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K Saravana Kumar March 12, 2013

Working remote and benefits

Over 43 million people in this works have taken the advantage of working remotely from their homes or other locations. 21st century has seen a revolution in remote working which many people thought was impossible. Of course technological development has contributed in a great way to this revolution but mainly it has been because of the many advantages or benefits that it has.

What is working remotely?

You will be working remotely if you are working away from your employers business place. Even if you are in the next block it is still working remotely. Working remotely largely happens over computers and internet.

Working remotely should not be confused with freelancing though. You are freelancing when you are not working for a particular employer but choosing the projects you want to work on whereas in working remotely you can be working for a particular employer or freelancing.

There are many reasons on why working remote is fast gaining popularity. Let us take a look at the most popular benefits of working remotely:

More family time: Around 51% of people who were working remotely have confirmed that they get more family time. The flexible working hours and the time saved in commuting gives them more time to concentrate on their children, spouses and relatives and be more involved in family activities. A better work and life balance is good for your own well being too.

Better productivity: Both the employers and the employees will confirm the fact that the ability to work remotely gives better productivity. This has also enables the employers to post a better retention. Also working remotely you can concentrate more on the job because there are no unnecessary distractions, not surprise meetings and no cooler talks. One more factor that contributes to increased productivity is the need of remote works to prove them because they are not present in office.

Less Stress: When you work remotely, you are subjected to less stress than the regular office environment. There are a number of factors that contribute to this; the first once is the reduction of commuting stress, secondly there is a reduction of stress from peers and thirdly there is a reduction of stress caused due to extra activities.

More earnings: This may sound a little strange to you but working remotely does save you a lot of money. You get to work in the environment that you are comfortable in and therefore you work more, which means more earnings. You save money on commuting and other small expenses that you may incur during traveling to and fro from office.

Remote working also benefits the employers because they do not have to invest in office space, heating costs, security, transports etc.

Better for the environment: Working remotely decreases the net CO2 emission. Telepresence, paper less working, less emissions from the building all contribute to reducing the CO2 emission in the environment. Therefore, by working in the remote office you are contributing to making the world a better place to live in.

Flexibility: The most popular benefit of working remotely is the amount of flexibility that you get when working. Most employers are not concerned with the timings you keep as long as you turn in your work in time and do it correctly. You can set up your own work timings. This also helps cuts down on absent employees in the organization. Flexible working hours also mean that leave planning becomes easier.

Working remotely is a win-win situation for both the parties and it definitely makes more sense than opening a new office in the world of today. All you need a laptop, the adequate skills and the willingness to try something new to make a success of it.

K Saravana Kumar

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K Saravana Kumar March 6, 2013

20 Must Have Skills As A Freelancer

There has been a rise in the number of people who are opting to work as a freelancer. One of the biggest advantages that many people see is the flexibility in working that they can avail. Freelancing basically means that that you work independently on short and long-term projects for a fixed payment. However, with so many people opting for the freelancing jobs the competition has increased an in order to make sure that you stay on the top you have to have the extra edge over others.

Here is a list of the top must have skills as a freelancer that you need to keep in mind and implement:

1. Learn the tricks of the trade: Nobody wants to hire a freelancer who does not know the tricks of his/her trade. If you are a freelance salesperson then you must know all about the product you are selling. You must also develop your skill as a salesperson i.e. develops the interpersonal skills.

2. Be adaptive: As a freelancer, you must learn to be adaptive. You will have to mold your work according to client requirements. You might even have to adjust your timings and workdays according to the client’s need.

3. Be patient: Another important skill that a freelancer must possess is to be patient at all times. When you are working with somebody on a contractual basis, you have to be very patient in understanding the needs. Also patience is a virtue, which will come in handy when you are applying for jobs.

4. Be confident: As a freelancer one of your biggest assets is your confidence. You will need to be confident when you are interacting with new clients so that they believe in your work.

5. Learn the importance of time: The most important skill that every freelancer must cultivate and follow is the art of being punctual. If you cannot deliver the right product on time then you will easily lose the client trust and mar your reputation forever.

