The occasional dry spell is a reality of the freelance business. Maybe you
don’t find a new gig immediately after the last one ended. Perhaps the
current project ends sooner than expected. You don’t have to see this as
purgatory. If that last gig pushed you past burnout and you have some cash
to tide you over, a brief sit on the bench can be a blessing.

As with a lot of ventures, though, it helps to go in with a plan:

First, relax. Panic and important decisions mix like drugs
and fashion sense. (People of the 1970s, I’m talking to you.) Take a
much-needed break, whether it’s just a few days around the house or a few
weeks’ travel. You must appear fresh and tireless for your next gig, and
you must be in the proper state of mind to take on more work.

Next, do the math. What’s your Fund? That is, how long
can you hold out before you’re scraping the bottom of your bank account? A
worthwhile freelancer knows this at all times. This number can be a
confidence boost (”wait for a worthwhile gig”) or a reality check (”take
whatever comes your way, now“). You may even find yourself with a
couple years’ money stashed away, which is an opportunity to try something
new or different: write a book, start a whole new business, whatever.

If you’ve never calculated your Fund: add your bank balance to what You,
Inc can afford to W-2 to You, Individual. For the latter, be sure to note
any upcoming business expenses, plus legal fees for your next contract
review. Divide that sum by your monthly living expenses. This is the
number of months till Ground Zero. Subtract two or three months account
for the time will take to get paid once you start working again. Depending
on market conditions, subtract another month to account for the chance you
take a rate cut out of desperation.

Now that you know how long you can hold out, pick up the
phone. Head out to lunch with old colleagues — especially fellow
freelancers — and worthy recruiters. This is something else you should
have been doing all along, but admittedly, it’s tougher to do when you’re
clocking overtime. This point should stress the need to sacrafice the
occasional billable hour to a lunch or drink session. Networking is a
long-term investment.

Connect with people in order, based on the chances of landing a worthwhile
gig. That’s why you call colleagues first, then your old recruiter
contacts, and check the job boards last. It’s trite, it’s cliche, it’s
true: many jobs go unadvertised outside of the company or team in question.
A manager with a hot project is understandably hesitant to pick candidates
from the general pool; they’d rather put their name on the line with
trustworthy resources. Who says nepotism is always a bad thing?

Finally, Gear up for Plan B — that is, what you do when
your Fund is beyond your comfort zone. You do have a Plan B, don’t
you? It’s typically a choice between, “take whatever’s out there” and
“stick it out.” Prepare yourself for this moment, because it is rarely
pleasant.

Even if Plan B is far away, consider the long term before your Fund makes
you overconfident. Consider your next landlord or the mortgage officer:
they usually ask for recent pay stubs and sometimes even the last two
years’ tax returns. A few months’ downtime can be mistaken for something
else, leading you to jump through hoops to get that home loan or apartment.
It can be frustrating to know you can afford something, and have someone
tell you that you cannot.

Handling downtime is mostly an issue of preparation. Like any good safety
net, you want this planned out before you step out onto the high wire. As
long as you can calculate your Fund and have a feasible Plan B, you’ll
never be at a loss when the jobs are scant.