Lifestyle & Time Out advice for Freelancers & Contractors from Freelance Advisor

Time for a clear out? How to manage your clutter!

Rachel Soothill | Lifestyle & Time out,Resources

Do you tend to gather more resources than you can practically use? Such as all those saved reading lists, e-books, training materials and blog posts you’ve been meaning to read for the last six months? The trouble with all this ‘really useful stuff’ is that it can clog up your workspace and also take up valuable time.

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Freelancing perks #1,222: Side projects!

Leif Kendall | Lifestyle & Time out

Freelancing can be tough, but it does offer hefty perks. Recently I’ve been enjoying the freedom to pursue side projects – the extra-curricular activities of the solo professional. Of course, you don’t have to be freelance to have pet projects (that’s what evenings and weekends are for) and some employers give staff free time to pursue their own interests, but no employer can offer the total freedom you have as a freelancer.

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Freelancers value Twitter and coffee over smartphones

Jon Norris | Lifestyle & Time out,News

This may take you by surprise a bit, given the massive popularity of smartphones amongst today’s savvy professionals. New research has found that smartphones are valued less by freelancers and contractors than social networks, online organisational tools such as Dropbox, and even coffee.

Skype offering caveat-laden WiFi for Internet Week Europe

Jon Norris | Lifestyle & Time out,News

As you may be aware, Internet Week Europe began today. With over 200 events taking place across London alone, the festival is a celebration of all things digital across the continent. Skype, keen to get in on the action, have launched a promotion for free WiFi across the UK. However, their promotion may just be the finest example of terms-and-conditions-overload we’ve ever encountered.

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Five inspirational freelancers to start your week

Jon Norris | Lifestyle & Time out

Welcome to another working week. We thought we’d start this week off on a positive note with five freelancers and contractors who have done noteworthy, important or downright inspirational things.

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Volunteering – do something meaningful with your spare time

Lesley Furber | Lifestyle & Time out

Anyone can volunteer, Freelancers and Contractors too. All types of organisations regularly need volunteers and Freelancers can often offer specialised skills that ‘traditional’ volunteers cannot.

Knew it all along – casual browsing good for productivity

Jon Norris | Lifestyle & Time out

Here comes another study which will cause the freelancers of the world roll their eyes wryly as the rest of the world slowly figures out what us homeworkers have been preaching all along.

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Small business owners take less than 2 weeks holiday a year

Rachel Soothill | Lifestyle & Time out,News

A new study by IFF research has revealed that two-thirds of small-business owners had less than two weeks’ holiday in 2010. The research was carried out on 500 firms and showed that 69% of bosses were unable to take more than 14 days out of the office

A third of Brits take business calls on holiday

Rachel Soothill | Lifestyle & Time out,News

New research by internet telephony company Gradwell, has shown that 38% of UK employees take business calls whilst on holiday. The over 65′s and top level management were revealed to be the most guilty of never switching off.

Coffee – fuelling the freelance revolution

Jon Norris | Lifestyle & Time out

Coffee is wonderful stuff. Brewed from the seeds of coffee trees grown primarily in South America, this awesome caffeinated drink is responsible for a large amount of the productivity in the developed world – and the best friend of many homeworking freelancers.

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Tumblr overtakes WordPress – what is your blogging platform of choice?

Jon Norris | Lifestyle & Time out,Technology

Every website should have a blog. Content is king, as they say, and you’ll need some kind of Content Management System (CMS) to keep that content organised.

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How to switch off for the weekend

Jon Norris | Guides,Lifestyle & Time out

One of the toughest parts of being a freelancer (apart from getting those pesky invoices in on time) can be separating your personal and business lives. If you’re a Sole Trader (rather than a Limited Company) this can be especially hard, as you may use your personal email address and phone number. There’s nothing more annoying than getting a call from a client when you’re trying to relax on a sunny Sunday.

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Using Twitter for business

Selina Murray | Lifestyle & Time out,Resources

If there’s one thing we’ve learnt from Ryan Giggs in the last few weeks, it’s how not to use Twitter for business. Love it or loathe it (probably the latter for Mr. Giggs), Twitter can be a very useful business tool. If you work alone it can be invaluable for making connections.

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Health and Safety

Selina Murray | Guides,Lifestyle & Time out

It’s become a bit of a standing joke hasn’t it? There you are, standing up a ladder, drinking a beer, waving a power tool around, and some interfering person appears and gets very upset at you about you breaching health and safety procedures, and when you’re out of the office it can be even more annoying.

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Freelance workers World Record Attempt – Monday 13th June 2011

Selina Murray | Events,Lifestyle & Time out

Attention Freelancers!

If you’re within travelling distance of London here’s a good excuse to get out of bed early on Monday and be part of a world record attempt.

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One third of SMEs wouldn’t employ Apprentice candidates

Rachel Soothill | Lifestyle & Time out,News

A survey by IFF research has revealed that more than a third of small and medium businesses would not dream of hiring a candidate from BBC series The Apprentice. 500 small and medium sized businesses took part in the poll with 35% admitting that they would view a job application from an Apprentice candidate in a negative light.

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Freelance Five – Bite-sized freelancer interviews

Jon Norris | Lifestyle & Time out,Resources

If you follow us on Twitter (and really, why don’t you?) you may have noticed us chatting with Freelance Five. This new site, set up by freelance designer Mark Bowley aims to take all it is to be a freelancer – all the lost weekends, invoice chasing, personal successes and wonderful freedom, and boil it down into five concise questions.

