Each month we round up the best posts from WorkAwesome and FreelanceSwitch so that you can catch up on anything awesome you might have missed. There’s a ton of great advice in November’s archives, so make sure you check out the links we’ve compiled for you!
FreelanceSwitch
Rocket fuel, cup o’ joe, brain juice, mud. Call it what you will, coffee has been the go to fuel for freelancers from around the world. Sheik Abd-al-Kadir may have said it best when he said “no one can understand the truth until he drinks of coffee’s frothy goodness.” High-five Sheik!
Also check out part two and three.
End of Year Planning for Freelancers
The end of the year is rapidly approaching and, for freelancers, that means that a few things need to get done. There are money matters that need to be handled before the year ends, as well as some planning for the new year. Just what needs to be done can vary a little, based on how well you’ve kept up with your administrative work over the course of this year, as well as where you’re based and what you do. No matter the details, though, there’s not that long left to close out 2010.
Get Motivated: 6 Ways to Get Past a Motivational Brick Wall
I run my freelance web design business from home where it’s more comfortable, cheaper and generally a lot easier to access. But with that comes distractions from my Xbox, the great British daytime TV, and my bed. The lack of communication and contact with real people can also be a downside as well. Sure it means I can get work done without their distractions but sometimes you need help, input or just a kick up the ass.
Cultivating Boldness: How to be a Bold Freelancer
Boldness is vital to a successful freelance career. This path we’ve chosen – the very initiation of which took guts– feeds on determination, confidence, and the occasional death-defying leap of faith. But it’s not just the brassy acts that fuel our career.
Pros and Cons of Being a Subcontractor
Previous blog posts have extolled the time-saving benefits of subcontracting. Sure, if you’re the person subcontracting work, it can help boost your income, keep clients happy, and prevent from you turning away new work even when you’re busy. But is it a sweet deal for the subcontractor, too?
WorkAwesome
8 Ways to Get Motivated When You Have a Bad Boss
It’s not easy keeping your spirits up on the job when you’re not exactly enjoying who you’re working for. Jennifer Brown Banks offers a few ways to get past those feelings — and get moving.
WordPress Tutorial: How to Use WordPress as an Online Notebook
Carl Natale demonstrates how the best online notebook in your arsenal may just be the one you’re using as a blogging platform. While using WordPress in this manner may be an unconventional choice, Natale presents lots of tips and tricks on how to make it work for you in a note-taking capacity.
Announcing the WorkAwesome Podcast
The month of November saw the launch of the latest addition to the WorkAwesome blog: the WorkAwesome podcast. This first episode features an interview with Jonathan Mead of Illuminated Mind and serves as a great springboard for the podcast series.
New contributor Avdi Grimm takes a look at the ongoing work/family balancing act. But he turns the idea of separating the two into clearly separate aspects of one’s life as a drawback. Going against the typical productivity expert grain, Grimm discusses how he’s made “meshing” the two aspects of his life in his home.
We’re at that time of year where stress increases and the recommended “forty winks of sleep” decreases…down to about twenty or so! Sara Hodon provides some practical tips on how to get that sleep you most certainly need — and how to be better at it.
Discussion