereavement leave and gave a vague estimation of when I’d be back. I said I wasn’t taking on new work for a few weeks but would be monitoring my emails. I also added a line for existing clients, reassuring them that I’d finish all outstanding work; it’d just take a little longer than usual.
6) Take the time you need and don’t rush back
It’s tempting to rush back to work. After all, if you’re not working, you’re not earning. Trouble is, if you rush back, you run the risk of doing more harm than good. Grief is a sneaking little bugger, and it’ll catch you when you least expect it.
Stagger your workload when you come back so you can ease yourself back into things. Set longer deadlines and if you need extensions, be honest and just ask for them. If you get new enquiries, let the prospect know that turnaround is slightly longer at the moment.
I chose to work part-time, with no hard deadlines and only two or three jobs a week for a while. It helped structure my days and gave me something to focus on without adding unnecessary stress or pressure.
This was helpful because, although I anticipated a lack of focus and productivity, I hadn’t accounted for the physical symptoms of grief. In the days following my mum’s passing, I had constant headaches, sore eyes, and a painful face from my inflamed sinuses. I was nauseous, tired, and had trouble sleeping.
I didn’t chase new work for a few months and only took tasks from regulars. You may not have the luxury of taking things slow, but either way, I hope you can be kind to yourself during this tough time.
I hope you found this helpful. If you’re reading this out of necessity, I’m so sorry for your loss. Bereavement leave as a freelancer is tricky to manage — I hope I’ve given you some help along the way. x
