Time tracking is crucial in ensuring productivity levels are high – and this is even more important for us freelancers who are surrounded by more distractions than the average office worker.
As we all know, the freedom we love can also easily be our downfall if we don’t keep ourselves accountable.
Enter tools for freelancers to streamline our work and make our lives easier. [Read more…]
For people employed in the fields of translation and writing, a daily work schedule is generally imposed by their employers. They’re supplied with a certain amount of work they are capable of completing within their office hours and kept on track with regular meetings to determine the best course of action when tackling projects. But how do you manage an equivalent workload as a freelancer, and keep the work rolling in? [Read more…]
Writing time is always a touchy subject, as there is no such thing as a set length of time wherein a writer can finish a piece of work. Whether it’s a blog post, an article for a magazine, a short story, or a novel, it does not matter. How long you write is not a one-size-fits-all matter.
There are, however, some things that writers can do to cut down on writing time. This is especially important for freelance writers who get “paid per piece or per word or perhaps”, as humorist Robert Benchley said. The writing process may be touch and go at times, but more often than not, we need to hunker down and finish articles as fast as we can without sacrificing quality. [Read more…]
With the risk of sounding like I’m ranting, I’d like to talk about wasting your time as a freelance writer. There has been a lot of discussion here at FWJ about where to focus your priorities. We’ve talked about building skills, about establishing a well-balanced portfolio, and about making an awesome first impression. A lot of you are taking that advice to heart, and I can only assume you’re seeing the success because of it. If not, keep pushing – good things take time to build. [Read more…]
A few weeks ago, I expressed my desire to cut my work hours in half without experiencing a drop in income. Yeah, I know. It sounds crazy. But I think it’s possible.
In an effort to make that happen, I approached the FWJ community for advice. The post received a number of great comments that, when combined, serve as a fantastic resource for anyone who wants to work on their own efficiency/time management/etc.
As I mentioned last week while handing out free nachos, I decided to combine them into a single post (this one) and to comment on them a little bit.
Buckle up and bring a drink. This is gonna be a long trip. It could be even longer–there were some truly great ideas and some of them deserve more attention than I can give them here.
Note: You won’t find anyone talking about increasing their rates. That was intentional, not an oversight. When I asked folks to chip in with their $.02 worth, I asked them to leave that topic alone. I didn’t want to get into the 8,372,898th discussion of freelance writing rates.
Without further ado, here’s an overall look at what folks around here had to say about getting things done more efficiently.
Thanks again to everyone who commented. My apologies if I somehow forgot to reference your particular remarks in this post. Every shred of advice provided had real value.
Chill Out
Some of you decided that my rant about “killing time” and some of my other remarks evidenced excess stress and advised me to relax. Dava, Marcia, Debi and Debra all seem to think I’d benefit from a healthy dose of chill pills and they’re probably right. Tsarina thinks I should cut myself a little slack.
That’s good advice. A high-stress attitude can be exhausting, which can reduce efficiency. If one wants to log fewer hours, it’s important to make the remaining hours awesome.
In all honesty, my original post probably made me seem a little more tightly wound than I actually am. Nonetheless, I think we can all benefit from stress reduction and I’m going to try to maintain a nice, mellow sense of perspective as I work toward my goals. I think that much of the other advice provided will make it easier to shed stress, too.
Hire Out
A number of you recommended hiring someone else to handle aspects of my business, freeing up my time to concentrate on what matters most to me. Ideally, the improved productivity would generate enough money to pay the support while leaving me with an improved bottom line and more time on my hands.
Chris recommended hiring someone to do my research. Kate thought I could benefit by putting a VA on the payroll. Allena and Phil liked the idea of hiring out, as well.
I think I can benefit from this in the near future, but not immediately. My fractured schedule and somewhat weird organizational strategies make it tough to bring someone else in on the action without hitting the “pause” button long enough to get that someone up to speed. We work in a deadline-driven discipline and that just really isn’t an option right now because of it.
By doing some other things, I can get myself in a situation where it is possible to utilize the talents of others more frequently and with greater effect.
This is an area in which I have extensive experience. For several months, I was spending a significant percentage of my time assembling teams to complete large content production tasks and managing the projects. Let’s just say I discovered that outsourcing and relying on others can be a challenging process. I hope to use the lessons I learned on that front in the future.
