Freelancefolder

Happy Memorial Day to Our Readers

Posted May 31, 2010 in News

Today is a holiday in the U.S.

At Freelance Folder we’re taking this day off to relax and spend some time with our friends and families. We hope that you have a good day too.

If you miss the exciting freelancing discussions that we have here, why not check out the Freelance Folder forums? The forums are open all day, every day. There’s always great conversation and some networking opportunities happening there.

Don’t forget to visit us again tomorrow, when we resume our regular posting schedule. Have a great day!

Image by BigStockPhoto

Open Thread: Do You Do Anything Different In the Summer?

Posted May 30, 2010 in Open Thread

One of the advantages of the freelancing lifestyle is flexibility–the ability to turn down projects and basically set your own schedule.

When it comes to summertime, I know that freelancers usually take one of two approaches:

• Slow down and take time with friends and family or go on trips and vacations
• Full speed ahead–business as usual

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What to Do on the Slow Days

Posted May 28, 2010 in Inspiration, Lifestyle

Freelancing can get quite busy, and as they say, when it rains, it pours.

I’ve read a lot of articles about how to freelance effectively, and different approaches you can take to get things done for your clients in a timely manner… But, what about when things are dead, and you really cannot find much to do?

Well here are a few things I like to do to keep busy when things aren’t particularly busy during a day or two during the week… Or, if I’m unlucky, a whole week.

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Create a Compelling Online Portfolio by Guest Blogging

Posted May 27, 2010 in How-To

Many freelancers I know have been shying away from guest blogging because they are used to being paid for creating content and guest blogging is all about spreading content for free. However, money is not everything, especially “immediate” money.

Guest posting is more valuable than your current paid task. It builds your reputation and positions you as an expert. It makes it possible for you to charge more by making you an authority. It exposes your expertise and high quality work to hundreds of potential clients.

Therefore, you must create your guest posting strategy. Just start now.

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The (Myth of?) the Lonely Freelancer

Posted May 26, 2010 in Freelance Stories, Lifestyle

Freelancers are lonely, or so says conventional wisdom.

Here at Freelance Folder, we’ve addressed the issue of loneliness several times.

Freelancing loneliness is a well-established fact–or is it?

Recently, I realized that I’m not very lonely and haven’t been for quite a while. That got me wondering about the issue of loneliness and freelancing.

Is it a myth that most freelancers battle loneliness, or is it a truth?

To find out I decided to pose the question “do you feel lonely” to my Twitter community.

In this post, I share those answers and invite you to share how you would have responded to my question.

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Why You Should Never Charge Hourly

Posted May 25, 2010 in How-To, Managing Clients

One of the biggest and oldest debates between freelancers is whether you should charge hourly or by the project. While both sides of the debate have valid points, if you want to really go anywhere in your freelance career, you should avoid charging hourly.

Why? There are several reasons for charging by the project, and it also seems to be common among the higher end freelancers I know. So, let’s take a look at why you shouldn’t charge hourly.

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There’s More to Freelancing Than Working from Home

Posted May 24, 2010 in Freelance Stories, Lifestyle

There are two types of freelancers.

On one hand are those who have been forced into self-employment as service providers, because they’ve lost their jobs and are having a hard time finding another one.

On the other hand are those who would be freelancing no matter what: even if the job market were booming, and even if the Internet weren’t around to give so many opportunities to work from home. They would still be hawking their services, working in their pajamas, and being completely happy doing it.

The latter are what I call freelancers at heart. They have the freelancing mindset. For them, freelancing is more than about working from home.

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11+ Computer Security Apps to Keep Your Freelancing Business Safe

Posted May 23, 2010 in Productivity, Tools/Resources

As a freelance professional, you depend on your computer for your livelihood. More than any other kind of computer user, you need to make sure that that computer (and the information on it) is safe and secure.

Unfortunately, in the online world where most of us do our work there are a few threats to our livelihood. I’m talking about those threats that come in the form of computer viruses and malware, which we might download automatically from a site or through an email attachment.

If you’re working on a machine with an MS Windows or Vista operating system, that threat is particularly likely. Depending on how active you are online, it may not be a question of whether you’ll ever encounter computer malware, but rather, a question of when.

Fortunately, there is a wide variety of software available to protect your computer, and your livelihood. In this post, I list eleven of the most popular antivirus packages and provide a brief description of each. Many of these packages also include a free version, a trial version, or other free services. Although, to get maximum protection you’ll want to purchase a full application.

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Thank-You to Our May Advertisers

Posted May 22, 2010 in Business

May has been an exciting month at Freelance Folder. We’ve opened up our forums. We’ve launched our own YouTube channel.

Our terrific advertisers help make all these developments, and all the wonderful posts that you read each day, possible.

At Freelance Folder we have the good fortune to have some extraordinary companies supporting the blog. Our advertisers provide services and products that are vital to freelancing success. Trust us, these companies know and understand freelancing. We would definitely recommend checking them out.

Here’s the complete list of our wonderful advertisers:

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