Tag: updates

Electronic Spring Cleaning

image courtesy of annca via pixabay.com

Electronic Spring Cleaning

It’s that time of year again! Even if the weather is still lousy out there, we’re feeling the impetus to Do Things.

Along with the regular spring cleaning around the house, our desks, filing, taxes, etc., it’s a good time to do an electronic spring clean. I try to do this both spring and fall, to streamline my electronic and physical work environments.

—Update your resume. Too often, we don’t do this regularly, and then have to do so in a rush and leave off important information.

—Update your 50, 100, and 200 word bios that you regularly use in pitches, queries, LOIs, marketing materials, grant applications, speaking engagements, etc.

—Clean out your inboxes. Even if you stay (mostly) on top of it on a daily or weekly basis, digging through will find things you missed, meant to look at “later” and other such things.

—Look at your website(s). Freshen them, check links, delete what’s no longer necessary, update things that have been missed. Read each site, page by page, to fix typos. We often update our sites in a hurry and miss typos. Re-reading it after time away will help you catch things with fresh eyes. Since I have multiple websites, I try not to work on more than one site a day, or I get tired and miss things. I often still miss things, and friends give it an extra proof.

—Move files you don’t need off your computer onto a USB or external hard drive (don’t delete them completely; that will guarantee you need them again). MARK THE DRIVE, or create a file printout and wrap it around the drive with a rubber band.

–Clean out your Google Drive/Google Photos/cloud anything else. Again, save it somewhere. You will need it.

—Physically clean all your devices with the appropriate dusters, screen cleaners, etc. Go through apps and other materials on the various devices. I have a laptop, a Kindle, a tablet, and a phone that need attention.

—If appropriate, run a defrag on the computer and free up space.

–Reassess your social media accounts. What platforms are serving you well? Which platforms are you serving (and shouldn’t be)? What aren’t worth your time? Because of the issues with Twitter, I’ve spent the last few months experimenting with various platforms. I’ve dropped three of them this month as part of my electronic spring cleaning.

—Update your contacts. I keep most of my contacts on Rolodex rather than in my computer, so that’s more of a physical clean than an electronic one, but I check the contacts in my computer, too.

—Clean up your bookmarks. Save what you want; see what’s no longer live. Delete what you don’t want/need/like anymore.

—Review your memberships in various organizations, associations, online events, etc. Decide where it makes sense to stay, to spend more time, or step away. We grow and change, and our participation needs change, especially if an organization is more about stability than growth. Leave with kindness and respect wherever possible.

I usually spread this out over several weeks (while I’m doing the big physical spring clean, too). For me, it’s too overwhelming to do it all at once, so setting aside a block of time every day dedicated to electronic spring cleaning works better for me. You might prefer to put aside an entire day or two and get it all done.

What do you include in your electronic spring clean? Do you do this regularly? Is there something not on the list that you find useful? Drop a comment; I’d love to hear from you.

Ink-Dipped Advice: Time to Freshen Your Contract & Update Your Rates

 I hope everyone who celebrates American Thanksgiving had a good one, and those who don’t celebrate had a good week.

We are getting into our holiday madness, now. Not only is it important to remember to stop and take a breath, use “no” when necessary to keep your boundaries/sanity, it’s time to look at your freelance contract and update your rates.

A typical cost-of-living increase is between 2-3%. I don’t know about prices where you live, but my expenses for 2020 have already gone up a lot more than that. My rent went up 9.5%. The cost of food has gone up 35% over the course of the year. I have no idea how much my insurance and utilities will go up. I know that there are more expensive car repairs in my future.

My current rates are not sustainable.

Now, I’m not going to raise everything 45%. That, too, is unsustainable.

But I figured how much I need to make next year at minimum in order to get done the big transitions that need to happen, and  what I’d LIKE to make (which is higher) to give me a cushion. Break that down by 52 weeks, and I know how much I need to make every week. Break that down into a day rate (always good to have a day rate for certain gigs), and I have my numbers.

Now, I match that against the time/work ratio of individual projects, and I know how I need to adjust for that.

I don’t post most rates on the website, because there are so many variables for a project that it hurts both the client and me to have fixed rates for MOST projects. There are always exceptions, and those will be addressed/updated.

I’m also going to post my initial first consultation rate. This is controversial, because so many people offer a free first consult.  I’ve done that in the past; not doing it any more. Too often, the potential client wants information in order to go and do it in-house. Great.  But one of the things I am is a marketing CONSULTANT, which means I am paid for that consulting time that gives the client the ideas/itinerary that is then put into use in-house. 

My mantra for 2020 is “No more free labor as part of the hiring process.” That includes ideas and the constant question “How would you handle x?” which pretends to be a question to test skill level, but is, in actuality, a way to gather free advice from a variety of sources without paying anybody.

I am aiming my LOIs at a slightly different market, too. My focus is still hunting down companies whose work excites me and convincing them they can’t live without me. Some of them need a multi-year courting process. It’s worth it.

I’m moving away from LOIs to companies just because they’re local. I’m a big believer in supporting local businesses, but I, too, am a local business, and when the attitude is that my skills aren’t worth paying for because writing “isn’t real work.” then I’m pitching to the wrong market.

I plan to expand my corporate workshops, where I come in and train the staff in unusual marketing/writing techniques they can apply to business. One of the things I’m doing this month is crunching the numbers to set a good price. I’d started expanding this before I moved from NY to the Cape, and abandoned it when I was here. I enjoy it, I’m good at it,  the people in the workshops have a great time, and the company who hires me benefits in the long run.

I’m freshening my contract, and I’m clarifying a few points that need adjustment, mostly to keep up with changing technology. I am also adding the caveat that I do not go on camera. None of my client work is about ME. I’m happy to write scripts and set up productions/social media systems for on-camera representatives, but I am not that individual. Not an actor, don’t want to be a spokesperson, I am strictly behind-the scenes.

These are some of the changes I’m making to my freelance work for 2020. What changes are you looking at ? How do you plan to implement them?

If you need some general goal-setting questions, hop on over to my Goals, Dreams, and Resolutions site where I have specific questions to help you achieve what you seek.