Scheduling
Smart scheduling was another recurrent theme. Chris thinks I should actually work intentional “moments of nothing” into the schedule. Laura cautioned against overscheduling. Jeremy recommended scheduling things that don’t really exist in hopes of fooling myself into heightened levels of efficiency. Vicky liked the idea of making time bargains as a means of self-encouragement. Dee advocates the idea of a 50-minute hour and Su-sieee recommends cutting one thing out every day in order to make life easier and more productive. Carol thinks I should take more time off and believes that a weekly all-day break is a great way to recharge one’s batteries.
I can see how some of the scheduling “tricks” would work extremely well for some people. I don’t think I’d respond well to some of them–they seem a little artificial to me. The ones that really resonate with me on a personal level are the need to avoid overscheduling and working periods of “down time” into the schedule That notion of turning the world “off” one day per week is mouth-watering.
Reading all of this advice about schedules has pushed me to examine the actual mechanics of my personal scheduling. That includes the tools I use, the way I assess likely time requirements, etc.
Spending
A few people made the perfectly sane observation that there was an alternative to trying to work less while maintaining or increasing income. Camilla and Marcia both recommended spending less money in the first place and Janed pointed out the potential advantage of moving somewhere less expensive.
Like most families, we’re getting pretty vigilant on those fronts and it can make a big difference. I’m completely portable in terms of work and my wife is a special education teacher, which is a relatively high-demand profession all over the place. We’ve discussed the idea of moving to a less expensive area (yeah, we are in Kansas, but we’re in Johnson County, which is relatively pricy).
Perspective
TBri reminded me that single parents are in an even tougher situation. Brad (the official Nacho Winner) pointed out just how silly it is to complain about having too much work when some folks are struggling to make ends meet these days. Helen’s tongue-in-cheek recommendations about canceling the good things in life to make more time for work pointed out the risk of taking efficiency to an extreme and Fran’s comments about the role of personality responsibility in these situations struck a chord.
These comments don’t really qualify as advice. However, I found them to be some of the most valuable contributions. It’s really easy to get so wrapped up in the details of running your business that you lose track of the bigger, more important things. Thanks for the reminders.
Systems and Automation
Chris advocated automation and overall simplification (cutting things in half repeatedly). Matt told me it was time to stop multitasking and that working through the ol’ to-do list in a more focused way would yield results. Ericka recommended devising better systems.
I’ve had the tremendous luck to work extensively with a leading expert on systematic approaches to business operation and with a client whose analytics business focuses on isolating and improving critical drivers in business processes. So, I do have a good understanding of how to develop and apply smart systems to my workflow. Now, the challenge is listening to the good advice I’ve received and combining it with the knowledge I’ve gained.
On an intellectual level, I’m a true believer in systematic processes and automation as a means of improving efficiency. The problem, thus far, has been stopping the existing Rube Goldberg-esque machine long enough to implement the changes. It’s hard to stop to tie your shoes when a bear is chasing you. I’m going to find a way, though.
Health
Karen and Patti recommend improved health. Of course, they’re absolutely right. Even if they weren’t right with respect to the impact of better health on productivity, it would still be worth following their advice simply because early death isn’t really on my to-do list.
We tend to have sedentary lifestyles. When we’re working way too much, the effects of that motionless life becomes even more pronounced.
I think it’s time to start running again. Swimming on off-days. Sorry, Patti, but I just can’t see myself doing yoga. I know it’s great, but I just don’t think it’s me.
Zzzzz…
Angie, Marcia and Su-sieee all think I could benefit from a little more shuteye. They’re right. A little more sleep would boost waking hour productivity so much that it would probably result in a substantial net gain in output. It might also cure my Exploding Head Syndrome. It’s also a great stress-reducer and it would undoubtedly improve my mood.
Other
Jodee wants me to hold out until we perfect cloning. I just don’t think science has advanced enough for me to keep plugging along with the status quo that long.
Raina recommends decluttering my life and Ericka emphasizes a productive workspace. These are extremely smart recommendations and they’re two of the few I’m already doing effectively. I’ll vouch for them.
Leslie observed that one can kill two birds with one stone by finding ways to work on projects that provide you with information you can use to improve other elements of your business.
Annie reminded us that priorities trump the concept of “balance” and that we should strive to do the bulk of our work during those times when we tend to be most productive.
Ashley understood my “I wanna crush Ian’s head with a window air conditioner” impulse and Stacy appreciated my use of the word “asshat”. No, those aren’t pieces of advice. But I love them.
Last week, I decided it was high time to do something about the number of hours I work. I found myself wanting to take a crack at some random guy’s noggin just because he was stumbling around in a store, admitting to the cardinal sin of “killing time”. I guess that kind of weird jealous rage was what professionals in the world of nuttiness might call a “clear signal”.
