If you’re a freelance copywriter, you know the rewards of being able to control your work schedule, but you’ve probably also crossed the line where you feel like it’s controlling you at times. Read on to get tips from fellow freelancers who have walked in your shoes and found ways to balance work and personal life successfully.

Listen to Meditation Podcasts

It's hard to shift from hustling to the off button. It seems counter-intuitive to survival. But as I age, I realize the importance of downtime, as well as connected time and playtime. When I was younger, I was such an energy powerhouse. As I age, I notice that when I don't take these moments each day to balance my energy, I'm not a very fun person to be around. And internally, I notice that I can start resenting all the wonders of life.

So, I intentionally listen to meditation podcasts on the way to meetings. I intentionally take my Powerbeats out on a 10-minute daily walk to nowhere. I fill 30 minutes with something creative that gives me a non-important yet integral purpose, like cooking, coloring, or cultivating a new playlist. I set my daily time blocks to allow for fruitful freelance work at the right times, and daydreaming, creativity and connection with others.

It ain't easy. I heartily lean on the Reminders, Alarm, Notes and Calendar Apps on my Mac devices to schedule downtime.

Schedule Downtime in Your Calendar

As a freelancer, a great way to take downtime is to realize the importance of downtime as a business tool for better productivity and plan weekly, monthly, and quarterly events in your calendar.

Every week, this could look like an afternoon of inspiration (visiting a museum, seeing a movie, taking a meditation or fitness class, etc.).

Every month this might be a day completely offline for networking, a family outing, or a day trip to another city.

Every quarter, perhaps a long weekend away. For maximum effectiveness, leave your laptop at home and don’t check your mail until you’re back in the office.

Give Yourself One Day Off Every Week

• I often will schedule ‘down time’ into my week by blocking off a few hours in a day and setting an alarm. This is a reminder to me to step away from my computer and do something active and/or non-work-related. I almost always find this helps my focus and productivity when I do sit back down to work.

• I schedule one day a week off so that I can see friends, catch up on hobbies, or just take it easy at home. I am pretty committed to this, even if it means working a few extra hours other days of the week to accommodate the day off. Having one day where I don’t touch work gives a reset to my whole week!

• For scheduling larger breaks or vacations, I reach out to my clients ahead of time, giving them as much notice as possible. I will set my email auto-responder to OOO so it helps manage expectations if clients do send me messages during that time.

Go Out and Have Fun

When I first started freelancing, I rarely took any days off. I was young, and let's be honest, arrogant. I didn't think I needed them. I quickly learned that I soon burnt out. I wasn't producing great quality work. I wasn't able to think outside of my business. I was too stuck in the day-to-day.

Now, it's different. Taking downtime is important. You need it; otherwise, you won't produce magic in your business. When I do take downtime, I make sure I get out and do things for myself. I spend money on myself because I'm worth it, and I need to keep on doing it to make myself happy and pursue my business.

Write it Into Your Planner

Downtime is a must for anyone who is a freelancer. Otherwise, you will experience burnout very quickly. With more people working on a freelance basis, it is important to set rules to protect yourself, both physically and mentally.

We all know that employees benefit from the fact they have holiday entitlements and get paid annual leave, but freelancers do not enjoy the same luxury – if you don’t work, you don’t get paid! A good way to ensure you have downtime is to diarise it, just the way you would plan out your week's work for a client.

Some of the things you can do to ensure you get downtime are:

• Book a weekly exercise class, which means you have to leave your office/home regularly.

• Arrange to meet other ‘work from home/freelancers’ for coffee and a catch-up.

• Take lunchtime leave –go buy your lunch at your favorite shop.

• Schedule as much work as possible – things such as tweets can be planned to automatically update, leaving you a bit of time to relax.

• Don’t feel guilty about taking time off – if work comes you can honestly tell your client that your diary is full and provide them with an alternative date for completion.

• Move money to a separate account regularly and make sure you have a ‘slush fund’ so you can enjoy your time off!

Whatever you do, remember that if you don't schedule in some downtime, you will ultimately pay the price of not being able to work at all. Burnout, fatigue, reduced concentration, poor mental health – all these things can lead to major health issues – YOU are your business so treat yourself with care.

Schedule Your Downtime Like It’s an Official Meeting

As a freelancer, it can be easy to end up with meetings and tasks at all hours of the day. To make sure that I still take downtime to live a life outside of my work, I schedule my downtime each week as if it were an official meeting. Depending on the needs of the week, that time may change but once I’ve established when my downtime will be throughout the week, I honor that time as if it were a work event.

When people ask for meetings at that time, I simply say that I am already booked. Additionally, I leave behind any connection to work during those hours so that I am not tempted to sacrifice my time for a quick work task. This strategy has helped me make the most of my time and ensure that I don’t experience burnout.