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The power of Social Media

Rachel Soothill | Lifestyle & Time out,Technology

If we didn’t appreciate the power of social media previously, the latest news headlines have confirmed just how influential platforms such as Twitter and Facebook are. Twitter in particular has hit the headlines recently after making a mockery of England’s privacy laws. While I couldn’t care less about who Ryan Giggs is bonking, the situation has grabbed my attention as it highlights the effectiveness of social media communication.

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How to get angry properly

TimothyTim | Guides,Lifestyle & Time out

“Ooooh you god-damned, badger-faced tool! I would tell you why you’re a fecking incompetent simpleton but I’d be worried I’d have to waste more precious seconds of my rapidly dwindling lifetime explaining what every third word in the sentence means.” This is an example of an angry response.

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A guide to getting your own way, by being a gigantic dick

TimothyTim | Guides,Lifestyle & Time out

Didn’t we take over a bunch of banks? Didn’t the government promise on bended-knee that they would not let the rich irresponsible cretins in “the city” screw us again, at least until we had time to get our collective lipstick on?

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Freelancers can go on holiday too!

Rachel Soothill | Lifestyle & Time out

As the summer holidays approach our minds start to wander to lazy days on the beach, chilled Pimms and time with the family. However, we all know that holidays for freelancers are never quite so easy and stress free. Holidays represent all that is positive and all that is negative about being a freelancer.

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[Book Give-Away] Selling Successfully Online

Jon Norris | Lifestyle & Time out,Resources

While most freelancers and contractors offer personal services – consultancies and suchlike – there are still a large amount of self-employed people out there who make and sell physical things. If you’re going to be selling things, these days you’ll be nowhere without an online store!

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Quiz: Are you a good freelancing parent?

TimothyTim | Guides,Lifestyle & Time out

Kids. Whether you wanted them or not, once you have one, your general level of harassment will never fall below ‘fraught’. Freelancers have it extra bad as they don’t get all that lovely maternity leave / paternity leave that the PAYE population enjoy. So in the spirit of helping you through these tough times I’ve [...]

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The time is now: the best clocks for home offices

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out,Working From Home

When you’re working from home, you need strong self-discipline and an ability to manage time effectively. One of the best time management devices comes courtesy of an old-fashioned clock. Sure, we all have the time on our computers, but it’s not the same as having a proper clock face hanging high up on the wall above your desk.

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Bank Holiday Moan Zone

Jon Norris | Events,Lifestyle & Time out

For all the full-time employees out there the next few weeks are a good time to be alive. Two four-day weekends in a row? Sounds ok to me. But, as many of us know all too well, Bank Holidays aren’t always quite so relaxing for freelancers on a deadline.

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Talking Shit: Memoirs of a freelance marketer

TimothyTim | Lifestyle & Time out

Everybody knows marketing agencies are up to no good. They’re either burning through your companies money at an alarming rate, or trying to trick your brain into buying something you don’t really need. We’ve been allowed access to a spreadsheet a freelance marketer kept of all the most brain-dead snippets to cross his desk.

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10 emails you want to send to a client…but probably never will

TimothyTim | Lifestyle & Time out,Training

We’ve all had them – clients who are pushy, moneygrubbing or just downright moronic. Some days it can be difficult to step away from the keyboard and take some deep breaths. If you could, what would you say to these numpties?

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Freelancers’ favourite perks – a Twitter poll

Jon Norris | Getting a Job,Lifestyle & Time out

Last week we conducted another very unscientific Twitter straw poll to see what freelancers’ favourite perks of the job are. Is it the variety afforded by a self-employed lifestyle? Perhaps its the flexibility or the networking opportunities? The results are in, and there was one very clear consensus

Writer’s block – what does it mean?

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

The job of a freelance writer or copywriter is to write stuff for people and businesses. This isn’t creative writing in the purest sense, it is about writing what needs to be written for a client. There is no room for writer’s block and therefore it doesn’t normally apply, unlike when an author pens his or her own novel. However, there still comes a time when writing for a client seems like a laborious teeth-pulling process. And that’s enough to make any writer’s fingers freeze above the keyboard.

Every freelancer needs a fan

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out,Technology

At this time of year, fans become an essential item in any home office. No-one works well when they’re overheating on the job, so ensuring you keep cool in the summer months is crucial. So, which fans are the best? I don’t know, but these are pretty cool.

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Television helping drive entrepreneurial spirit in the UK

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out,News

Television shows like The Apprentice, Dragon’s Den and The Secret Millionaire are persuading more people to consider starting up their own business, according to government research. The ‘Impact of Media on Entrepreneurial Intentions and Actions’ report found that media portrayals of enterprise is having a positive impact on non-entrepreneurial Britons.

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[Web Wednesday] Five reasons freelancers use social media

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out,Technology

Many of us have read theories about what constitutes best practice when it comes to social media, but what is the reality for UK freelancers? From my own experience I’ve identified five main ways that freelancers use social media.

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Stress! And how to deal with it.

Bex White | Guides,Lifestyle & Time out

Deadlines, project management, chasing pay, being creative under pressure… it all adds up. From my personal experience and that of managing other designers, I can state one simple fact. Stress is almost always completely self-induced and easily avoided by following a few simple ideas.

