Tag Archives: freelance

lifestyle

Top 10 Reasons to Go Full-Time Freelance This Week

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space age bachelor pad

by Joe Wallace

You know you want to, and everywhere you look there are websites encouraging you to take the plunge and go full-time freelance. Wanna know why I do it? It’s not for the huge paychecks or the accolades, but that DOES help. Instead, here are my top ten reasons why you should drop everything you’re currently doing and go full-time freelance THIS WEEK.

10. You can go from a thankless 60 hour work week to a life of ease and fun. Don’t set the alarm clock, wake up when you  feel like it and go to work in your pajamas. But if you do this, make sure the curtains are open so your neighbors can watch you taking it easy. Nothing screams “successful freelancer” than when your next-door buddies come home from a hard day slaving away in the land of the cubicles to see you still in your PJs laughing at some e-mail your favorite editor just sent you.

9. There’s no shortage of work, when you feel like actually writing something. Don’t worry about that 3PM tee time at the golf course, you can bang out that first draft and submit it after your two-hour lunch. The editor’s going to re-write you anyway, why polish?

8. It’s about time you purchased a brand new car, isn’t it? When was the last time you could afford to do THAT? Oh, and don’t forget to pay in cash with the money you made off putting Google Adsense on your resume page.

7. You’ll score big with members of both sexes, and cats will purr at the very sight of you.  To make this happens, it’s especially important to cultivate an image of carefree living, even when the last check you were due is 90 days late. Never let them see you sweat, and tell your landlord to go take a flyer—you’ll pay when you’re damn good and ready.

6. Two words. Pizza Buffet. Now you can do it anytime you want, including for breakfast. Since you’ll be waking up around 11:30 or later now, that’s more of a possibility than ever before. Continue reading Top 10 Reasons to Go Full-Time Freelance This Week →

freelance money

Expenses Freelancer Writers Can Do Without

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Laptop_communicate_fingers_channah

by Yolander Prinzel

Freelance writing is not like other businesses. You don’t have to spend the same money on expenses as other business owners do. You should have relatively low overhead–unless you are trying to create some write-offs.

Here is a list of the expenses you can go without and still function:

1. Graphics design. A lot of freelance writers are overly concerned with visual branding in the form of logos and other graphics. Now, I’m not saying there is never a time for this but I know many successful freelancers who are close to six figures in income who have not bothered to spend money on a logo. As a matter of fact, the most successful writers I know haven’t bothered with this expense.

2. The newest Office Suite or other word processing software. While I’m not an advocate of Open Office (personally, I found it difficult and uncomfortable) that doesn’t mean you have to by the latest Word incarnation that hits the stores. You can use Open Office if you want free software or you can buy an old, used version of Word on Amazon.com.

3. Adobe Creative Suite. As a writer, you probably don’t have to do much photo manipulation. If you’re doing newsletters or brochures for clients, you may need InDesign, but chances are Publisher will work just find–and it’s a lot easier.

4. A CRM (customer relationship manager) program like ACT! Let me get this off my chest–I love ACT! and will probably buy myself a used copy. That’s because I’ve use it for years and know how to edit the database to create and edit fields. I can customize it to my needs in a way that Excel and Access won’t let me. That doesn’t mean everyone needs to buy it–or any other CRM program. If you want to organize and keep records on your clients you can use Excel, Access or any number of free online CRM systems.

Yolander Prinzel, ACS is a financial writer as well as a series 7, 66 and 2-15 licensed financial representative. With a decade of financial industry experience, she was the National Director of Marketing and the Director of Operations for The Compass Agency USA and has also been a trader for Raymond James Financial Services and a life insurance underwriter. No matter what you may think, none of her posts are advisory, they are simply informational. Only an advisor with close, personal knowledge of your financial situation can offer advice.

editorial, featured

What You Might Not Know About Self Employment Taxes

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freelance taxesby Joe Wallace

It’s nowhere near April 15th, so why am I writing about tax issues for freelancers now? Because if you track your figures all through the year, you’ll know when you might need to take a deduction or how much to contribute to your SEP IRA by the end of the contribution period to avoid a nasty surprise on your income taxes for next year.

Didn’t know you could do that? Then you probably don’t know about these little issues, either…lucky for you we’re watching your financial back, eh? Don’t take any of this as advice from US, this information comes directly from the IRS official site:

Self-employment taxes break down like this:  self-employed people pay 15.3% until your income pushes you into a higher bracket. The rate is in two parts–you pay 12.4% for social security plus 2.9% for Medicare.

Did you know you can deduct half your self-employment tax for the purpose of figuring your adjusted gross income? But you can ONLY take that deduction from your income tax, not your Self Employed tax. Are you confused yet?

Who pays Self Employment tax? Anybody who earns more than $400 from self employment activities. Also, any church employee who earned more than $108.28 must also pay SE tax.
Continue reading What You Might Not Know About Self Employment Taxes →

advice

What’s Your Worst Freelance Fear?

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doorby Catherine L. Tully

Everybody in the business has one. Some writers have more than one. What am I talking about? Freelance Fears.

Am I being melodramatic? Not in the least. These fears can hold us back from reaching our goals. They constantly get in our way and interfere with success. Do you want to know what my number one freelance fear is? Read on… Continue reading What’s Your Worst Freelance Fear? →

advice, resources

Freelance Writing is Easy and Anyone Can Do It

sheeplancerby Joe Wallace

I just read an article by Allison Boyer lamenting yet another “freelancing is easy and anyone can do it” type article, so I wanted to throw my two pence in.

If you’ve spent any time freelance writing at all, you know by now just how easy it is. After all, all you need to do is write well, do research, be disciplined enough to follow a regular schedule, remember to file your articles on deadline, send invoices, keep all your publications and editors straight, be a subject matter expert on something or other, and market yourself until the sun doesn’t shine.

Easy peasy.

Of course, I’d be remiss in my snark if I didn’t throw in something about not abusing the comma and the apostrophe, but freelancers know how easy it is to catch all those spelling errors and bad word choices. Simple, right? And how about those paychecks? Every magazine and website pays on time, generously, and always throws you more work. They care about you personally and how high your rent is, they really really do.

I don’t really know what Allison Boyer’s complaining about.

Oh, and lest you think this post is snark for snark’s sake, here is a list of five ways you CAN make your freelance life a little bit easier:

5. Buy a STURDY and COMFORTABLE office chair the FIRST TIME AROUND. Don’t skimp on that damn thing thinking you’ll get used to it later. Trust me, you won’t. Continue reading Freelance Writing is Easy and Anyone Can Do It →

advice, lifestyle

Are You Spreading Your Freelance Writing Work Too Thin?

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freelance-writing-adviceThere are several ways to stress yourself right out of the game when it comes to freelance writing gigs. The first one is to get so worried about not getting any freelance writing assignments that you start coming across as desperate in your queries and other communication with potential clients. Just as bad? Taking on far too much work, spreading yourself too thin and running yoursef into the ground.

How can you tell when you’re doing too much?

First, take a good look at the amount of pay you’re getting versus the amount of time invested. That project you’ve got for $1000 is sweet–IF it’s a for a thousand dollars worth of work. But the ad I found the other day looking for a sucker, I mean, writer, who would write 1000 articles for a dollar each? JUST…SAY…NO.

Second, look at your deadlines. Continue reading Are You Spreading Your Freelance Writing Work Too Thin? →