Working Under Fire — Do You Like Stress, or Not?

written by Laura Spencer

Some freelancers insist that stress helps them get their work done. I’ve heard freelancers claim that they actually work better and have more creativity when they are stressed. Not only do they survive, but they seem to thrive when they are stressed.

Other freelancers see stress as something to be avoided. They go to great lengths to avoid people or projects that could be considered stressful. If asked, they’ll tell you that they do their best work when calm. They may have even left a traditional work environment to get away from stress.

Whichever category you fall into, it’s good to take a step back and examine your situation. Too much stress can be harmful to your health; but, on the other hand, it’s very difficult to avoid stress entirely. Here are a few ways to manage your stress and stay healthy and productive:

Stress — The Extra Boost

There’s no doubt that, in the short term, moderate amounts of stress can provide some physical and psychological benefits for freelancers. Nearly everyone has read about the amazing effects of adrenaline, a chemical usually released only when we are under stress.

Stress can also provide an extra incentive to those of us who might have problems with procrastination. When I was in school there were many students who waited until the day before a test to read the material. Then they would stay up all night memorizing facts and figures. These students just couldn’t bring themselves to do the work until they absolutely had to.

Harmful Effects of Too Much Stress
The harmful effects of too much stress over a prolonged period are also well known. Chronic stress can result in burnout, or worse, lead to any number of health problems. Serious health problems like diabetes and heart disease have been linked to high stress levels. Too much stress can lead to psychological problems as well.

Some Stress Is Inevitable

The fact is that some stress in life is inevitable. This is true whether you freelance for a living, or not. For a freelancer there are nagging questions like:

• Where will I get my next gig?
• Will this client pay me?
• Is my work really good enough?

Many non-freelancers have similar worries:

• Will I lose my job?
• How will I manage to pay bills on my income?
• How can I get along with X individual at work?

During tough economic times these nagging questions become even more stressful for the freelancer and non-freelancer alike. That’s why it’s important to learn to manage your stress.

Know Your Stress Limitations

You can whittle your stress down to a manageable level if you understand your own limitations.

Here are some steps to take:

1. Understand how you, as an individual, react to stress. Ask yourself whether stress energizes you and gets you going, or whether you shut down when under stress.

2. Acknowledge any underlying life issues that may be affecting your current stress level.

3. Take steps to keep your stress within a manageable level. This may require negotiating better project terms as well as learning some stress reduction techniques.

(Important note: If you have stress problems that you cannot manage on your own, it may be necessary to see a medical professional.)

How Do You Feel About Working Under Stress?

Are you one of those who like a bit of stress to keep things going, or do you prefer to minimize stress?

Laura Spencer is a freelance writer from North Central Texas with over 19 years of professional business writing experience. If you liked this post, then you may also enjoy Laura’s blog about her freelance writing experiences, WritingThoughts

Retrieved on 13^th October 2009 from http://freelancefolder.com/working-under-fire-do-you-like-stress/

35 Ways To Market Content With Social Media: Share Articles, Blogs, Videos And More To Grow Your Business Online

written by Stephanie Chandler

There is no denying that the popularity of social media is increasing by the day. For sites like Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter (herein known as “The Big Three”), the fastest growing demographic consists of users 35 years and older. Though social media was once considered a fad for kids, it has evolved into a viable marketing opportunity for business.

For the casual user, social media is a way to connect with friends and family. For the business user, social media works by sharing compelling content to capture the attention of your target audience. When you do this well, you can count on generating website traffic, client leads and even media attention.

“The Big Three” revolve around the concept of a status update. When you update your status, everyone in your network can view what you have to say. This is where the real opportunity lies. Instead of updating your status to report what you’re having for dinner or that it’s time to pick up your kids, share interesting content and watch the magic of social media unfold.

