Tag Archives: tips to work at home

Doubling Your Freelance Writing Salary: Beyond a Penny a Word

earn more working as writer at homeSo you’re an established freelance writer who is making enough money to live. However, you’re ready to take it to the next step. Freelance writers do hit those roadblocks where it seems like they can’t earn any more, that they’re destined to write for a penny a word.

Well, we’re here to tell you that you can earn more and have more cash to have fun! Here are ten ways you can double your rate with ease.

  1. Set a Rate and Stick With it

One of the most important rules when it comes to making more money is to have confidence in your work and show your client the rate you think you deserve. If you feel like you deserve more than a penny a word, tell your client that’s your rate.

They may try to negotiate with you to work for a lower rate, but don’t budge. Show your client that you have a portfolio to justify your rate, and don’t back down if they ask to do it for less. Most clients who want quality will bite and pay you what you want.

Of course, don’t make your rate too ridiculous. You should first look at your competition and see how much they’re charging.

Never forget that everybody can write, but most of the people can’t do it well.

  1. Don’t Stick With Hourly Rates

One of the biggest flaws of traditional jobs is being paid by the hour. No matter how much work you put into an hour, you’ll be paid the same, and your client will get angry if you take too long.

Instead, work with a fixed rate. By doing this, you’ll be rewarded the harder you work. If you have lots of projects, you can blaze through them and earn even more.

  1. Type Fast With No Distractions

You’d be surprised how much money you’re missing out on if you spend a few extra minutes on Facebook. Instead of doing that, eliminate distractions and type as fast as you can. Take typing classes to maximize your potential, and experiment with different keyboards.

  1. Look for More Sources for Writing Jobs

If you’re just getting your jobs on a freelancing site, try looking for other sources. It’s nice having a comfort zone, but some of the most obscure corners of the Internet can be the most rewarding. Look around and find those higher-paying jobs.

  1. Don’t Let Your Doubts Get You Down

So you see a job that’s offering you an amazing amount of money, or a prestigious newspaper looking for freelance writers. You may think, “I’m nowhere near qualified” and not apply to it.

Don’t. You have enough experience and confidence to get the job! Feel free to send out as much applications as possible to the jobs of your dreams.

You may get rejected, and you it may be more than once. But just remember that some of the biggest writers and authors got rejected dozens of times before finding their big break. And you can too!

So what are you waiting for? Adjust your rate and start working for more today!

Time & Work at Home, that treasure

what to think to start work at home
“Time is Relevant” flickr photo shared by Lel4nd under a Creative Commons ( BY ) license

A work at home business is very attractive, isn’t it? Don’t have to commute, don’t need to dress properly, your child don’t need to be alone…there are a lot of benefits.

But, if you are thinking about to start your work at home career, you also need to think in the bad things. I don’t want to discourage you, but help you to take a good decision.

It would be a great mistake to think that you will have 8 hours of work per day, having a great income and a nice security. Well this can happen, but you will need time to achieve it. Today, I want to focus in one problem of working at home: the work time you need to do and nobody will pay.

Time that you need to invest when working at home without getting a direct income from it

  • Finding clients and jobs. Yes you may think that this is only necessary in the beginning, but if you are serious about your business, you will always be looking for new projects. So, you will always need to spend time looking for new projects. And, nobody will pay you for it.
  • Calculating budgets. Once you or your client have started the contact, you will need to calculate your fee. Of course you will have an idea about your fees before that, but projects usually have their own details that will make you need to adapt your fees to its specifities.
  • Keep the accounts. You will need to take a good amount of time to track your profits, taxes and expenses.
  • Creating invoices. Yes an invoice is different to an accounting entries. You will need to do both.
  • Creating a portfolio. Necessary and don’t think you can do it once and forgot it, you will need to update it with time, and it has to be perfect.

So if you are dreaming with a 8 hours work, you need to take into consideration all these activities, to see if you will be able to have the income you want in that 8 hours, knowing that a nice amount of time will go to activities that do not generate income directly. Also, you need to think in this when you are calculating your fees.

Of course you can outsource some of this needs, but in the end is the same because time is money.

Is there any other work-related activity you need to do and that doesn’t generate income directly? Share in comments!

How to choose an accurate room to set your office

tips to get hired and work at home
creative commons licensed ( BY-ND ) flickr photo shared by marksaplenty

One very important thing to decide when you are about to start a work at home business  is the room that will be your office.

If you are thinking about not to set any room for working and do it in the kitchen, the lounge or in a place that is free of children when you need to work, let me say this is a big mistake. You need to have a room just for working activity, and everybody living with you should know that this room is a workplace. You don’t need to have the room only for you, but all the people in the room should be working in order to have a nice work environment.

So now that you have decided that you need a room, let me tell you some factors you have to take into consideration.

  1. The room needs a door. Sometimes you will need to close it to, talk with clients by Skype, or to avoid noises.
  2. The room should have natural light. Well if it is possible, choose a room with a nice window. It is very healthy.
  3. Try to choose a quiet room instead of the one that totters each time someone closes the parking door of the building.
  4. You need room to keep your work tools such as documents, tables, hardware. If not, you will lose a lot of time going to other room each time you need a sheet.
  5. Wifi reaches the room. Yeah! check it before you decide any other thing.