Think being a freelance web-designer is easy work? Sure, i get to sit at home half the time in my nice air conditioned 2 bedroom apartment that overlooks a serene river… in any of the 2 couches or 4 chairs i see fit.. but it is far from easy work! When was the last time you worked a 85+ hour work week? I can’t remember the last weekend i had off! But in the end its a labor of love.
The hardest part of my job is simply keeping up with the “information overload”… the endless emails, over-the-phone confrenses, voicemails, the never ending to-do list! Oh how i loathe the to-do list.
It seems I’ve taken on another part time job just keeping things organized. I have projects to manage, cash flow to manage, personal income management, contractors to manage, bills to manage, two dogs who seem to always have to use the bathroom, and somehow keep up some sort of relationship with my girlfriend!
But in the end i somehow find time to lead somewhat of a social life… how do i do it? Were do I begin???
First off, I am a gmail fanatic. I use google apps on my domain here and am logged into my email 24/7… without it, i’d be completely lost.
Not only do i use gmail for email, i use it for task management by utilizing the Remember The Milk Gmail Addon. I try and keep my list as tidy as possible and only include what is needed to be done within my freelance field. I don’t clutter it with “pick up the dry cleaning” or real life tasks. I wake up every morning, take a shower, and (if its monday through thursday) head downtown, get settled and check my task list. Some days its impossible to clear my daily list. Many times that I try to do so on a heavy day- i get only a few hours sleep and end up loosing focus the next day (I don’t recommend it!).
Aside from that, i have seriously utilized the gmail filters to keep my inbox tidy as well as an easy tagging system to quickly find related emails. See a sample of my set up right here.
This allows me to keep track of deposits and payments as well. I do more then just web design / development. I also do quite a bit of SEO work. I utilize Google Calendar for reminding me on longer term items such as getting ready for those monthly reports.
I also must stay up to date with the latest design trends and news! My solution is simply overloading del.ici.ous account with links and taking 3 hours out of every week to review the sites or articles i need to read.
And for larger project management (longer term projects) I use ActiveCollab to work with my clients with milestones, reference files, mock up ideas and so on.
Now this doesn’t mean i dont ever get turned around! It happens to me every time a client drops an emergency project on me or something went haywire. It happens more then i’d like to admit but you can’t always avoid it either. I try and keep a little extra time in my work day for such mishaps.
I do get behind at times, but i always do my best to keep things flowing. It requires a lot of sacrifices but in my case, the benefits are worth it! Running your own freelance career can help you learn quite about about running a small business… you are the boss, the employee, the accountant, the customer service, and everything else inbetween. The only drawback is the rare time i get to work on my own blog or website!