Luckily, the guy was spared from a beat down. I was in a hurry and didn’t have enough time to work him over. Okay, the fact that I wasn’t really that upset was part of the deal, too.
In any case, my thick skull was finally penetrated by the indisputable fact that burning the candle on both ends is rotten and that my approach–tossing it directly into a steel smelter is even worse.
So, took advantage of this handy platform to write a long diatribe filled with elements of my personal story that couldn’t really provide much value to you. I tacked on a plea for ideas at the end. My goal? Work half as many hours without bringing in less bacon. I wanted your tricks, tips, hints, ideas, theories, recommendations, commiserations and maybe even a few ninja kicks in the ass. The only rule? I asked that no one talk about increasing rates as a means of decreasing workloads. That seemed to easy.
Oh, and I promised a free order of nachos to the person who gave me the best chunk of time-sparing wisdom.
That post generated over 40 comments and I think only one of them was from me. Almost all of them contained great advice and those that didn’t tended to provide equally important context.
My comment, which came only after 20+ FWJ readers decided to contribute, was simply to encourage even more input (which I received).
It became pretty clear to me that the ideas you provided could serve as the core of a great text about creating an efficient and streamlined freelance business. A few bigger themes emerged and they were coupled with concrete recommendations and examples.
All in all, it was an incredibly valued idea dump and everyone who added $.02 or more created one of those great situations in which the comment discussion is 100x more valuable than the actual blog post on top. Kudos to you all.
Anyway, I wanted to do two things before walking away from that post and implementing those good ideas. First, I wanted to write a “wrap” post about the recommendations, noting the prevailing themes, providing my reactions to them, etc. Second, I wanted to give away the free nacho prize.
You’ll note that this post is labeled “Part One”. You’ll see “Part Two” next week. I’m going to use “Part Two” to break down all of the advice, to provide kind words of thanks to the geniuses who provided it and to come up with what I hope to be a few Marvelous Insights of my own.
This part? Two things are about to happen. Keep on reading.
Community
Community. It’s an extremely over used word in the social networking field. It’s been overused in the blogosphere for half a decade or more. Everyone is always talking about building communities, community management, community participation, community this, community that…
Usually, it’s more jibber-jabber than reality. We use the term “community” to refer to even the least tightly knit groups. We’ve drained much of the power and meaning from the term by tossing it around as convenient shorthand whenever we’re talking about anything that involves more than one person.
Occasionally, you actually see community in action and understand what it can mean.
I know this has nothing to do with my quest to work half as much without losing money, but it’s probably one of the biggest lessons I’ve seen in real community.
I asked a whole mess o’ people–most of whom wouldn’t recognize me if I bumped into them on the street–to give me good advice. Yeah, I dangled the magic of nachos as a reward, but no one (I hope) was actually excited about the joke of a prize. On a superficial level, there was nothing, absolutely nothing, for them to gain by providing me with a recommendation. In fact, they spend valuable time doing it.
Yet three dozen or more people did do it. They took the time and effort to comment and to offer something meaningful.
Now, we can make the somewhat cynical argument that people contributed because they’re trying to boost their own name recognition or because they hope to grab a little comment link traffic, etc. And it’s true that being an active participant in a larger “community” can have some pragmatic benefits along those lines. I have a sneaking suspicion that most of the people who spoke up weren’t really concerned about that, though. Some are already well-known and well-read amongst the FWJ population. Some didn’t bother to even leave a link. They seemed sincerely motivated to provide people interested in maximizing efficiency with some good advice.
They wanted to share for the sake of sharing. And that is a big part of what community and social networking in general is really all about.
And none of that happens without Deb Ng, who’s grown this site up from square one. Her dedication, constant adjustment and all-out effort to create a quality space for freelancers is a big part of why this works. It may seem ironic, but online community really often starts with a significant effort by one person.
I’m making a big fat point of this because, as most you know, Deb sold Freelance Writing Jobs to SplashMEDIA. She’s still here, handling the transition. However, in July, the new crew is gonna take the controls.
That makes this a perfect moment to thank Deb for a job well-done. It’s also a reminder to the new ownership that they’ll be filling some big shoes and, if they can pull it off, they’ll have one really great community on their hands.
Nachos
After a great deal of consideration, I’ve decided to extend an invitation to all who commented to join me for nachos at El Torreon in Overland Park, KS if you’re ever in the area. Just drop me a line and we’ll hook up for our nacho date–on me. I don’t cover the margaritas, though.
