Do you work when you’re Sick?
When you work as a freelance writer, there are no sick days. This is not to say that you can’t take off, but if you do, you are not going to get paid. This is one of the downsides of working for yourself as opposed to receiving a paycheck from a company. This brings me to the question: do you work when you are sick?
The reason that I ask this question is that I was under the weather a bit last week. While I wanted to take off and lay in bed all day, for some reason I felt guilty doing so. Simply put, I want to make sure that I am available to my clients everyday so that they feel comfortable working with me. Most clients would more than understand taking a day off because I was sick, but even giving this impression is something that I try to avoid.
Personally, I always try to work even if I am sick. With that being said, the line has to be drawn somewhere. After all, it can be difficult to churn out high quality content when you are suffering from flu like symptoms. If I don’t feel great, I try to work for as long as possible and then take breaks when need be. This may not allow me to get all of my work done for the day, but making any progress is better than none at all.
On the opposite side of things, as a freelancer you have endless sick days in a sense. You do have to get your work done, but at the same time, you do not have to worry about a boss getting mad because you stayed at home a few days in a row. Even though you won’t get paid if you don’t work, you do have the benefit of taking time off at your discretion.
All in all, if I can make it to my computer and complete quality work, I usually do so when sick. But sometimes this is not possible, and taking a day off, even if it means getting a bit behind, is more than necessary.Â