Type of Content to Share on Social Media Channels

1. Your new blog posts

2. Someone else’s blog post

3. An article you’ve written

4. An article from somewhere else

5. A video demonstration

6. A funny or controversial video

7. Before and after photos of work you’ve done

8. Humorous or inspiring photos

9. Client success stories/case studies

10. Free ebook

11. Special report

12. White paper

13. Upcoming event announcement

14. Live reports from an event you are currently attending

15. Book reviews/recommendations

16. Recommended products

17. Recommended services

18. Tips for doing something better

19. How-to suggestions

20. A series of related posts

21. Recent media coverage you have received

22. Inspirational advice (preferably your own, motivational quotes are over-used online)

23. Forward someone else’s update (with proper credit attribution)

24. Breaking news alerts

25. Leads for opportunities (media, clients, etc.)

26. Requests for participation (guest posts on your blog, speaker for an event you’re hosting, etc.)

27. Interesting photo from a recent event

28. Teleseminar/Webinar invitation

29. Contest announcements

30. Special sales, offers and discounts (delivered sparingly)

31. Request for audience feedback

32. A compelling question you want answered

33. Anything offered for free

34. Insider tips that people won’t find anywhere else

35. Your opinion on just about anything with target audience appeal

Secrets to Success

1. Content should appeal to your target audience and provide value.

Also, it doesn’t always have to be directly related to what you do. For example, a mortgage broker might share community resources, local event announcements and family-related tips. This type of information would likely be more appealing to the broker’s target audience than current interest rates and articles about mortgage insurance (though you can occasionally include those too). The point is to become a valued resource.

2. Follow the 90/10 rule.

Avoid selling online and you will achieve more sales. That’s right; we’re all tired of being sold to. When you provide value, you build loyalty and trust. It’s fine to include sales offers up to 10% of the time, but make sure you are primarily serving up useful content.

3. Use compelling titles and descriptions.

You only have a limited amount of space to share information which means that a good title can make the difference between a reader who clicks through or completely ignores your post.

4. Track your results.

Pay attention to user response. If you’re receiving comments and your content is being forwarded to others (for example, retweeting on Twitter), that is evidence that your efforts are working. Also, your network should be growing steadily as a result of the value you’re providing.

5. Use links wisely.

When you share compelling content, it provides an opportunity to link back to your website or blog. This is great for building website traffic. However, not every post needs to have a link. Mix up your posts so that some simply offer something short and sweet. You can also shorten links and track the number of click-throughs with a service like bit.ly.

6. Be consistent.

You will get the best results from marketing content through social media by participating on a regular basis. Ideally you should share something every day, even multiple times per day, to stay visible. You can automate some of your updates with services like ping.fm, socialoomph and hootsuite. But don’t automate everything! Keep reading…

7. Engage with your audience.

Social media involves a two-way conversation. It’s not just about shoving data out into your network and waiting to reap the rewards. Reply to people who comment, forward and share useful content from others and make sure you have a human presence in social media land.

8. Build a social media plan.

You can venture into social media haphazardly or you can form a plan that makes sense for your business. A plan should identify your target audience, include a strategy for ongoing content generation, should identify frequency of updates and indicate the amount of time and resources you are going to allocate to managing your social media strategy.

9. Implement a 30-day challenge.

Use the suggestions outlined here and focus your efforts for 30 days. The results should be obvious. If they aren’t, then there is something amiss with your strategy. Ask others for input or solicit the help of a social media expert. There is opportunity for every kind of business to benefit from social media. You simply need to find the strategy that works for you.

Stephanie Chandler is an author of several business and marketing books including “LEAP! 101 Ways to Grow Your Business” and “From Entrepreneur to Infopreneur.” She is also founder and CEO of http://AuthorityPublishing.com, a custom publishing and marketing company. Additional information is available at http://StephanieChandler.com.

Retrieved on 24th September 2009 from http://www.articlesbase.com/entrepreneurship-articles/35-ways-to-market-content-with-social-media-share-articles-blogs-videos-and-more-to-grow-your-business-online-1255648.html

Does A Freelancer Need To Be Hypercompetitive To Succeed?

written by Laura Spencer

Competition.

The very word can strike fear and excitement into the heart of even the seasoned entrepreneur.

“What is the competition doing?”

“How competitive are we?”

“How can we beat the competition?”

These are all questions that every businessperson wonders at one time or another. There’s no doubt that a freelancing business must be competitive in order to survive.

But, what does being competitive really mean?

A Quick Working Definition of Competition

If you’re competitive in your field, then you are probably able to match or exceed your competition in the one or more of the following aspects:

· Pricing

· Abilities

· Experience

· Creativity

· Quality

· Timeliness

A freelancer who doesn’t anything to offer to their clients in any of the above areas probably won’t stay in business very long.

What About Being Hyper-Competitive?

Recently, however, I’ve noticed a negative trend that goes beyond mere professional competition. It’s an overly competitive spirit that says “I’ll do whatever it takes to get ahead of my competition at whatever cost.”

I’ve come to think of this attitude as hyper-competitive (or, being unnecessarily competitive). I don’t know exactly what has fueled this new increase in excessive competition, but I suspect that the economy might have something to do with it.

I remember my first brush with a hyper-competitive individual. Back in school, I was signing up for classes for the next semester when a classmate approached me and asked to see what classes I had enrolled in.

