It’s only natural for a business to quieten down a bit during the festive period. When that happens though, a bigger business can usually take the hit and recover much more easily than a freelancer. When it’s just you running a business, even just a little less work can have big consequences.

All it takes is for a client or two to give you half the work they usually give you and suddenly that’s half your income gone.

It comes as no shock to anyone that this is possibly the most expensive time of year for those who celebrate Christmas. It’s a less than ideal situation, but it’s a common one for smaller businesses and freelancers to experience.

Take a well-earned break

If there’s no work in and you have an emergency fund or savings to cover you, then there’s no harm in simply accepting that this is a good time to have a real break. Most other businesses will break up for Christmas in the UK, so why not do the same? You don’t have to work every day just because you’re self-employed. Taking breaks is vital to ensure your mental health isn’t strained and you can relax and recharge your batteries.

Take advantage of your free time

If you’re not quite ready to take a break, there are other more productive things you can do with your time. Try out an online course, learn a new skill or invest time in a new hobby.

You could expand your services or improve the value of your work – therefore giving yourself a chance to earn more next year. For example, if you offer blog posts, you could learn how to create blog graphics to go along with them and charge more.

Spend some time on your marketing

You can also use this time to revamp your marketing for the year ahead. Plan a blog content schedule for the next quarter, create some promotional graphics, give your website a rebrand or update your website content to cover any changes to your services.

Plan and prepare for the New Year

If the year is almost over, take some time aside to plan and prepare for the year ahead. It’s a great time to reflect on your year and analyse what’s been working and what hasn’t. Look at your marketing efforts, working processes, financial management and profits. What can you do to make next year better?

For future reference – build an emergency fund

If you don’t already have an emergency fund and have been struggling for cash this winter, we would definitely recommend putting some money away each month for dry spells in the future.

It’s good practice to save during your busier months to cover your quieter ones because income naturally fluctuates throughout the year. Even if your income becomes very stable, it’s still good to prepare just in case things change.

Learn more about our online bookkeeping software for freelancers.