Ultra-Procrastination: Avoid at ALL costs!

I’ve recently become a victim of what I call ‘ultra-procrastination’ this is where you procrastinate so much so that the task which you needed to complete has totally lost track of its deadline. I have no idea how I got myself into this, but it’s a very mind-boggling situation that I urge all of you to stay away from. A little procrastination never hurt anyone (I think…), but don’t get yourself stuck in this cycle where you just procrastinate all day long. Here are a few ways of beating procrastination, ‘upping’ your productiveness and improving your general workflow.

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Q&A: How Do I Deal With The Stress of Multiple Deadlines?

Q: How Do I Deal With The Stress of Multiple Deadlines? – Pieter Keil

A: I know exactly where you are coming from Pieter! I will sometimes find myself so stressed out during a really busy week that I feel like going to work at the local gas station and leaving the whole world of freelancing behind! Luckily, I’ve learned to accept this and turn the stress and fear of missed deadlines into motivation and productivity… how? Read on…
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Freelance Bootcamp #2: Finding Your First Clients, What To Charge, And Dealing With Deadlines…

Welcome to the second addition to the freelance bootcamp series! Last week we asked if you were really ready for full time freelancing. Many of you weren’t quite ready to take the full leap so instead you may have decided to do this safely and securely as a part time job. Smart move hotshot! In this episode we explain how to land your first clients, what to charge them, and how to handle the deadlines your client(s) set!

We figure the best way to gain experience as a freelancer in the beginning is to get your feet wet right away. Once you have a couple clients under your belt, you will have the right mindset when you begin to set yourself up as a legitimate freelancer. Once you have example work to show, you can then begin to build your online portfolio and begin to gain exposure to find a steady client stream.

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An Interview With Paul Boag

Here at FM we were lucky enough to snag an interview with Paul Boag of Boagworld. If you are a Web Designer or Developer and have not heard the name “Paul Boag,” then most likely you’ve been hiding under a rock for the past 4 or more years.

Paul has helped make a name for himself as well as his web design company Headscape Web Design Solutions by not only publishing the most popular and longest running podcast for web designers, developers, and website owners over at Boagworld, and by speaking at several conferences and engagements such as SXSW, @media, FOWD and The Highland Fling, but also writing articles for such publications as .NET magazine and Think Vitamin.

As if that last paragraph didn’t contain enough links and mentions (slow down Paul!) he has also written a new book which should be of importance to our readers: The Website Owners Manual. With chapters such as “Secrets to a successful website” and “User centric design” it’s a must for anyone involved in website deployment. Not only grab a copy for yourself but for your clients as well (go a head, make them think you love them!).
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10 Common Mistakes of The Beginning Freelancer…

We’ve all made mistakes… some of us more than others! The point is to learn from these mistakes, reconfigure yourself and get back out there! Those on top of their game were once beginners and made all the same mistakes just like the rest of us. If you’re just starting out maybe we can help you avoid some of these and if not, no problem, experience is the greatest teacher!

On to the list!

#1 Not using contracts

Most beginning freelancers fail to utilize contracts due to the fact that they believe clients will shy away from them. This is (in my experience) untrue! Many clients appretiate the professionalism and will let out a sigh of relief once they see you are a legitimate businessman (or woman!). Once you go through that one bad experience with a client, you will of wished you had the contract to fall back upon!

Or maybe new freelancers just don’t know to construct one or what to include. If you have not constructed your contract template, sit down and make a list of everything you want your client to know. Set your boundaries, your pay rate, and limits. Be detailed but don’t overload the clients with useless information! Keep it to the point!

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Scope Creep: How to Deal With It Now, and Learn To Love It Later…

What the heck is this “Scope Creep” you speak of? Quite simply scope creep refers to uncontrolled changes in a clients project’s scope. You’ve finished the clients project to the original specifications but they just dumped a load of emails in your inbox with 20 more features, changes, ideas, and so on. It never seems to end! Most clients don’t know exactly what they want until the project is almost complete. Have you ever heard something like “Now that i see it, i think it might be better to do this…” or “I think it would be perfect if we could add this feature…” and of course its no simple task and definitely not outlined in their specifications… and its another 2 days of work!

Did you prepare for this inevitable outcome? If not then this is a good chance to learn a valuable lesson in real world freelancing. If you have taken all the necessary precautions then congratulations.. you have learned to get the most out of your clients… and yes, this also means money wise!

Learning to prepare for this can greatly increase the income for any project in which suffers from the “scope creep syndrome.” You will soon learn to love it, and so will your bank account! Not to sound like this is taking something from your client- it’s only fair that if you need to do more work then they specified then it will also cost them more. But what if you didn’t prepare for this outcome? How do you handle the clients needs with no extra income then you both originally agreed upon? Read more