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The hidden dangers lurking in the office

Mel Dixon | Guides,Lifestyle & Time out

The office is one of the safest places you could possibly work. You come in, you sit down, and you run your fingers over a keyboard for a few hours. What’s the worst that can happen? Electrocution by the office toaster? Well, as far-fetched as that may seem, it could happen. And that’s not the only hidden danger in the office.

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The best coffee mugs for the office

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

For the freelancer who works at a client’s office, it can sometimes be difficult to find a spare coffee mug. Perhaps the boss is so stingy that they only have enough for one per employee. That’s why it’s advisable to bring in your own mug. But, don’t just make it any old ceramic drinking device, make sure that yours stands out from the crowd. In essence the coffee cup you use should be a celebration of your freelance status.

Here’s a guide to nine of the best…

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How do you like your Pancakes?

Jon Norris | Guides,Lifestyle & Time out

Forget Christmas, forget Easter, today is the big one. Shrove Tuesday, or as it is known colloquially, Pancake Day. Today we, as a nation, celebrate the day on which St. George stole flour, milk, eggs and lemon juice from a Swiss castle…or something. In a recent survey of freelancers, 100% of them said they love pancakes, and working from home means we can enjoy pancakes all day long.

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A Tax on Tweets? Keep dreaming, Littlejohn

Jon Norris | Lifestyle & Time out

The Daily Mail’s attack dog Richard Littlejohn has applied more of his unique brand of “common sense” to the increasingly vitriolic debate on how to tackle the national deficit. The chancellor George Osborne has publicly asked for ideas on how to bring in more revenue, however we can’t see Littlejohn’s proposals holding much water.

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[Money Monday] Next Apprentice series to have entrepreneurial focus

Jon Norris | Lifestyle & Time out

Alan Sugar has recently unveiled the plans for the next series of his popular reality TV show, and it has a slightly more entrepreneurial theme than previous series. In the past, winners were gifted a high-paying job at one of Alan Sugar’s businesses, however the victorious candidate in the next edition will be given the dubious honour of being allowed to start their own business.

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[Web Wednesday] Five useful online presentation tools

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out,Technology

Presentation tools are pretty handy, whether that’s for live physical presentations or online demonstrations. On the whole they’re versatile pieces of software, and can be used for both professional and hobbyist purposes. Recently, I’ve been trying out some of the best on the market…

Freelance pyjama party!

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

It seems difficult to believe but according to a survey by Nectar Business almost 10 per cent of female homeworkers get through a full working day in their pyjamas. It’s one of the perks of the job, surely?

What is the origin of the word “Freelance”?

Jon Norris | Lifestyle & Time out

I’m a freelancer, you’re a freelancer. Why are we freelancers? Where does this silly word come from? It was first coined in 1819 by Scottish writer Sir Walter Scott in his novel Ivanhoe. Ivanhoe formed the basis of the Robin Hood character as it exists today, and is widely credited with renewing interest in the middle ages amongst 19th Century literary types.

It’s Super Bowl weekend! What?

Jon Norris | Lifestyle & Time out

The Superbowl is something of an amusing cultural phenomenon. It is generally recognised as one of the most-watched annual sporting events, with an audience of around 100million. Obviously, the vast majority of these viewers are American, however the Superbowl has attracted an overseas following in recent years (including myself), and is being shown on BBC1 this Sunday at 11pm-4am. Good thing freelancers have flexible working hours, huh?

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A freelancers guide to energy drinks

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

I have a long history with energy drinks. I once went through a phase of being far too reliant on the things, including some of those Red Bull-style energy drinks packed with caffeine, taurine and other obscure chemicals and substances which were supposed to increase your alertness and energy levels. Also let me add that I was particularly sporty at this time, so felt fully justified

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Is “Blue Monday” a crock?

Jon Norris | Lifestyle & Time out

Aside from being a perpetually-delicious promotion tool at Yo! Sushi, “Blue Monday” is a term coined by the media to proclaim today, the third Monday in January, as the “most depressing day of the year”. At the time of writing, Blue Monday is trending on Twitter, and many large media organisations are publishing “Blue Monday survival guides”.

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Why homeworkers are vulnerable to “social jetlag”

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out,Working From Home

Recently, I read about a concept called “social jetlag”. Scientists coined the term as a way of describing the effects of returning to work after Christmas. Personally, I haven’t experienced traditional jetlag because I refuse to board a plane, but it seemed to me an exaggeration to twin post-Christmas blues with the physical effects of flying to the other side of the world and adapting to a completely different body clock.

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Ten incredible pens for freelancers and contractors

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

Pen and paper is underrated. Sure you can have your user-friendly word programmes and ergonomic keyboards but can any combination beat the humble ink on felled tree? Nope. Personally, I’m always at my most creative with a pen in my hand and a blank sheet of paper in front of me. But, it has to be a special pen…

Values: The freelancer’s creed

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

What are your values? It may seem a slightly odd question to ask a fellow freelancer or contractor, and you might think it’s something more relevant to a large corporation that needs to safeguard against an existence based on pure cash-clutching greed.

However, the values that you hold as a one-man band can help guide the decisions you make and ensure that you give the highest possible level of service to customers and clients. The values you hold are the seeds from which your reputation grows.

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The office party survival guide

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

If you’re a freelancer or contractor who gets on famously with your clients, you may well be invited to a Christmas party this year. I, for one, have a few parties to attend. In fact, I’ve already crashed and burned at one. And that got me thinking: How am I going to handle the rest of them? Can I get through these parties without being the office bore?