When I asked why he wanted to see my class list he said with a smirk, “because I am going to take every class that you do and do better in each class than you.”

My reaction was probably not what my classmate anticipated – I said, “so, what if you do?”

Instead of worrying me or goading me into a performance race, my classmate’s hyper-competitive attitude was of no real consequence to me.

The Only True Competition

If you have been reading my posts for any length of time, then you know that I’ve always been an advocate of competing with yourself rather than with others.

It’s best to focus on self-improvement and on overcoming your own past problems rather than focusing on trying to meet or exceed someone else’s achievements. An even worse competitive strategy is trying to tear another person or business down. (Besides, steamrolling the competition rarely works.)

Self-competition is the only real valid type of competition that there is. Measuring your success against someone else is inherently flawed because you don’t know what advantages (or disadvantages) another freelancer has. Your competitor could be working with:

· Better equipment

· Assistance from others

· Longer timeframes

· More cooperative clients

Your competitor could even be lying about their success.

Instead of Hyper-competition, Why Not Cooperation?

Rather than viewing other freelancers as the “competition to be beat at all costs,” why not view them as peers, colleagues, potential mentors, and/or friends?

In fact, if you choose not to cooperate with your fellow freelancers you may be missing out on a very powerful freelancing advantage.

Exactly how competitive are you?

Do you prefer to compete or cooperate with your fellow freelancers?

Laura Spencer is a freelance writer from North Central Texas with over 19 years of professional business writing experience. If you liked this post, then you may also enjoy Laura’s blog about her freelance writing experiences, WritingThoughts.

Retrieved on 2^nd October 2009 from http://freelancefolder.com/does-a-freelancer-need-to-be-hypercompetitive-to-succeed/

Bill Gates' Secret Weapon: Stop To Think

written by George Torok

Bill Gates stops to think at least twice a year. Bill escapes to his wilderness lodge every six months for one week. It is during these times that he develops strategy for Microsoft. It was one of these thinking sessions that helped him to move his company to embrace the Internet and the related opportunities.

How often do you stop to think? Really think? About your business; about your future; about your life? Too many business owners are too busy running the day-to-day business to bother thinking about what they are doing or plan to do. What a shame. I suggest that you should invest at least one day every three months thinking. And do it alone. Try it - one out of 90 days thinking. That is only four days a year thinking. That is not a lot to ask. But imagine how much more that would be than your competition.

Schedule that undisturbed time to think. No phone calls. No email. No interruptions. If you believe that you can't afford do that - what does say about your business? What could be more important that thinking about your future? Yet we too often are too busy doing stuff without thinking. Your business will survive and thrive only if you think. Your life will be more satisfying if you think. You might also schedule some strategic planning time with your team - but you need the time alone to think.

You could say that Bill Gates has time to think because he is the richest guy in the world. The reality is that, he is the richest guy in the world - because he takes time to think.

What questions might you ask yourself during these thinking sessions?

What business are you in?

Where is the industry going?

What trends do you see?

What threatens your business?

What are the unknowns?

How can you distinguish yourself from your competition?

What other questions should you be asking?

What issues/ decisions are you avoiding that you need to confront?

Think smarter and you will do smarter!

Article Source:
http://www.bestmanagementarticles.com
http://entrepreneurship.bestmanagementarticles.com

BMA© George Torok is a specialist in creative thinking and communication skills. He helps business owners and professionals think clearer and act more effectively. As host of the weekly radio show, Business in Motion, he has interviewed over 500 business leaders. He has learned much about the creative thinking and creative doing process. Learn more about his programs at www.torok.com. Arrange a speech, executive briefing or workshop by calling 905-335-1997.

Retrieved on 8^th October 2009 from http://entrepreneurship.bestmanagementarticles.com/a-33451-bill-gates-secret-weapon-stop-to-think.aspx

Do You Have A USP? (or Why Should Clients Hire YOU?)

written by Alexis Rodrigo

One of the questions I ask clients when I’m creating a marketing plan or copy for them is, “What’s your product’s USP?” (In case you don’t know, USP stands for “unique selling proposition”)

What sets your product apart from your competitors? Why should customers buy from you and not the next competitor?

If you’re a freelancer, your service is a product. And to market your service effectively, you need a USP as well.

Why Do Freelancers Need A USP?
Your USP makes you stand out from your competition. It’s what makes a client hire you and not the cheaper writer, designer, VA or other service provider.

