A simple calculator to help you take time off each year. — “I work all the time.” I hear this all the time from freelancers. They can’t figure out how to step away from client work for a week or two per year. Yet, if you were an employee, you would take time off (hopefully!) Vacations, staycations, or just a brain break…

Be prepared for a tough conversation. — Quitting a job is rarely the satisfying experience one would hope. In fact, sometimes it’s downright unpleasant. If you’re the “get stuff done” person, a team lead, or even higher up the food chain, your absence is going to leave a hole in the company. …

Know when it’s time to leave your 9–5 job. — “When is the right time to begin freelancing?” is a lot like asking “When is the right time to buy a house?” or “When is the right time to have a baby?” There’s never a perfect time. Or if you wait for the perfect time, when you think you’ll have…

A peek behind the scenes of a thriving freelance writing business. — When I first began freelancing, almost three years ago, I was paid $27 for 1,000 words. I didn’t know any better and thought that writing was simply a low-paid career path, a misconception I’d graduated from college with an English degree. …

A contact management tool can help. — If you’re like me, you have hundreds if not thousands of connections. If you look across the vast expanse of people, you’ll have friends, your kids’ teachers and coaches, your colleagues, and more. That doesn’t even touch any people you may have met only online through a social platform like…

We have a problem and that problem is greed. — This week, the Screen Actors Guild went on strike after negotiations with Hollywood studio executives broke down. SAG-AFTRA president Fran Descher delivered a fiery speech, which ended with: “We are labor, and we stand tall, and we demand respect and to be honored for our contribution. You share the wealth…

Has a viable Twitter alternative finally arrived? — My phone vibrated in the early evening of July 5th. A notification: Threads were now available for download. I’d heard that Meta was building a Twitter alternative a few months ago. At the time, the release date was unknown. Then I tripped across the news that Threads would be released…

Writers can’t ignore generative AI — Among my writer friends, I’ve seen the reactions to AI writing tools range from disdain to “AI is going to replace us.” Some freelance writers have claimed that they’ve lost clients to AI and that job boards are drying up. Undoubtedly some clients will turn to AI as a cheaper…

Need to contact all of your clients at once? Make it easy to reach out. — We think of email lists as something companies use to reach out to their customers. Or something e-commerce brands use to entice us to buy products. Or something creators use to send newsletters. If you’re a solopreneur working with clients, you probably think you have no need for an email…