These are some of the techniques I’ll be using to get through the festive knees-up…

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Avoiding coughs and colds for freelancers

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

At this time of year the cold air bites, and people tend to be more vulnerable to colds and viruses. As a freelancer or contractor you can’t exactly pull a sickie, and besides, nobody wants to feel as though they’ve swallowed a cheese grater or experienced the River Use streaming out of their nostrils.

There are simple actions you can take to ensure you’re not the one who everyone would like to see placed in quarantine.

Winter is here – everybody panic!

Jon Norris | Lifestyle & Time out,Working From Home

Have you been outside recently? Cold, isn’t it. Apparently we’re seeing the coldest November since 1985, and various parts of England are now blanketed with snow. Incidentally, if you’ve not seen it, some clever clogs has put together a crowd-sourced map of UK snowfall using Twitter. Make sure to geo-tag your tweets and include the hashtag #uksnow to be included!

Behold – The Printer Cake

Jon Norris | Lifestyle & Time out

You may remember a couple of weeks ago we had a competition to win a Lexmark printer – it was a huge success (thanks to everybody that entered by the way), and provided everybody with some excellent green printing advice.

Bloody hell: Swearing in the workplace

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

Gordon Ramsay does it in the kitchen and Christian Bale does it on the film set, so why can’t a freelancer or contractor let rip with a few profanities in the workplace?

Many experts argue that swearing is an effective method of venting your pent-up frustrations, so assuming no-one raises any objections, and you get the job done as per your clients requirements, there shouldn’t be any repercussions for owning a potty mouth.

If only it were that simple.

A big thanks!

Jon Norris | Lifestyle & Time out

To everybody who attended the National Freelancers Day Mastermind Session in Brighton last night!

A special thanks to Tim and Iain from PCG for arranging the event, and to Crunch for providing the liquid refreshments.

Six super home office chairs

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

When your working day involves working at a computer, it also involves sitting on a chair. The wrong chair could lead to a bad back and a foul mood. The right chair will result in physical well-being and a healthy freelancer mindset.

Here are six of the best home office chairs: some weird, some wonderful, others barely fathomable.

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Coffee Break: Enterprise Nation TV – Episode 1

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out,Working From Home

If you’re interested in starting your own business, working from home or building a business empire from scratch then Enterprise Nation is a great source of information and inspiration.

I’ve recently stumbled across their TV channel on Vimeo and it’s fantastic. EN founder Emma Jones have been a Freelance Advisor contributor for a couple of years now and it’s great to see her ‘live’ in front of the camera talking about the stuff she loves.

One to watch!

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Why small businesses can learn a lot from water

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

Some may call it a horribly and painfully strung out metaphor, others may accept it as genuine business wisdom: “Successful small businesses have a lot in common with water.”

Let’s run with this stream of thought.

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Top Tips: Life of a Freelancer [video]

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out

After last week’s illuminating How to Start a Design Business videos we got sent this brilliant tongue-in-cheek take on the life of a freelancer. Completely hilarious it’s full of some nice tips for convincing clients you’ve got a secretary while answering calls from bed, how to claim almost anything on expenses and how to fool clients you work for a big agency while working in your pants.

A must see for a miserable Monday morning…

Outbox Hero — Stop… Sending… Email

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out

We hear a lot about “Inbox Zero”, whether you’ve practiced Getting Things Done, got yourself a set of 43 Folders or just have good Zen Habits, you are probably aware that it’s a good idea to have an Inbox that you treat as sacred and some rules and patterns to govern it; Rule one being get ‘In to Empty’ regularly.

While this all makes a whole lot of sense and has done for years, important bills to pay tucked behind the clock on the mantlepiece was my late Uncle’s preferred ‘productivity tool’, I’ve always thought there should be some discussion of Outbox behaviours.

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Relieving stress at work

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

When you’re working as a freelancer or contractor, it’s not just your business you have to manage. You also have to manage your own stress levels. After all, a taut freelancer may soon become unhappy and unmotivated leading to a professional and personal downward spiral.

What follows is a guide to reducing stress levels on the job.

New space for creative co-working in Brighton

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out,Working From Home

The Skiff 2.0 has recently moved to a new space for creative co-working.

In partnership with Wired Sussex the new co-working and events space is a bigger, better, brighter place at 6 Gloucester Street, right in the heart of Brighton’s North Laine .

Seven stress-busting tools for freelancers

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

There are infinite numbers of ways in which freelancers and contractors can relieve work-related stress. Managing your time better, moving a chest of drawers to the other side of the room, or meditating to whale music are just a few that might work.

But sometimes you just want a quick fix for those moments when you feel a bit overwrought. Here we’ve compiled seven of the best stress-busting tools on the market.

Freelance Stories – Web Designer & Developer, Jim Callender

Leif Kendall | Lifestyle & Time out

As part of our Freelance Stories series Leif Kendall talks with former Freelancer of the Year winner and founder of Callender Creates, Jim Callender. We find out how Jim juggles work in London and Brighton and hear how he found a work/life balance that works for him and his family.

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How to Use Twitter for Marketing and PR

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out

At Freelance Advisor we’ve spent a lot of time sharing advice on how you can effectively use Twitter and social. As a tool for finding more friends, colleagues clients and work. We’ve discussed how to use it for Marketing your personal brand and for PR for your own company.