6. Be competitive: The key to being successful in freelancing is that you remain competitive at all times. If you are competitive you will remain in limelight always and clients will pay attention to you.

7. Be firm: Most of the freelancers lose their credibility when they are not firm with the conditions of the job. If you have agreed to paint a mural on a particular wall then make sure that that is the wall, you work on and give it your best.

8. Learn to Observe: A good freelancer learns how to observe thing around them and take inspiration from them. This skill helps them keep up with the latest things and further their career as a successful freelancer.

9. Self-Motivation: Another important skill that you must develop is self-motivation. In a regular office there will be somebody standing on your head to get the work done. But as a freelancer you have to be self-motivated to deliver your work.

10. Reliability: To convince a client that you are worthy of more jobs from them you have to prove that you are reliable at all times. Being reliable is one of the skills, which is a combination of self-motivation and respect for timing.

11. Discipline: Maintaining discipline at all time is not an easy task but being disciplined at all times is a skill, which you would need to stick to at all, times.

12. Organization: A freelancer should have excellent organizational skills. This will help keep track of work, get new work and balance the payments. It will also help you save a lot of time.

13. Communication: As a freelancer you will be working independently and therefore your communication skill (both written and verbal) should be top notch. This skill will not only help you land new jobs but also convince your clients that you are on the job.

14. Willing to learn new skills: The list of skills is never ending and in order to broaden your horizons you should be willing to learn new skills at all the times. This will show the clients that you are committed to the job.

15. Recognize the flaws: Be prepared to admit and recognize your flaws. This will help you in avoiding mistakes and pitfalls and help increase your strengths.

16. Learn to handle failure and criticism: Being thorough with your work and applying many jobs does not mean that you will get every job you apply for and every job that you submit will turn out to be perfect. Therefore, learn how to handle failure and criticism so that you can recover quickly and move on.

17. Idea generation: Another skill, which is an asset to a freelancer, is idea generation. New ideas regarding the ways of doing work or increasing efficiency will be always welcome with everybody.

18. Open to try new things: A freelancer should be open to try new things at all times because no two jobs are ever the same.

19. Email skills: Keeping up with simple technological skills such as writing engaging emails is a skill that will come in handy to every freelancer. The world is fast moving to a paperless office and you need to keep pace with it.

20. Versatility: Versatility is a skill that many freelancers tend to ignore. But in fact it is a skill, which will help you a lot if you are looking for a long-term career as a freelancer. As the famous saying goes ‘Don’t put all your money at a single place’, it goes true for freelancing jobs. For example as a freelance writer don’t limit yourself to blog writing only but also try out website content, article writing etc.

K Saravana Kumar

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Filed Under: Freelancers Tips Tagged With: 20 tips freelancer, Employment, freelance tips, freelance writer, freelancer, freelancer skills, Labor, must have for freelancer, Skill, Software, Terminology Leave a Comment

K Saravana Kumar March 4, 2013

Getting Started As A Freelancer

“When inspiration does not come to me, I go halfway to meet it.” – Sigmund Freud

Getting started as a freelancer is very much like chasing your own dream. Freelancers have full freedom to make a career out of whatever they wish to be. As they say that it is the first step that is difficult; this short guide on how to get started as a freelancer will help you take that first step to a successful and fulfilling career.

How much time do you have?

The first step is to decide on how much time you can devote every day to working. You can work full time, part time or vary your timing depending on the project on hand. The amount of time you have in hand will help you decide the amount of work you can undertake and help you build up a schedule.

What is your area of interest?

The next step is to figure out your area of interest in which you want to work in. The biggest advantage of working as a freelancer is that you don’t have to limit yourself to one particular field only. There are many fields for you to choose from such as writing, software design, software testing, acting, designing and producing artifacts, tele calling, counseling, translation, tutoring etc. Even these fields have many subfields, for example, writing includes blog writing, article writing, website content etc. Similarly tutoring freelancing jobs can be based on language, subjects etc.

