Keeping Track Of Your Freelance Expenses

How Freelancers Can Keep Track of Their Expenses



Keeping Track Of Your Freelance Expenses



When it came to tax time this past year, did you take one glance at the history of your freelance business and decide that you weren't going to deduct any expenses because it would take to long to figure out what they were?  Keeping track of your expenses all throughout the year can make it easier when it comes to be tax time - and it can help you to get some money back on that freelance income that you've worked so hard to earn.  But how do you do it?






The first step to keeping track of your freelance expenses is in knowing what even qualifies as a business expense.  Do your research into the state and federal laws to figure out what you can deduct.  Make a list and post it by your computer.  A basic rule of thumb is that, if you bought it so you could do your freelance work, it has a good chance of counting as an expense.  This means all of the office supplies you purchase like the ink for your printer and the stamps for your contracts.  It also means all of the home office things you've got, like the room you use, the desk you sit at and the phone line you've got.



Once you know what your business expenses are, you need to keep track of them in an organized fashion every time that you make a purchase.  There are several different ways that you can do this.  One is to save receipts.  In a file, marked clearly with the date and what the purchase was and what it was used for in relation to work.  Another is to use one of your credit cards solely for business purchases and to make all purchases on that card - pay your business phone with that card, use that card at the store for work supplies, and so on.  Yet another is to keep spreadsheets tracking your expenses.  This is best done in conjunction with one of the other methods so that you have an actual paper trail (and not just a document that you drew up) should the IRS ever come knocking at the door to your freelance business.



No matter which of these methods you use to keep track of your business expenses, you need to schedule time into your freelance schedule specifically for the purpose of accounting.  This could be something that you do weekly but is more likely to be something that you take care of on a monthly or quarterly basis. Just mark a day on the calendar as "money day" and use that day to go through your receipts, update your spreadsheets or double check your business credit card accounts.  Simply knowing that you've got the time to take care of this part of business can make the entire process that much easier.



 

MORE ARTICLES ABOUT TRACKING EXPENSES AND ORGANIZING BUSINESS RECEIPTS




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Working With Customers As A Freelancer

Freelancers and Working with Customers

 

Working With Clients As A Freelancer


 

As a freelancer, customers are often considered the necessary evil of the job.  They have to be there or you don't have work to do.  But they can often hinder the work process, make your life difficult and stress you out.  Even if you have somehow managed to acquire only non-needy clients that you genuinely like, you still have to spend some time working with them.  Since many freelancers treasure the fact that they get to work at home - ALONE - working with customers can be a difficult part of the job even when it's easy.

 

Here are some tips to make working with customers easier so that your freelance business can run smoothly:

 

  • Choose your customers wisely.  It's true; there are just some customers that aren't worth your time.  They may have great jobs and great opportunities but if they stress they cause you is unbearable, it's not worth it.  Don't be so picky that you don't have any customers but be okay with sometimes admitting that a certain customer isn't right for you. It's best if you can identify this early on, of course, so that you aren't ruining standing relationships. Go with your gut.

 

  • Let the customer be right.  Even when the customer is wrong, the customer is right.  This doesn't mean that you let him or her walk all over you but that you're polite and understanding.  A bad reputation can do more damage to your freelance career than you can imagine so you want to make it easy for the customer to like you.  If you determine it's time to let a customer go, do what you can to do so nicely and to present the situation as one which is beneficial to both of you.

 

  • Set appropriate boundaries.  The customer might be right but that doesn't mean they get to control you.  Set certain work hours for email and answering phone calls and let your customers know that you'll be working with them only during those times.

 

  • Be solution-oriented.  Don't make the customer the problem.  Figure out what aspect of any situation is the problem and then find a solution.  Assume that there is one; there's always a solution.  Work with the customer as much as possible to choose a solution that makes sense for both of you.

 

  • Be creative.  Often what causes difficulties in relating with customer is the fact that many people are stuck in the same old model of customer-contractor relations.  Break out of the mold, be yourself and be genuinely interested in forming creative relationships.

 

  • Get to know your customers.  You don't need to mix business and pleasure but knowing a little bit about your customers can help you to feel more comfortable interacting with them.  You'll like your job more and they'll like you more.

Working with customers shouldn't be seen as an evil aspect of the freelancer's job.  Sure, sometimes it's not ideal, but it's something that you're going to have to be doing for the rest of your freelance career so you should take a positive approach to it.  View the customer as an ally who can provide you with opportunities and you'll soon find that working with them isn't as hard as you once thought.

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Setting Up A Bank Account For Your Freelance Business

How to Set up a Business Bank Account for Your Freelance Business 


How to Set up a Business Bank Account for Your Freelance Business

 

There are numerous benefits to setting up a bank account for your business.  It makes you appear more professional to your clients which helps to get better clients with bigger jobs.  It also makes you appear more professional to investors and creditors who might be inclined to lend you money if you've established a credit history with a business bank account as opposed to with only your personal credit.  Additionally, having a business bank account streamlines your finances so that you can easily figure out what your freelance income and expenses are for the purposes of budgeting and taxes.