This cheeky little site has a different view…

HowtoUseTwitterforMarketing&PR

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Eight awesome ergonomic beds

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

In a previous article, I talked about the importance of a good nights sleep for freelancers and contractors, and the most effective way to achieve that.

One important aspect I neglected to mention was the importance of a good bed. What follows is a list of the most ergonomic and practical beds currently on the market.

Book of the week: Focus – The Power of Targeted Thinking

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out

Freelancers need focus; without a boss to keep you in line and being outside a traditional workflow it can be hard to know where to focus your efforts. Combine this with the pace of modern life and it’s easy to get swamped and to feel that there just aren’t enough hours in the day. Not only is there a lot of work there are constant distractions, tweets, bleeps and pings pulling us away from our true goals and aspirations.

Focus: The Power of Targeted Thinking attempts to give the solution to all these feelings of confusion and distraction.

Sleeping your way to success

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

For most freelancers and contractors, getting a good nights sleep is pretty crucial. Yes, you do get those strange types who seem to get by with just a few hours kip. But they’re not normal.

And surely being reliant on huge vats of coffee to get through the day doesn’t do anyone any good?

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Friday Fun – Office Gadgets

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

Are you the contractor or freelancer who likes to be the cool, quirky guy (or girl) in the office?

Well if you feel you’re failing in your mission to stand out from the humdrum crowd, these following desktop gadgets are sure to make you the envy of your bespectacled bald-pated colleagues…

Freelance Stories – Basecamp’s Jason Fried

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out

We’re big fans of Jason Fried, creator of Basecamp and co-author of Rework. His Get Real column for Inc.com is a must-read for freelancers interested in freelancing, small business advice, for stories of struggle and success.

His first column for Inc.com, Driven to Distraction, is Fried’s fascinating tale of how he built 37Signals from his solo freelancing business.

Middle-aged women and workplace perceptions

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

A recent survey has explored the attitudes of mid-life women in the workplace. Despite having confidence in their own ability, it seems these women feel their age goes against them as far other people’s perceptions are concerned.

The results make interesting reading which suggests freelancing could be the way forward…

60-second review: Teux Deux – simple task manager

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out,Technology

Teux Deux is a super-simple, sleek and stylish to-do list manager. If you like great design with a tiny pinch of minimalism then this might be for you.

Built entirely for the web you just sign up for a free account and start typing in your to-dos. To add a task you just type and hit return. That’s it.

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How to tackle eye strain

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

When you spend the majority of your working day staring at a computer screen, or reading pages of hard-copy text, your eyes can start to feel the strain. Is this just a drawback of desk-based work? Or is there something that can be done about it?

Here’s some handy advice for tackling eye strain…

Don’t let credit crunch blues beat you down

Joycellyn Akuffo | Lifestyle & Time out

Although it feels as if the worst of the economic crisis is over, and the outlook for freelancers and contractors is relatively positive, the emergency ‘austerity’ Budget is a stark reminder that the recovery is still fragile.

Should unemployment strike, it’s important to ensure that your self-esteem doesn’t go through the floor.

Jocellyn Akuffo is the founder of a website for working mums, and has some timely advice…

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What are you willing to do for $5?

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out

Whilst probably not the best place to find freelance work this cute new website, Fiverr.com allows you to offer the world something wonderful, as long as the price is $5.

The service works Like Twitter with short, quick posts, offering random acts of kindness — and odd jobs.

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Health and safety for freelancers

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

For freelancers and contractors working in office environments the issue of safety at work will not be forefront in most people’s minds. And for obvious reasons. We’re not exactly operating heavy machinery where one false move means one lost limb, or balancing on the edge of a scaffold pole while balancing a bucket of cement atop our heads.

Nonetheless, every year approximately 2000 office workers are absent from work for more than three days due to workplace accidents; and these statistics don’t take account of illnesses resulting from office work.

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Plugging the RSS time-sink

Mark Kirby | Lifestyle & Time out

Information overload is not a problem — we’ve been surrounded by too much information for centuries.

The real problem is ‘filter failure’.

Here Wordpress & Mobile Developer Mark Kirby outlines a very simple method for filtering website feeds and making the most of your time online.

Online gaming. Disguised [Friday Fun]

Mel Dixon | Lifestyle & Time out

When your working day becomes a stultifying bore sometimes you need a form of respite. A brief sojourn can be provided by playing online games, but what if you’re working in an office with potential snitchers peering over your shoulder ready to cry wolf to their favourite boss?

Cant You See I’m Busy.com to the rescue!

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If you thought YOUR clients were bad

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out

Part comedy, part tragedy, part therapy: Clients from Hell provides a little bit of light relief for those tense moments when the client is really winding you up.

Rather then venting on social media, bumming out your friends, colleagues and running the risk of the client spotting your angst why not post it annonymously, get your revenge and give the benefits of your pain back to the community.

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Freelance Health: How to sit at your desk correctly

Jo Blood | Lifestyle & Time out

Sitting down and working from behind a desk should be the least physically strenuous form of employment, but all too often office-based work can lead to a pain in the neck, and an ache in the back. Posture expert Jo Blood guides us through the most ergonomically viable way of working at your computer…

[Time Out] England vs USA immortalised in Lego

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out

Re-live the awful, awful moment when Rob Green let the ball slip between his fingers… in full-colour LEGOVISION:

Flexible freelancing – Have you bean to a Jelly yet?