Prepare yourself

Once you have decided on which area you are going to look for work for, it is then time to prepare yourself. By preparing yourself we mean that you should brush up your knowledge about your area of interest. Checkout various freelance directories to what kind of jobs are being posted on the board there. This will give you an idea of what is ‘in’.
For example if you are interesting in online or distance tutoring the it would be helpful to you if you brush up your tutoring skills and knowledge on the subject you are going to teach. If you are looking for jobs in web design then make sure that you know about the latest languages in use.

Prepare a portfolio

Some might call it a resume but we prefer to call it a portfolio. Your portfolio will be a showcase of the all that you know. It should contain all the information about you. It should concisely indicate all the work that you have done in the past. List your qualifications in such a way that they make it relevant in the area you are planning to work in. If you have any samples of your work then you can include them in the portfolio too.

How much to charge?

Now it is the time to decide how much you are going to charge for the work. You can charge by the hour or by word or by projects. Make your rate competitive. Remember you can always change your rate after projects and as you gain experience.

Start Applying

With all the above preparations, you are now ready to apply for jobs. You can list yourself in freelance directories and also apply for jobs individually. If you are applying online then give them a two or three days to reply and make sure that you aim to build a long time contact.
Keep your mind open about some basic negotiations. Remember you are working freelance and therefore you can work on your terms.

Work ethics

It is very important for a freelancer to maintain his/her reputation at all the times. When you make a commitment make sure that you keep it at all times. Do not charge for something, which you have not done. Keep the communication lines open at all the times so that the client can reach you anytime.

By following the above steps, you will have a much easier journey in getting started as a freelancer. Happy bidding!

K Saravana Kumar

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Filed Under: Freelancers Tips Tagged With: Education, Employment, freelance directory, freelance search engine, freelancer, how to freelance, Labor, prepare for freelancing, software design, software testing, Tutor, web design Leave a Comment

K Saravana Kumar February 27, 2013

Launching Worldwide Freelance Directory

If you have not yet joined the vast world of Freelance working then it is the time to do it. Freelancing is the ‘in’ thing in the modern workplace. One of the biggest advantages of freelancing is that it is a flexible job and gives you the freedom of choosing the kind of work that you want to do. Over 70 million of the world’s population does some or the other kinds of freelancing work.

The concept of freelancing has been there in existence since medieval times

In the good old golden days, it was the brave Knights who used use a big pole like weapon called the lance. Hence, the name freelancer came into picture. Over the years the term freelancing has gathered a lot of different kinds of options under its umbrella.

Various freelancing jobs include writing for blogs, article writing, news writing, editing, data entry, software development and testing, advertising, and even selling products online. Freelancing jobs can be paid by the hour or they can be paid in the lump sum for the job when it is done.

The terms and conditions of the freelance jobs are all basically the same all over the world it is only the branding that differs from freelancer to freelancer. The key to get started and become a successful freelancer is to find the right of platform to get the correct jobs that match their job skills.

There are many jobs that are available in the market for freelancers but most of the employers feel that the lack of the ways to reach the correct person for the job, does not give them the quality work that they want. This is where our idea of Launching a Worldwide Freelance Directory came in picture.

A worldwide freelance directory will benefit both the job seekers and the job providers. The job seekers will be getting a platform to go for a better branding of their talents and skills. They will also be able to keep up with the latest thing that is happening in the freelancing world. The directory enables the employers to feed feedback, which helps the freelancers build a genuine portfolio. The worldwide freelance directory, will give them an opportunity to get jobs from all parts the world.

For the job providers the worldwide freelance directory is a place where they can easily search for the right kind of person and rates to do the job required by them. They can assess the talents, read feedback about the freelancers and make a decision. In turn when the job completes the employee can leave a feedback for the employer, which helps them build their credibility for future assignments.

We make sure that only legitimate jobs are posted on the board and both parties have a common ground where they can address any discrepancies if they arise. The payment can be done through the directory, which makes it more secure. Another big advantage of a freelance worldwide directory is that the payment rates can easily be negotiated to both sides and nobody is left feeling unfairly treated.

Our worldwide freelance directory is unique in terms of categorizing the jobs and giving the interested parties the type of exposure they need to further their career and business. We also help the freelancers in learning the ropes of the business to help them grow and expand in the right direction. The correct negotiating dos and don’ts are also included in the guide.