Learning to say no

"I'm sorry, I can't meet you this week," I told my friend.

"But you don't have a job," my friend said. She seemed to take it personally that I couldn't find a time to meet her for lunch in Zurich.

Story of my life. At least, my freelance life.

Somehow, just because I work from home, people think that I should always be available for an afternoon coffee, a lunch outing, or a shopping trip.

It doesn't work that way.

Here's the thing. I love being a writer. I love the freedom to choose my own projects, decide who I work with, and I love being creative on my own terms. And while my work sometimes feels like play, in reality, it's still work. Yes, I have more freedom than people with office jobs, but in return I also have to have more discipline.

One of the hardest parts about the writing life is learning to say "no". I'm still bad at that. Especially when the sun in shining in Zurich and my friends are going to the pool. But sometimes getting places tomorrow means going nowhere today.

Do you struggle with saying "no"?