Judy Heminsley | Lifestyle & Time out

Co-working offers freelancers both flexibility of where to work and also the chance to meet with like-minded co-workers and collaborators. Working from home expert Judy Heminsley recommends the Jelly approach.

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Relationships in a freelancer’s world

Anthony Hewson | Lifestyle & Time out

Relationships are more important for a freelancer than for any other individual.

That’s a pretty bold statement and I’m bracing myself for a wave of incredulity articulated by examples of people going through any sort of emotional or physical trauma. Ok, leaving that probably overwhelming group aside… here’s why

13 small things to simplify your workday

Leo Babauta | Lifestyle & Time out

“Do the difficult things while they are easy and do the great things while they are small. A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.” ~Lao Tzu

One of the best things I did when I decided to simplify my life was to simplify my workday — first at my day job and later, by quitting my day job, in the work I do now as a writer and entrepreneur.

I’ve eliminated most of the routine, boring, administrative tasks with a few simple principles.

Link list: Grand Designs, Shed-working & Receipts

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out

Dribble.com – what are you working on?: Part game, part forum, part image library designers will find a lot of inspiration here and, if you’re really inspired you can bounce a piece of work to riff off the creation and join discussions about how to code the design in CSS — design geeks will LOVE it.

Shedworking.co.uk: Garden offices look set to become the next big thing in backyards this summer and with some beautiful off-the-lorry designs if you’ve got some money to throw at the problem it needn’t involve to much DIY.

Keebo promise to have your receipts online within 72 hours and offer a no quibble 90 day money back guarantee if you want to try their new service.

Working from home — Avoiding isolation and finding motivation

Judy Heminsley | Lifestyle & Time out

When freelancing or starting a small business and looking to keep costs down working from home is the obvious solution.

There’s also a downside, though, and that’s the risk of becoming lonely and isolated, with its knock-on effect on self-confidence and motivation.

Continuing our #WorkingFromHome series Judy Heminsley shares her hard-won tips for overcoming the gloom of isolation and how to get motivated in the mid-afternoon slump…

Procrastination – the energy leech

Judy Heminsley | Lifestyle & Time out

When I talk about home working to someone who is office-based, they reply, ‘I could never work from home. I’d spend all day in my pyjamas watching daytime TV.’ What they mean is that they’re afraid that away from the eyes of bosses and colleagues they’d never get anything done, that they would procrastinate.

The trouble with procrastination is that it drains energy from us every time we think about that dreaded task and then stuff it to the back of our minds again. Far more energy than it would take to complete.

So why do you procrastinate?

Family friendly freelancing – tips and advice from a working mum

Linda Jones | Lifestyle & Time out

Agency director and mum of twins Linda Jones shares some expert tips on how to successfully balance the demands of a freelance career with those of a growing family.

Freelance Stories – Web Designer, Rowan Richardson

Leif Kendall | Lifestyle & Time out

In the first of Freelance Advisor’s freelancer interviews we speak to web designer Rowan Richardson, and discover how she succeeds as a freelancer.

Freelance Coworking: Funny video with a serious message

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out

A great little video with a simple message.

“Sure you can speak to me… but if I’m wearing my headphones you should come back later”

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Go Freelance! Making a living doing the things you love

Leo Babauta | Getting a Job,Lifestyle & Time out

As Confucius said… “Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.”

As part of our new series on Making a Living Without a Job, productivity guru and professional blogger Leo Babauta explains that everyone can go freelance and earn a good living by doing the things they love to do.

Overcoming overload: How to Avoid Feature Creep in Your Life

Leo Babauta | Lifestyle & Time out

There’s a concept in programming called “feature creep” — when a software developer continually adds one feature after another because “wouldn’t it be nice” and “why not” and “isn’t it cool” and “some users asked for it”. The end result is a bloated program that tries to do everything but ends up being not very good at any of it.

Leo Babauta suggests a few ideas for overcoming feature-creep in your life.

Put a fire in your belly: overcome inertia, forget fear and get things done

Leif Kendall | Lifestyle & Time out

Is something holding you back? Are you contemplating change, but struggling to make the leap? I can’t tell you how to motivate yourself. But I can write about the things that help me get going…

Freelance Technology: How do you find co-working places?

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out

If you are lucky enough to own an iPhone 3Gs and you are wandering around town trying to find a place to do a spot of co-working then this funky Augmented Reality app for iPhone looks like an awesome solution. thanks @stephenfry

Freelance Poll: Do you use ‘I’ or ‘We’ when talking about your one-person business?

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out

Web freelancer and email marketing consultant Jon Aizlewood has posed an interesting question and twitter-poll today. Click below to add to the poll and twitter a reply if you’d like to explain your reasons.

Getting Things Done: How NOT to Multitask

Leo Babauta | Lifestyle & Time out

Single-tasking: getting more done by doing less.

Developing good, simple habits and maintaining a focused mind can not only help you stay sane but is way more efficient than multitasking.

Guest blogger and productivity-pro Leo Babauta tells why multitasking is bad and how we can avoid doing it.

Home working: Spending your time wisely

Emma Jones | Lifestyle & Time out,Working From Home

Recent research has show that home workers and freelancers are more productive than their 9-5, desk-bound colleagues.

Freelance Advisor and Home Business expert Emma Jones takes a quick, efficient look at how you can make the most of your time in the home office.

