After the holiday hustle and bustle dies down, we’re left with fond memories, new traditions, and credit card bills. January may herald the New Year, but it also offers our first post-holiday credit payments, and reminds us of just how much we (over)spent during the holidays. … [Read more...]
The good thing about the Web is that it is extremely competitive. How competitive? So much that you may be able to access many services free of charge. Following are four websites that offer free tools. First up, Lemon, a free smartphone application that will capture the information on your receipts and categorize it for you. All you have to do is set up an account and take a picture of your receipts. The application will compile the information, put each purchase into an account and … [Read more...]
Thanks to the Internet, freelancing is a lot easier than a few years ago when you had to pound the pavement to find clients or run up your telephone bill trying to network. The Internet has made it possible for freelancers to offer their services and work remotely from almost anywhere in the world. What makes it even nicer is that there are many free online tools readily available to help you expand your freelance business. Following are 5 essential online tools that you should use as a … [Read more...]
As a freelancer you will find that the majority of your clients are pleasant and really great to work with. However, in the course of your career, you will inevitably deal with more difficult personalities. This is not unusual and comes with the territory when you are running a freelancing business. Following are some tips on how to deal with difficult clients: Avoid Being Defensive Being on the defensive only adds fuel to the fire. Instead, when dealing with difficult clients try to … [Read more...]
No job? No problem! Create your own by forming a company! OK, so it's not that easy. But it's not that hard either: Register with the state and local governments, print up some business cards, and you're good to go. Right? Let's step back for a moment and think through this. Perhaps last week's article on leaving your job inspired you to action, and you're thinking now about the possibility that you could build on your passions and skills to deliver a product or service that people … [Read more...]
Oh, the glory! Start your own company and achieve great fame and fortune! OK, maybe not. Run your own business and destroy your life savings. How do you decide? Last week I talked about the decision of staying or leaving your current job, but for most people what you might be jumping to is something similar to what you're currently doing – another job working for someone else. … [Read more...]
If you freelance from your home office or take your work with you wherever you go, eliminating distractions can be a challenge even for the most experienced freelancer. While the opportunity to work from wherever you want is a nice alternative to being stuck in a cubicle, mobile work comes with its share of distractions. Anyway you look at it, freelancing requires discipline and this means managing your time and taking responsibility for reducing distractions. Following are few strategies for … [Read more...]
Earning income for doing what you love to do on a flexible schedule is one of the greatest parts of freelancing. As a freelancer you also know however that a normal part of your business is experiencing ups and downs. One way to remedy this problem and ensure a steady stream of income year long is to put in place the building blocks that will allow you to generate passive revenue to supplement what you earn from your freelance business. Creating multiple streams of income can take a little … [Read more...]
Client requests for revisions are a normal part of running a freelancing business. Although you may have followed the client’s project instructions carefully to try and reduce the chances of revision requests, there will still be instances where your client makes a change request for various different reasons. The most important thing to remember is not to take it personally and to look at it as a learning experience. The second most important aspect is to know how to handle revision … [Read more...]
Most freelancers are – or should be – constantly looking for work, kind of like the relationship between teenage boys and food, or whales trolling for plankton. This constant need for work leads to an equally constant stream of job contacts and applications. And, whether you’re following up on potential jobs of your own devising or responding to a freelance job posted online, this usually means you’ll need to draft a cover e-mail. … [Read more...]
