The Freelance Feed (General)

Freelancers On YouTube

Thu, 17 May 2012 14:29:03 +0000

From time to time, we post YouTube videos that address freelance issues (see yesterday’s post for an example) and we’d like to know how many of you are active on YouTube, what you think it may have done for you in terms of spreading the word about what you do, and how you like using [...]

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Get 3 FREE Months of Behance ProSite!

Mon, 07 May 2012 17:48:21 +0000

Attention Illustrators! We’re very excited to announce that our sister site Illustration Age is collaborating with the fine folks over at Behance to offer a very special deal on their ProSite service, which allows you to create and customize a professional portfolio website. All new subscribers to ProSite can use the promo code IA3FM for 3 FREE [...]

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Olympics causing remote work controversy in Britain

Thu, 17 May 2012 12:03:51 +0000

With the Olympics just a few months away, there's the usual flurry of stories detailing frenzied preparations by organizers and athletes. But one other type of news item is surprisingly popular in Britain – stories equating telecommuting during the games with slacking at home.

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Top Ten Things I’m Highly Grateful For

Fri, 28 Jan 2011 20:19:00 +0000

You know, I seem to find myself whining a lot... clients late on payment, damn coffee stain on my computer screen. Well, enough of that. Positivity is the key to enlightment, and to keep away that nasty email for today. 10. Twitter: live proof that you're not the only one goofing off at any point in time. 9. IE8 because, without it, I don't think I'd have much work to do. 8. Due to the evolution of being able to give a summary of Moby Dick in 140 characters or less, emails have...

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If You’re Going Solo, Get an Audience First

Tue, 02 Aug 2011 19:34:50 +0000

This is a guest post from Josh Ledgard, founder of KickoffLabs. They offer the simplest landing pages and newsletter support for new and small businesses. I know a lot of people that have recently decided to leave 9-5 jobs to become self-employed. One of the first things they do is hunt for someone to build [...]

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Book Review: The New Well-Tempered Sentence

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 00:48:53 +0000

When I was in grade school, we had this small (but disturbingly thick) hardcover grammar book. It was a horrible mustard yellow hue. Even to this day, I still picture this book when I think about grammar. I didn’t like it then and, to be honest, I don’t like it now. But I can recognize [...]

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Five difficult questions for Brookson

Thu, 17 May 2012 09:00:00 +0000

Following the discovery of some questionable marketing activity online, apparently originating from contractor accountant Brookson and in stark contravention of the Advertising Standards Authority Code, we’ve done some investigating and come up with five questions for the high-profile firm to answer. Disclosure: Freelance Advisor is owned by Crunch, who also offer accounting services for contractors. Connect Connect is Brookson’s flagship online product, and allows their clients to...

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Why You Can’t Afford to Be an Undercover Freelancer

Mon, 14 May 2012 15:09:34 +0000

I love detective movies. I really do. There’s nothing more thrilling than when the detective goes undercover by blending in…

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Making the Leap From Full-Time to Freelance

Thu, 17 May 2012 14:00:11 +0000

Summer is knocking on your front door, begging you for attention. Living in New England, where summer never lasts long enough, it’s hard for me to say no. But with a full-time job and my freelancing work, saying no means procrastinating. It’s hard to enjoy yourself in the summer sun when you know there is a heap of work waiting for you. I have recently told my boss that I will be going from full-time to part-time starting in October. It was a hard decision but one that, ultimately, I had to...

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Why hard work actually works

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 18:55:58 +0000

People have had the debate of ‘hard work’ or ‘smart work’ but I would like to think that anyone in business is already smart enough to just cut out the whole ‘smart work’ side of the debate – I mean, thats obvious right? If you’re working, you should be doing smart things right. But what happens when being smart isn’t enough? How do you get over the hump and get to the next level? How can you put yourself farther along the path? What can you...

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International Freelancers Day: Sept 24–25

Wed, 15 Sep 2010 19:56:06 +0000

Something big is coming for freelancers—International Freelancers Day! If you haven't heard about it yet, this is a free, two-day online conference exclusively for solo professionals. And the line up of speakers and topics are impressive. But be sure to block off your calendar because this event will be held live so you'll need to show up on time for the sessions you want to attend.

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5 Ways to Make More Money as a Freelancer

Fri, 16 Dec 2011 08:07:14 +0000

So, you’re freelance career finally has lift off. You’ve got a couple of clients under your belt…your portfolio is getting fatter….you’re feeling increasingly confident about your abilities and career choice. And best of all, you like what you do. But there’s one thing missing: the big bucks. How can you get the money to really [...]

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The “Peanut Butter” Strategy for Getting More Business

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 17:25:10 +0000

About the author: Steve Slaunwhite coaches freelancers in how to get all the ideal clients and great-paying projects they want. To book your FREE 30-minute coaching session, email steve at steve@steveslaunwhite.com. It’s often been said that if you go the extra mile for your clients, you’ll be rewarded with more repeat business and referrals. [...]

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Blogging to Promote Your Freelance Business

Sun, 17 Oct 2010 20:55:34 +0000

One way to show off how well you can write or provide content services is to start a blog about writing. Many self-employed writers have their own site. While your site should be powerful and persuasive it does not have be that difficult or complex in nature. A website of any kind is quite necessary [...]

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[The Do-Over] Monday Answers 5: How long should I wait for an editor?

Wed, 16 May 2012 02:46:24 +0000

Molly: Q: OK, I’m tweeps with some editors … do I contact them and say “Hey, I sent you a pitch…” or is that a version of e-stalking? Nancy: Q: How typical is it to get no response to pitches? Even after follow-up email? Has the culture and atmosphere changed that much? It’s very disheartening to [...]

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Does More Posts = More Traffic?

Mon, 16 Aug 2010 01:00:30 +0000

Yesterday in a post discussing the popularity of list-style posts in blogging, a commenter asked me to look at the frequency of post types in relation to the traffic they bring. Following this comment I put together some statistics and ended up wondering a slightly different question, does having more blog posts mean you end [...]

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How to roll with changes in the freelance writing landscape

Thu, 16 Feb 2012 12:06:19 +0000

I recently was interviewed for the freelance journalism site Ebyline by Susan Johnston of the The Urban Muse. Here’s my favorite question from the bunch. (You can read the interview in its entirety here.) What changes have you observed in the freelance landscape over the past several years? Online assignments have gotten shorter. Many national media [...]

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5 Proven Tactics to Increase Your Productivity

Wed, 16 May 2012 09:00:06 +0000

A search on Amazon.com for books on Productivity returns 45,960 titles. If you’re having trouble being productive at work you may find it difficult to make the time to read a book on productivity cover to cover. For that reason, I’m going to share with you 5 proven tactics that you can start implementing today [...]

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Freelancers' advisors balk at IR35 business test

Fri, 18 May 2012 07:42:43 +0000

HMRC mauled for missing an opportunity; making a bad situation worse.

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The quickest way to get things done and make change

Seth Godin — Thu, 17 May 2012 09:33:56 +0000

Not the easiest, but the quickest: Don't demand authority. Eagerly take responsibility. Relentlessly give credit.

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Where You’ll Find Me

Wed, 02 Nov 2011 03:15:20 +0000

I know it has been ages since I posted here (and I know many of you can relate). Just wanted to stop in to let you know that I’m still helping people escape from Corporate America, I’m just not blogging about it very often. I have been busy building my company, working with my clients, and [...]

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