Freelance Productivity: ‘Making It All Work’ - Book Review

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out

At Freelance Advisor we are big fans of finding smarter ways to work and many of the team have adopted David Allen’s approach to productivity and knowledge work.

Allen’s latest book, Making It All Work, helps illuminate some of the key ideas behind GTD, fleshing out some of the assumptions of his previous work and adding a new, streamlined approach to getting the core ideas across. The book works both as a primer for beginners that updates and in my opinion surpasses the original book as ‘the one to read and also a handy deeper exploration of the core princples and the sticking points that even GTD ninjas will appreciate.

Thank God I’m Freelance – #TGIFreelance

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out

Last Friday we experimented with the #TGIFreelance Twitter hashtag.

The idea is simple, just tell the world what you love most about freelancing and tag it #TGIFreelance

Remind yourself, and others, why it is you do (and love) what you do.

TGIF: Thank God I’m Freelance!

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out

Clients, in real life This video has been doing the rounds the last couple of days… it’s a very funny look at what clients can be like and shows just how ridiculous it would be in other industries. Well worth a watch.

Freelance Productivity: Happiness is an empty inbox

Leo Babauta | Lifestyle & Time out

Email Zen: Clear Out Your Inbox

Our productivity guru Leo Babauta, pro-blogger and founder of the highly successful Zen Habits, gives us three top tips on managing email and keeping your mind, and your inbox, clean and clear.

Freelance Productivity: Focusing on what is most important

Leo Babauta | Lifestyle & Time out

Purpose Your Day: Most Important Task (MIT)

Leo Babauta, creator of the highly successful Zen Habits blog shares a few tips on prioritising your freelance tasks and streamlining your workflow.

Getting things done… zen style.

Freelance Life: Working away from home

Emma Jones | Lifestyle & Time out

New technology means it’s possible to work wherever you want. You’ve already decided you want to work for yourself and away from the traditional office, but now – with a few simple tips and tricks – you can enjoy unprecedented flexibility, and work almost anywhere, from your local coffee shop to the public park. Freelance Advisor and Home Working author and expert Emma Jones explains how.

Freelance Lifestyle: Keeping fit and healthy at 50 plus

Dianne Bown-Wilson | Lifestyle & Time out

Being a freelancer is tough at any age. Ultimately you only have yourself to rely on so you can end up working long hours hunched over a desk or keyboard, taking in far more energy-boosting coffee and carbohydrates than you know is good for you. And that’s without smoking, stress, and alcohol. Over time all can be hugely punishing on the body and mind.

Freelance Coach: Personality profiling and freelancing

Daryl Close | Lifestyle & Time out

Do you know the critical personality and behavioural traits that you need to exhibit in order to be a successful freelancer? You might spend a lot of time and energy working on your freelancing business but achieve little because you are not focusing on the key performance drivers. I’ve decided to improve your chances of [...]

TGIF: Thank God I’m Freelance!

Leif Kendall | Lifestyle & Time out

Have you ever sat in a meeting about meetings, or a meeting to discuss an agenda, or a meeting to discuss the formation of a committee, or a meeting to discuss how the sales department should complete the new business acquisition form before giving it to the marketing department, and asked your aching brain: is [...]

Freelance Coaching: SWOT yourself to success

Dianne Bown-Wilson | Lifestyle & Time out

Part of our ongoing Freelance Coaching series, author and trainer Dianne Bown-Wilson offers a simple tool for analysing yourself as a freelancer and the opportunities and threats to you and your business.

If your decision-making could do with a bit of a tune-up or you are facing new opportunities or an uncertain future then this simple technique can offer you insight into where your strengths lie and what needs your attention.

Freelance Hacks: 10 Benefits of Rising Early, and How to Do It

Leo Babauta | Lifestyle & Time out

Leo Babauta of Zen Habits rises at 4:30 a.m every day. And he’s clearly insane! But before we roll over and pull the covers over our heads… lets hear some of the benefits and, if it sounds good to you, how you can make it a lasting, productive habit.

Freelance Hacks: Do less and get more done

Leo Babauta | Lifestyle & Time out

As a freelancer with multiple clients, multiple deadlines and multiple todo lists it can be hard to know what to focus on next – so rather than choose we often end up doing two, or more, things at once. As part of a series of posts on Getting Things Done for Freelancers Leo Babauta of [...]

Home office: One size doesn’t fit all

Jo Blood | Lifestyle & Time out,Working From Home

It’s no fun being average… but at least your desk and workstation have been designed with you in mind. If you’re above-average height you will know that it’s not quite so easy. Posture professional Jo Blood gives tall guys and gals a few hints on how to make their working environment work for them. Tall [...]

Freelancing News: Freelancers urged to take Union survey

Kasey Brunt | Lifestyle & Time out,News

Media freelancers are being urged to take a wellbeing survey from the National Union of Journalists (NUJ). The NUJ survey aims to assess the well-being of freelance journalists based in the UK. Those who take part in the online survey will be asked questions about their work, and how their job affects their social life [...]

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Freelance Advice: Portfolio Working and how to go about it

Dianne Bown-Wilson | Lifestyle & Time out

In part one of this series consultant, coach and trainer Dianne Bown-Wilson explored the advantages of portfolio working. Today she helps us identify the tools we’ll need to put it into practice. Portfolio career: How to Designing a Portfolio Career comes down to achieving an appropriate and desirable balance in your life between need and [...]

