As a freelancer, there is a lot to keep track of. There is always a dark cloud over our heads that reminds us that it’s up to ourselves to make sure to drive the ship sailing forward. Generate income, seek opportunities, network, create projects, be creative as well as manage a business! Finances, VAT, holiday pay, pension, marketing. Yes, everything happens only if you make it happen. If we relax or have a bad day, there’s not necessarily any pay that day, or even some work that leads to pay. It is only me, and me alone, that makes sure to get paid enough to be able to live on what I do, my freelance life, my dream. So how does this balance out with trying to live a somewhat stress free freelance life? Is it even possible? We are neither experts nor researchers on stress but as freelancers we have had years of experience, learned from over 80 interviews with freelancers through our podcast, had countless high-intensity projects, stressful deadlines, done things we don’t know how to do, been on stage hundreds of times and generally challenged ourselves to the limit. This has given us a lot of stress in our lives, both good and bad. In this talk we share what we have learned, how we cope with these challenging surroundings and hopefully give you some tools you can apply in our creative life.