In fact, entrepreneurs say that when you have an effective USP, you annihilate competition altogether. After all, if you’re truly unique, then there’s only one you. You’re the only one who can possibly deliver what the client wants.

And therefore, you can dictate your price and they’ll still buy.

As one of my favorite freelancing bloggers, Laura Spencer of FreelanceFolder.com, said:

"It’s more important now than ever to differentiate your freelancing business from other freelancing businesses. Differentiating your business is the key to winning clients from competitors."

What Goes In a Freelancer’s USP?
I consider my USP to be the intersection of what my target clients want and what I am able to provide. It’s where the market’s demand and the services I offer meet.

I didn’t really craft a USP when I began freelancing, in the same way that I didn’t have a clear idea of who my ideal clients were (shocking, I know). But as I formed a clearer idea of whom I wanted to work with, and gained more confidence in what I have to offer, my USP took on a clearer form.

A USP is often made up of many factors. For freelancers, a USP should include (Note: The examples are purely imaginary and the result of caffeine, not based on real life):

• Your experience or story ("I have 12 years of project management experience")
• Your service ("I can write your eBook AND create the eCover as well")
• Your work ethic ("Done in 24 hours")
• Your offer ("Your sales page will have a 5% conversion rate or I'll give your money back")

My USP is still a work in progress. I'm continually refining, reinventing and polishing my USP.

And just in case you happen to also be a copywriter, no, I’m not sharing my USP here.

What About You?
But do tell: Do YOU have a USP? If so, how did you come up with it? What elements did you take into consideration to determine what makes you unique. And, most importantly, has your USP been working for you?

TheSavvyFreelancer.com was created by Alexis Rodrigo, a freelance copywriter and Internet marketer. Before freelancing, Lexi worked in the United Nations for over 10 years. Now Lexi is living her dream of being home for her family while pursuing her professional goals.

Retrieved on 28^th September 2009 from http://www.thesavvyfreelancer.com/management/open-thread-has-a-client-ever-stiffed-you

Why You Should Be Choosy About Your Clients

written by Alexis Rodrigo

If you’re new to freelancing, you may feel so desperate for clients that you’d almost work for anybody.

But today’s post is all about having to be picky with your clients.

Yes, it may be hard to swallow, but you shouldn’t work with anybody who’s willing to hire you. It may seem counter-intuitive but trust me, you don’t want to attract just anybody.

One of the first things a newbie freelancer should do is figure out who your ideal client is. Is your ideal client male or female? How old is he/she? What industry is he/she in? Does he/she have children? Married? Annual income? Hobbies? Social media user?

I can imagine you thinking, “Are you kidding me?” But, no, I’m serious. You need to create a profile of your target client. Even give him/her a name. It could be based on a person you know, or a composite of several people. Make your target client so concrete in your mind that you can imagine him/her sitting beside you, having a latte (or tea, or whatever it is he/she drinks – yes, what’s his/her favorite beverage?).

You don’t have to go out and conduct a complicated and expensive market research to “create” your target client’s profile. Use your imagination.

But you do have to do some amount of research to find out what your target clients look for in terms of outsourcing work (I’m switching to plural “clients” now because the “he/she” is driving me nuts). What skills are they looking for? Where do they look for freelancers? How much do they usually pay? Who decides about hiring freelancers?

Now take what you know (or think you know) about your ideal clients to go out and find them. Use it to screen potential clients.

By working with your ideal clients:

• You are likely to get paid the rates you believe are fair
• They are more likely to be happy with your work (and spread the word to others who are like them)
• You will stand out from your competition and be seen as the perfect fit for them

Choosing clients is an important aspect of succeeding in getting freelance work from bidding sites, such as Elance. You increase your chances of winning the bid if you pick projects posted by somebody who is close to your ideal client. Why? Because you know them so well – you have coffee with them, remember? So when you submit your bid, create a proposal, send an Email… with every piece of communication you send them, you’ll bond better. They’ll like you and hire you. Yes, even if you’re not the lowest bidder.

Forget about possible clients who just don’t fit your ideal client or aren’t even close; just don’t waste your time with them.

Choosing clients is like choosing a spouse. If you pick the right person, it’s like heaven on earth. But if you pick the wrong person, it’s hell.

TheSavvyFreelancer.com was created by Alexis Rodrigo, a freelance copywriter and Internet marketer. Before freelancing, Lexi worked in the United Nations for over 10 years. Now Lexi is living her dream of being home for her family while pursuing her professional goals.

Retrieved on 28^th September 2009 from http://www.thesavvyfreelancer.com/marketing/why-you-should-be-choosy-about-your-clients