Freelance Advice: Make the most of your office chair

Jo Blood | Lifestyle & Time out

When working in a client’s office why is it the freelancers and contractors who always get the bum deal? Are you fed up with always being allocated the worst chair in the office? Our ergonomic expert Jo Blood gives us a practical guide to promoting good posture and making the most of your office chair. [...]

Working from home: 17 secrets for success

Leif Kendall | Lifestyle & Time out

Ah… the life of a freelancer… feet up, TV on, sitting around in your dressing gown and your clients are none the wiser. But is this really the best way to approach your freelance and contracting work? Freelance Advisor and Web Marketing Consultant Leif Kendall asked the freelancers on the Brighton New Media list what [...]

Tools for Time boxing

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out

Mark Kirby’s piece on Time-Boxing for Freelancers this week got me thinking about all the time I could waste trying to find the perfect tools for the job. The irony of this is not lost on anyone I’m sure so, rather than waste unnecessary time on “productivity p0rn”, I thought I’d take Mark’s advice to [...]

Thinking inside the box: A method for focusing on freelance tasks

Mark Kirby | Lifestyle & Time out

Getting things done throughout the day is what keeps the contracts and cash coming in. But how do we know which tasks we should be working on? And for how long? Freelance Advisor’s life-hacks guru Mark Kirby offers a smart solution to planning freelance work. In this post I’m going to focus on a simple [...]

Freelance co-working, USA style

Darren Fell | Lifestyle & Time out

In this second article from the USA, Freelance Advisor founder and serial entrepreneur Darren Fell gets the low-down on the American co-working scene and some advice about the pitfalls of freelancer café culture. Wanting to continue the debate on the merits of co-working, I descend on one of the very first co-working establishments – the [...]

Adding exercise to your daily routine

Helen Wilkinson | Lifestyle & Time out

Professional Personal Trainer and Massage Therapist Helen Wilkinson is on a mission to get us work-from-home types up off our butts and out there exercising. If the thought of getting out of your comfy swivel chair fills you with dread then read on… she’s got a few ides that might inspire you. Kick start your [...]

Using exercise to unwind

Helen Wilkinson | Lifestyle & Time out

Freelance Health: Using exercise to unwind. Taking time out from a busy work schedule to relax and unwind.

Where’s your creative space?

Rosie Sherry | Getting a Job,Lifestyle & Time out

Think freelance. Think freedom. Think about the 1 minute commute from your bed. Think working in your pyjamas. Think it’s perfect? Freelancing is often related to an improved lifestyle and work-life balance. Though the opposite often occurs. In today’s 24/7, always-connected world it’s all too easy to lock yourself away and lose track of what [...]

Setting a real-life goal – 10 Top Training Tips for a successful Marathon!

Helen Wilkinson | Lifestyle & Time out

Fancy setting a real-life goal? Something that you will be so pleased about for years to come if you actually go and do it. Could it be as daring as climbing Mount Everest or possibly building a school in Africa? How about something a little closer to home that so many people enter into, do [...]

A stress free way to manage all your chores

Mark Kirby | Lifestyle & Time out

In my last post I explained how to use the management tool Remember the Milk and how its important to write down everything you need to do. In this post I’m going to explain how you can take things further, and programme into your routine regular tasks which ensure mundane but essential stuff like cleaning [...]

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23+ ways to overcome insomnia

Michael Rose | Lifestyle & Time out

Us freelancers are prone to work overload! I have phases when my mind is like the inside of a very full washing machine on at full tilt. Or I have a worry that won’t go away and I fret at it like a dog with a bone. Result? Insomnia! That maelstrom of tossing and turning, [...]

A holiday for your stressed mind?

Darren Fell | Lifestyle & Time out

Stressed, clients permanently on your case and a to-do list as long as the M1? It can happen to all of us, but it’s all too easy to get to the point where you literally do not know which task to do next, as each and every one is screaming “I’m a critical important task….Do [...]

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Life / Work Balance? The new lifestyle section launches…

Darren Fell | Lifestyle & Time out

Ok, so you’ve got your freedom and work for yourself but are you starting to find it’s all work and no play? Increasingly and particularly for freelancers and contractors projects often exceed initial expectations, or the drought of the early years has instilled a ‘grab it while you can’ mentality and there is simply too [...]

How to remember everything you need to do with Remember The Milk

Mark Kirby | Lifestyle & Time out

In my first post I introduced you to the web application remember the milk (RTM) and to David Allen’s GTD methodology. In this post I will explain the most basic principle of GTD – write everything down so you don’t forget stuff – and how to do that efficiently using Remember the Milk. I will [...]

Podcast #5: Five things you always wanted to ask your accountant – part 1

Andy White | Lifestyle & Time out,Podcast

Part one of an interview with Steve Crouch of SRC Chartered Accountants. Steve answers questions on such things as salaries, dividends, section 660, IR35 and VAT. Topics covered: Limited company verses sole trader; Taking a small salary with big dividends; Section 660 – profit share between spouses; Consideration to IR35; When to register for VAT; [...]

#5: Five things you always wanted to ask your accountant - part 1 [ 19:08 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Managing your Time

Mark Kirby | Lifestyle & Time out

Our resident time-management guru Mark Kirby starts the first of his regular columns with hints and tips on ways to better manage your time. The techniques Mark uses have enabled him to achieve far more in the week than he ever thought possible, and enabled him to feel more relaxed when not working… If your [...]

Lifestyle & Time out

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