Productivity

5 tips for freelancers who like to break the rules

5 tips for freelancers who like to break the rules

There’s a lot of nonsense talked online about what you should and shouldn’t do as a freelancer. Most of it is well-meaning, but a lot of it is often based on old-fashioned business practices and doesn’t account for our constantly changing world. You probably became a freelancer because you wanted some control over your working conditions, so why would you recreate the environment of the world you left in the first place?

Empathy, neurodivergence, and getting the best out of everyone

Empathy, neurodivergence, and getting the best out of everyone

As I embark on a new journey as a neurodivergent speaker, I thought I would use the final day of ADHD awareness month to write up a brief summary of something that I’ve found myself saying a lot recently.

When I look back upon my career in employment with my newly-focussed ADHD eyes, I can pinpoint the management techniques that helped me become successful, and I can equally see the times when bad management hindered my work.

Creative thinking for non-creatives

Creative thinking for non-creatives

Whether you consider yourself to be working in a creative business or not, there is no doubt that you will have to spend some of your workday solving problems and overcoming challenges.

The best leaders know that to get the most out of their teams, their colleagues need to feel engaged and part of the business. But even if you’re a freelancer working on your own, this technique can help you generate an infinite number of ideas for overcoming obstacles.

How long do professional photographers keep photos?

How long do professional photographers keep photos?

One of the less glamorous sides of running a photography business is looking after the back-office administration. It’s important to keep track of hundreds of thousands of photos – labelling, filing, backing up, and working out comprehensive storage systems. It is crucial for a professional photographer to have these systems in place.

7 things no one tells you about freelancing

7 things no one tells you about freelancing

During my years of providing business advice to start-ups, I realised that a lot of the things that I took for granted weren’t obvious to those just starting up. In recent years that seems to have exasperated as my TikTok feed is full of people giving out incredibly bad, unrealistic advice.

So here’s my reality check for you.

How to use Chat GPT to get out of a creative rut

How to use Chat GPT to get out of a creative rut

We’re only just getting started with AI, but I’ve already found Chat GPT to be a great time-saver when I need to produce content but I’m struggling for inspiration. Here are some ways you can use it too.

5 must-have apps for freelancers

5 must-have apps for freelancers

As well as recommending another 5 free apps for freelancers and small business owners, I also provide an update on my relationship with the 7 apps I recommended two years ago.

Don’t use your phone to take colour samples!

Don’t use your phone to take colour samples!

When professionally editing photos, often the first change to make is to adjust the white balance. This is a scale from blue to yellow – or cold to warm. Every camera brand defaults to a slightly different position on this scale. If there is incandescent or fluorescent lighting in your scene, your camera will often try to compensate by adjusting the colour accordingly, and it doesn’t always get it right!

Three Top Tips to Prevent Email Overload and Increase Productivity

Three Top Tips to Prevent Email Overload and Increase Productivity

You know the scenario. You’ve just got back to work from a week on leave. You’ve soaked up the sun (most likely from your back garden if you’re reading this in 2020), you’ve given your brain a well-earned rest by feeding it nothing but trash TV, and you’re refreshed, fired up, and ready to once again get stuck in to the job you love. You sink in your chair. You stare at your screen. You curse the inventor of the CC field. You send silent daggers across the office to THAT person – you know, the one that copies you in to every email regardless of whether it’s relevant to you. “Just in case”.

The Death of the Phone Call

The Death of the Phone Call

A five-minute phone call can provide more clarification than a chain of one hundred emails, so why are so many people so averse to picking up the phone?

Free Zoom Backgrounds!

Free Zoom Backgrounds!

After being called out for the sight of my shirt drying on the wall during a networking event, I decided to take advantage of the Virtual Background feature in Zoom. After a little thought, I remembered that I have a whole pile of unused pictures that other people might enjoy using as backdrops too. I’ve selected seven of my favourites and posted them here for you to download for personal use.

7 free productivity apps for freelancers

7 free productivity apps for freelancers

I’m always finding what appear to be new and exciting apps, but so often they turn out to be useless or limited without a costly subscription to a premium service. Here I list my top 7 free productivity app for freelancers. Number 5 is my favourite.

The Lockdown 50kcal Biscuit Review

The Lockdown 50kcal Biscuit Review

I love biscuits. Some say I have a problem. This is why I try to look for biscuits under 50 calories. For this blog post I ranked each biscuit on three factors: taste, dunking durability, and calorie content. Do you agree? Let me know!