September 26, 2017
Weekly Newsletter for Freelancers
The Move to and from 9 to 5 can Create Ripples in your Life!
The 10th September was World Suicide Prevention Day. Our bike riding group had a speaker from Lifeline Australia giving a talk about their work in helping prevent suicide. Kerry, the speaker, told us about their work and read the written story of one of their volunteers. Our group sponsors the training of volunteers who work as telephone counselors for people in crisis.
In the story that Kerry read, the volunteer had shared how a “ripple” from a cancer scare had changed her perspective on life and she had become a volunteer to help others. Often people who become freelancers will have passed through a “ripple” in their life which will change their life.
This will often require a transition from a 9 to 5 employment routine to being a freelancer. This can be a period of great stress and trauma in your life and services such a Lifeline Australia can help you get through a “ripple” when you need some help. Do not be afraid to ask for help.
Danielle Corcione has written an article entitled I Quit Freelance Writing for a 9 to 5. Here’s Why It Didn’t Work for Me. Danielle has shared the story of a “ripple” on The Write Life blog which you can read here
If you want to get some more tips about moving from 9 to 5 to freelancing you can read a preview of The 9-to-5 Cure: Work on Your Own Terms and Reinvent Your Life by Kristin Cardinale by clicking here.
Motivate Yourself!
“The purpose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion and the will to help others.” – Albert Schweitzer
Are You Yet Motivated to Talk to your Children about the Freelancing Economy?
My wife and I recently attended an open day at our grandchildren’s school. It was a very impressive day run by the teachers and students. Over morning tea prepared by the senior students, we started discussing with other attendees what the world of work was going to be like when our grandchildren started work.When I returned to my office I found
an emailed article entitled Why the Future of Work Could Lie in Freelancing. The article has been written by Anthony Hussenot, an author from the World Economic Forum. Included in the article were links to other intriguing topics:
- The gig economy is changing the way we work. Now regulation must catch up.
- How do you get a job that doesn’t exist yet?
- 6 skills that take time to master but pay off forever.
If you have not felt motivated to talk to your children or grandchildren about the future of work and how important self-motivation and initiative are going to be, these articles will likely change your mind. You can read the articles here.
When you have read the articles and are feeling motivated to start the conversation about preparing children for the freelance economy you can read an article of the same title by Jeriann Ireland on the Freelancers Union blog by clicking here.
It makes you wonder whether there will be a Universal Basic Income in the foreseeable future. Clearly, the future of work is changing very quickly.
Productivity Tip Of The Week
Productivity is Often about Making Hard Decisions – Here is Some Help!
Making decisions as a freelancer is probably tougher than being in a managerial employment situation. That is because you will have to wear the consequences if you make a wrong decision. This is especially true if it relates to your productivity, as there usually is a bottom line monetary consequence. Here is an example of what I mean.I have a classic situation where I
have to make a decision that will cost me money if I get it wrong. I own a cybersecurity website about identity theft which you can see here. One of the most important changes in cybersecurity in the world is underway at the moment. This change is the European General Data Protection Regulation (EUGDPR) that is being introduced into the European Union.
It will impact on all their trading partners. This is because the population of the EU is about 510 million [source] and the economy is one of the world’s largest. [source]
I own a number of EUGDPR domain names and it costs money to hold them with a view to sale in the future. They have now come up for renewal and it puts pressure on my budget. To sell or hold? If I get it wrong it could cost me a significant amount of money (for me anyway). This is where decision analysis comes into play when you have to make hard decisions as a freelancer both on a personal and business level.
On life decision management topics Beth Burgess has written an article for Lifehack.org entitled 7 Questions You Should Ask Yourself When Faced with a Tough Decision in Life. You can read Beth’s article by clicking here. For those freelancers that are more process minded here is the University of Stirling’s process of how to make decisions which you can access the PDF file directly from here.
Work-Life Balance Tip of the Week
How Do You Manage Having a Client in Different Time Zones?
When you start pitching for gigs where the client is in different time zones, you will find that it can be a work-life balance issue. It is important to establish the process by which you will operate and what is a reasonable expectancy of the person for whom you are completing the contract. You do not want to find that you are still working at 11.00 PM completing an assignment or waiting for a telephone call back. This also applies to having a virtual assistant in a different time zone.
I know of someone who lived in Australia who was in the domain name portfolio business. Most of his dealings were in Europe and the United States so he decided to change his sleep cycle during conferences in those countries where he couldn’t attend. It is not a good idea in my opinion. You would know this if you have ever suffered from jetlag on holidays.
This is also the work-life balance issue for you if have not sorted out how you are going to operate with clients in other countries. It can have a detrimental impact on your family if you try to do this.
Tyra Seldon has written 8 Tips for Working With Clients from Long Distances for the Freelancers Union Blog and you can read Tyra’s article here.
Financial Tip Of The Week
Freelancing and Changing Your Work Life Balance for Retirement Matters!
One of the most important financial tips that a freelancer can take on board is that changing their work-life balance later in life to retire part-time is important. The retirement association in the United States, AARP, has done a lot of work to help people in this regard. The AARP is a powerful organization with over 38 million members.The AARP jobs expert and an author
is Kerry Hannon. I will often mention the work of the AARP and Kerry in this newsletter because of their pioneering and advocacy work to help retirees.
Freelancing or working part-time is an important part of Kerry’s retirement strategies. Kerry’s article is on 5 Part-Time Jobs for Retirees and you can read her article here.
I notice that the Australian and Securities Investment Commission has also started work in this regard following the lead of AARP with this article on the benefits of part-time work which you can read here
Clearly, there are not only financial benefits in retiring part-time but also the physical and mental benefits that contribute to your well-being and a healthy and happy retirement.
Freelancers And Cyber Security
We have gained approval from Robert Siciliano to bring you extracts from his books related to cyber security for freelancers. Robert Siciliano is an identity theft expert and consultant. He also gives self defense and personal safety seminars. Robert provides safety and identity theft fraud prevention tips and advice on multimedia channels in the United States. We have his approval to bring you weekly extracts from his books:
