Why needing money is good for writers

Yesterday, I had one of those small panic attacks that all self-employed freelancers have (writers, artists, etc.)---I checked the balance on my bank account. After seeing how low the balance was, I revised my priority list for the work that I am planning on doing next week.

(There is not much that I can do differently this week. My wife has the priority marker for this week; next week, she is out of town and I can hack out some stuff without too much fear of being interrupted.)

In economic theory, there are certain things that while unpleasant when they happen to you are still considered ultimately good for the economy, such as unemployment. I try to look at my low bank balance in the same light. It is not neccessarily easy to do, but I try.

The low bank balances of freelancers drive us to find more business, more paying customers, and actually crank out work. A lot of people believe that being a freelancer means that you get to do work that you want to do, and can ignore the work that you dislike doing. Only doing the type of work that you feel like doing is a good way to ensure that you are not going to have a roof over your head for long.

Being a freelancer, or at least a successful one, involves finding the willpower to do the work that you find unpleasant. In my case, and I imagine most successful freelancers, that low bank balance is the carrot on the end of the stick. After all, I like having a roof over my head and food on the table.