Freelancing: Working Out of the Box, with Help from the Web
Maybe you're just making the leap from a steady, 9-to-5 job to the sometimes unpredictable lifestyle of an independent contractor, or maybe you've been freelancing for years. Either way, managing your current work and looking for your next gig can be a daunting endeavor. Online you'll find freelancing advice, tax information, tracking and organization tools, and much more to help you find success in the freelancing world.
Expand All Guide SectionsGetting Started in Freelance
You should make sure that you know what you are getting into before you take the leap into the ... read more »
Finding Freelance Jobs
But most freelancers are constantly working to make sure they have enough projects lined up to pay ... read more »
Freelance Pay, Contracts, and Benefits
If freelancing is your only source of income, you are going to have to be very careful. Some online ... read more »
Keeping Track of Freelance Projects
If you're going to work on several projects at a time, or even one project, organization will play a key role in making sure you complete each everything properly and in a timely manner. Online you'll find a great number of tools and tips to help keep you on track and paid on time.
Dulcinea's Insight
- Simple online tools (like Google's "Docs and Spreadsheets" application) can help you keep track of payments if you aren't looking for many bells and whistles. However, there are a number of free or inexpensive online tools or software packages that can do a little more for you than the basics and potentially save you time and money.
- Unlike your paper-and-pencil calendar, some online calendars will send you e-mail alerts when, say, an important meeting or project deadline is approaching so that you can make sure not to miss it.
- You can use your e-mail address book or a social networking tool such as LinkedIn to keep track of your contacts and potential (or current) clients so that you won't have to rely on a Rolodex or a stack of business cards to stay in touch. Most online address books let you easily sort contacts into categories, and you'll be able to access your contact list from anywhere with an Internet connection.
Dulcinea's Picks
For some lists of Web resources to help with your freelance work ...
FreelanceSwitch
has a list of more than 100 resources for freelancers. You'll find links to job boards, legal resources, and tools that can help you keep track of your time spent on a project, back up files, and much more. Try reading the user comments at the bottom of the article to find even more links to resources. FreelanceSwitch also has a list of interesting blogs about photography, writing, translation, programming, and a few other categories.
Codswallop
is a blog written by a Web programmer/consultant that lists Web applications that are useful for those in the freelance industry. Here you'll find organizational tools, money trackers, security tools, storage applications, marketing tools, and many more.
To help you track your freelance hours or work ...
Side Job Track
is a free tool to help you track your work. You can keep track of invoices, clients, project notes, hours worked, and more on this site. When you sign up, the site walks you through its various features.
To help you keep backup copies of your work ...
Strongspace
gives you a secure space to back up or share your files. Upload, download, and manage your files using secure FTP. You'll pay about $15/month for 5 gigabytes of space or you can upgrade for more space (up to 100 gigabytes for $100/month).
Jungle Disk
is powered by Amazon.com and allows you to back up or store files from your computer for about 15 cents per gigabyte per month. You can store as much or as little information as you like, and can access it from any computer.
To help you send or exchange files with freelance clients . . .
Sendspace
is a free service that allows you to send files to a client or to yourself that are too large to send as an e-mail attachment. You upload the file to Sendspace, send a link to the file to the recipient, and they can then download the file to their own computer. For a fee, you can upgrade to Max or Pro levels and take advantage of enhanced features like greater bandwidth and advertising-free downloads.
FolderShare
is an application that allows you to share files with clients by dropping them into virtual folders. Download the free program and then create folders that you can share with clients as if they're on a network server. As long as you're online, you can update files or move them in and out of the designated folders from your computer; they'll be instantly updated on the computers of everyone else who has access to that folder.
YouSendIt
allows you to "send, receive and track files, on-demand." This service streamlines and facilitates the process of sending large files to multiple people at a time, making overnight couriers, FTP transfers and bulky e-mail attachments a thing of the past. The program can be used for free, but you can pay for more advanced features.
Paying Taxes as a Freelancer
Taxes can be more complicated for freelancers than for an average employee in a large company; in ... read more »
Connecting With the Freelance Community
The life of a freelancer, while often exciting, can also be lonely. There are many places online ... read more »
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