Episode 22: Smart Habits for Managing Social Anxiety and Perfectionism With Sadie Hall
Back in May, we asked our listeners what topic we should discuss on our podcast, and the response was overwhelming: anxiety.
We believe that this response is definitely a reflection of the time we’re all in, but it is also something many freelancers struggle with from time to time—both anxiety in general and social anxiety in particular.
We are very grateful to our guest, Sadie Hall, for joining us in this episode and sharing her experience with managing anxiety, social anxiety, and perfectionism.
Sadie is a freelance translator and editor living in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. She completed an honours bachelor of arts with a specialization in French-to-English translation at the University of Ottawa from 2010 to 2012. Her previous degree, also from the University of Ottawa, was a general bachelor of arts with a minor in linguistics. In 2012, she launched her freelance career, building on her network of contacts from the university.
She worked full-time on her freelance business until her first child was born in 2015. Since then, she has been doing the parenting and freelancing balancing act with varying degrees of success, depending on the month. She also speaks candidly on her blog and Instagram account about her experiences with motherhood and mental health issues, particularly recovering from social anxiety and perfectionism.
She hopes that sharing her mental health journey can raise awareness and help others feel less alone, and she is planning to write a mental health memoir soon.
Here is a summary of our conversation with Sadie:
How and when she started her freelance translation career
How her journey in dealing with anxiety, and social anxiety in particular, started
How she realized that anxiety was affecting her and what she did to manage this condition
What role her support system has played in the process
What social anxiety is and how it might affect someone’s work
What some of the symptoms of social anxiety are and how to know if you should talk to someone or seek help
How perfectionism can affect translators and become a contributing factor to anxiety, and, more importantly, what you can do to manage it
How to manage stress and the challenges that come with owning a freelance business
How stress and anxiety can play into the balance of family and work life and how to navigate these priorities while dealing with anxiety
What smart habits can help you manage anxiety, social anxiety, and perfectionism
Sadie’s advice to freelance translators who suspect they may be suffering from anxiety
resources we mentioned in this episode:
Sadie’s freelance business site
Bonkers: A Real Mum's Hilariously Honest Tales of Motherhood, Mayhem and Mental Health by Olivia Siegl
The Joy of Missing Out: Live More by Doing Less by Tonya Dalton
The Genius Life: Heal Your Mind, Strengthen Your Body, and Become Extraordinary by Max Lugavere
If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health, know that there are resources and professionals who can help. Reach out to your physician, your local mental health hotline, or someone you trust and let them know you need help.
“Anxiety is a human experience, and everyone has degrees of anxiety across a spectrum and depending on the situation and the seasons of life. Once it starts interfering with your life, interfering with your work, making it hard to function—when the symptoms become debilitating, and it feels like everything you’ve tried isn’t working—then I would say it’s at least worth talking to someone. Just trust your gut. If something is off, there’s a good chance you’re right.”
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