Freelancefolder

Six Character Traits Needed for Freelancing

Posted December 17, 2010 in Getting Started, Lifestyle

Before starting a career as a freelancer (this advice also can be applied to any other career), it is a good idea to compare the qualities required for the respective job with your own mentality and way of working.

If somebody is very creative, fun, and spirited, then it is a complete mistake to choose to be an employee. Changing jobs is a challenging event, but if somebody really doesn’t like their job, they should make the change without any regret. Here are the six ideal character traits necessary for freelancing.

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Six Awesome Gifts Especially for Your Favorite Freelance Developer

Posted December 9, 2010 in Inspiration, Lifestyle

It’s that wonderful time of year again–the holidays, Christmas and a time for giving. When shopping for your favorite developer (that’s me, right?), it might be tough trying to figure out what to get them. After all, it might seem like we developers have everything from iPads to Androids to big screen LCDs.

So let’s take a look at this season’s most desirable gifts–or, at least, the gifts I wouldn’t mind getting!

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Making the Most Out of Unconferences

Posted December 6, 2010 in Lifestyle, Marketing

It’s my favorite time of year right now, not only are we in the middle of the holiday season, but we freelancers have another season to celebrate–unconference season!

If you’ve never heard of an unconference before, it basically entails Barcamp, Podcamp and WordCamp. Unconferences are informal get togethers where freelancers and web professional come together to network, attend informative 25-minute talks and come out with some neat swag.

Most cities offer these unconferences once a year and they’re the perfect place to get out there and meet your community. While I don’t go there expecting to get any work out of it, I find these are important events to attend–you never know when someone local will need your services. Plus, the cool swag and t-shirts are too awesome to pass up

So how can you make the most out of these unconferences and use them to your benefit?

Note–I recently attended WordCamp Louisville!

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The Importance of Thinking Outside the Box

Posted December 2, 2010 in Inspiration, Lifestyle

Rules. Standards. Doing things the way they’ve ‘always been done.’ There are good reasons to rely on and follow these things, but we often forget that they all originated somewhere. There is an inherent danger for a freelancer who only ever strives to maintain the status quo and stick to proven methods, and this choice can not only impact the freelancer’s future but also has the potential to affect countless others.

In this post, we will look at how stepping outside of the norm and doing things differently could be the best possible approach for modern day freelancers.

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How I Kept My Freelance Business Intact During Relocation

Posted November 28, 2010 in Lifestyle, Managing Clients

I recently moved across the United States from Florida back to our home in California. In preparing for the move, I had several concerns about my freelance business and how it would be impacted.

In this post, I will share my experience, some of the issues I faced and how I handled them in the hopes that this will help other freelancers who are concerned about moving. This post should be of interest to anyone who is interested in becoming location independent.

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Give Yourself a Raise

Posted November 26, 2010 in How-To, Lifestyle

Congratulations! You are a freelancer. You have taken your own drive, your own talent, and your own skills and forged a path that doesn’t require you to put on a monkey suit and go into the office every day to build someone else’s asset.

Well done.

Now its time to kick it up a notch and start running your freelance business at maximum efficiency. So I am going to let you in on a huge secret that might be the equivalent of giving you a huge raise. This is ninja level stuff.

(This post is for informational purposes only, it is not legal or tax advice. Seek the assistance of an attorney or accountant for actual legal or tax advice.)

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Six Dilemmas That Freelancers Face Over the Holidays

Posted November 24, 2010 in How-To, Lifestyle

It’s the holiday season!

At least it is the holiday season for North America and many Western European nations. For a lot of folks the months of November and December are an exciting time. It’s time to get together with family and friends. It’s also a time of celebration.

For a freelancer, however, the holidays can be very stressful. The holiday season presents the average freelancer with a number of confusing dilemmas.

In this post, I’ll address some of those holiday dilemmas directly and explain what a freelancer can do to prepare for them.

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8 Worries That May Cause You to Miss Out on Your Freelancing Journey

Posted November 3, 2010 in Inspiration, Lifestyle

Life’s a journey, not a destination.

You’ve probably heard this saying. It’s a cliché that is as true for freelancing as it is for life. Many freelancers fail to really enjoy their freelancing journey because they’re too caught up in worries about the future of their freelancing business.

In this post, I’ll list eight reasons why the stress of freelancing might keep you from the joy of freelancing. I’ll also add a few suggestions on how you can overcome that stress.

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30 Spooky Freelancing Practices

Posted October 29, 2010 in Inspiration, Lifestyle

It’s nearing Halloween in the U.S. Halloween is that time of year when many folks are thinking about ghosts, goblins, and other really scary things.

However, some bad freelancing practices are scary all year round. A chill always goes up the back of my spine whenever I read about a freelancer engaging in any of these bad freelancing practices because I know that these practices can really harm a freelancing business.

Are you wondering what scary practices I’m referring to? Here’s a list 30 spooky freelancing practices for you to review. Are you scared yet?

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