I'm a contractor/consultant and know exactly what you're talking about. Things that help me. 1) Finish all client work first 2) Reach out to my network, not

I'm a contractor/consultant and know exactly what you're talking about. Things that help me. 1) Finish all client work first 2) Reach out to my network, not for work but just to catch up with people, sometimes work comes out of this effort but it's also good just to hear from people (even when you're busy it's good to make time to stay in touch) 3) Think about how to bring in some more business, this can require thoughts, strategy, etc 4) When times are busy clients sometimes ask me for things that could be more generic for lots of different clients, I immediately write them down so that in down times I can look through the list, can any of these ideas be made into a small side hustle? 5) Hit the beach/slopes/gym, whatever I put off during the busy times. You probably put some things off when you were really busy that you have time for now