Knowing that few of you will venture into the KC suburbs for nachos and pleasant conversation any time soon, I’m also specifically awarding a plate of my favorite vice to Brad.
Interestingly, Brad didn’t really give me any advice about how to reduce the amount of time spent working. Instead, he reminded me of how some folks wouldn’t mind being that busy and made me think about f-ing obnoxious it probably is to publicly gripe about having too much work in the midst of an ugly recession. Thanks for the reality check, Brad.
Here’s the comment:
Well I would say to run around in circles as long as possible before your circle gets taken away from you.
Being an IT guy I’m used to running around in circles.However since Dec 19,2008 when the president of the company I worked for decided they made a mistake in hiring me because I had 4 years experience and not 10 and laid me off, I would love to have a run around in circles experience again.
I like thousands of other people just realized that my last unemployment check that I just spent on food and other household necessities will be my last for a while until Congress and the Senate can work together to pass an unemployment extension bill.
I wish I had a job with people driving me crazy again. I have been unemployed for almost 2 years with no hope in close site. I’m going to school in hopes that an increased education will increase my employment opportunities.
I would love to have someone asking me stupid technical questions right now. When I go back to work someday I’m going to be smiling a really big smile the whole time and saying yes sure I can help you with that and be glad that I can.
Brad, drop me a line and I’ll take care of your cheesy, chippy needs.
Back next week with “How You Made My Life Easier, Free Nachos and Other Delights (Part 2)”
Make time to market your services.
How many times have you read that bit of advice?
Well, it’s rock-solid. If you aren’t making a point of marketing yourself, the risk of falling into that ugly feast/famine cycle is exceedingly high. If you aren’t building marketing time into your schedule, it’s tough to move up the income ladder.
So, make time for promoting yourself.
But not too much time.
I’ve been working on redesigning my workflow lately in an effort to improve my efficiency, boost my bottom line, maintain something approximating sanity and to provide ample opportunity to catch a number of weekday afternoon Royals games this summer. Following some good advice, I’ve been more conscious of what I do every day and I’ve made a discovery: I spend too much time on the marketing and promotion side of things.
I know that many writers get good results by working through job listings, but I’ve responded to exactly two of those ads over the years I’ve been in the business. I secure client work via repeat clients, word of mouth and rainmaking. It keeps my busy. Maybe too busy. I’ve realized that I need to take my foot off the gas.
Yesterday, for instance, I saw a little Facebook status update from someone I’ve hired in the past to do some non-writing related work. I couldn’t resist dropping him a line about the project he mentioned and discussing a content creation option that might be of interest to him. We had a nice back-and-forth and it might lead to something.
Later, while doing some research on another project, I wandered into a fascinating website that was chock-full of great information. It also looked like it was put together in 1995 (sparkly animated GIFs and the whole works), even though the business is still updating it. I could immediately see how its over-long, rambling pages of almost-impossible-to-find text and images could be broken into individual pages and posts within a WordPress framework to produce a much better site. Some good organization, a lot of rewriting, a little new material, some keyword research, some basic SEO and a few other bits of “this and that” and they’d have something really effective instead of being discoverable only by those staring at a business card or finding it via a link on an almost equally obscure site.
So, I pitched them cold with an email. They responded this morning. Looks like another client.
I don’t keep stats on my rainmaking efforts. However, they produce clients more often than you might think. That’s great–until you find yourself looking at more work than you can handle without cutting other things out of your life.
There are at least four ways I might control the over-marketing problem. I can bump rates to control my workload. I can work on ways to better scale my business for increased growth by bringing in additional people and resources. I can be less aggressive in the rainmaking department. I can say “no” more often. I’m dabbling in all four, but I know this will be a tough nut to crack. Sometimes, I think I need a Twelve Step program on this front.
But fixing my personal issues isn’t really the point of this post. I think the whole over-promotion thing stems from a common fear experienced by many freelancers–what will happen next?
Even those of us who’ve been doing this for a long time have a hard time fighting that nagging feeling that we could wake up tomorrow with nothing profitable to do. The last few years have crushed the old idea of job security for just about everyone, but freelancers don’t just work with an economically ravaged safety net–we don’t have one at all.
We’ve all heard (or have survived) the famine side of the feast/famine cycle at least once and we don’t want to visit that territory again.
In an effort to build a more secure business, we’re always prospecting for work. Some of us do it even when we really don’t need to do so.
So, I’m wondering… Are you successfully managing a promotion addiction? If so, how? Do you consciously limit your business-building efforts or do you just “let ‘er rip” and then deal with the consequences?