 

Of course, setting up a bank account for your business takes a little bit of time and may also require you to put out some money for minimum dollar amounts and small fees.  But this is time and money well spent.  Do your research into finding which bank account is right for your freelance business and then set it up.  Once it's done, you'll be glad that you got it taken care of.


 

The first thing that you'll need to do is to figure out which bank you want to use for setting up your business bank account.  If there's a bank that you already use for your personal accounts, you should look into what options they have for your business account since you're already going to them (online or in person) on a regular basis anyway.  If you do not want to bank with the same bank for one reason or another, you can look online at the other options in your area.  You should choose a bank with a local branch in case you ever need to work out bank problems in person.


 

Once you've selected the bank that you'd like to use for setting up your business bank account, you should review the different plans that they offer.  There are several different things that you'll want to take a look at.  Check if you're required to keep a minimum balance in the account and whether that balance is reasonable for what your business is earning.  See what fees are associated with the account and whether those fees are waived after a certain balance is obtained or after certain services are purchased.  Check what services are available for your account; these may include online billing and statements, debit and credit cards, money management tools and more.  Consider what you realistically need from your business bank account.

 

 

You might work back and forth between selecting a bank and selecting a business bank account plan.  For example, you may have originally decided to go with your normal bank but then find that you don't like the plans that they offer.  You may then research plans and find one with terms that you like.  You can go back to your original bank and see if they have a plan with similar terms.  If not, you can choose the new bank.  In other words, this setting up a bank account for your business is a research-based project rather than one which happens step-by-step.

 

 

When you have selected the bank and plan that you like, you should go into your bank to set up your account.  Alternatively, you can often set up the new account online but physically going to your bank will let you meet your account manager, go over any questions that you have and get your terms and information in writing in hand.  It takes a little bit of time and energy to set up your business bank account, but you'll start reaping the rewards almost immediately.  Your business expenses will be clear and easy to understand which will help with billing, invoicing, payments to any subcontractors and dealing with taxes.  And as you begin to accept payments through your business bank account, you'll gain credibility in your work which will impress clients and investors.  The balance in that account should just keep on going up from there!

 

HERE ARE MORE ARTICLES ABOUT OPENING UP A BUSINESS BANK ACCOUNT FOR YOUR FREELANCE BUSINESS

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How to Find Your Freelance Niche Market

How to Find a Freelance Niche 

 

How to Go About Finding a Freelance Niche

 

There are two basic ways to approach your freelance career in terms of the content that you are going to be providing to your clients; either you can generalize or you can specialize.  If you generalize as a freelancer, then you take on all the different types of jobs that you are able to complete.  If you specialize, you create a niche for yourself as a freelancer who does a certain kind of job.  While some freelancers enjoy generalizing because of the diversity of their workload that it allows for, most freelancers find that a career is better made by finding a freelance niche and developing it.

It makes sense, when you think about it, that finding a niche is where the money is going to be at.  Think of the differences between generalizing and specializing in any field at all and you quickly realize that the people who specialize are the ones who are sought after by their clients or customers and are the ones who are getting the bigger bucks.  Why is that?  Well, someone who has a specialty tends to have the increased knowledge that gives them expertise in a field which is something that people will pay to have.

This is as true of freelancing as it is of any career.  By finding a freelance niche, you create an area in which you become an expert.  As an expert, you have more credibility and are able to charge more for your services.  Plus, word of mouth about your work travels a lot faster when you can be identified with one niche.  After all, are you more likely to tell your friend about "this writer you know" or about "this music journalist who specializes in finding Beatles-influenced hits in modern music"?

 

So, you can see the benefits of having a freelance niche, but how do you go about finding the niche that's right for you?  Well, the first thing to do is to take stock of the freelance work that you are already doing.  Sure, it seems like your work is all over the map, but there are probably many jobs which fall into the same basic categories.  Maybe you do a lot of business writing or perhaps you'll see that you regularly consult on PR services.  If you can see that there's something you already do a lot of, and therefore already have work samples and references from, you have your starting point for your freelance niche.

If you haven't yet started freelancing, you should look to things in life in which you are something of an expert.  What do people come to you for advice about?  Which hobbies are you passionate enough about that you can wax poetic on them at any time?  Take a look at these things and see if they can be turned in to a freelance niche.  With some creativity, most hobbies can be adjusted into a freelance niche of some sort.

 

Once you know what your freelance niche is, work on expanding it as much as possible while still keeping it specialized.  For example, the writer who specializes in the Beatles-influenced music search may be interesting but probably doesn't have a large market.  However, if she can expand into writing about Beatles history, doing blogs for fans of the Beatles and other related items, and writing reviews about neo-hippie CD collections, she can keep expand her market while still keeping her niche.

 

HERE ARE MORE ARTICLE ABOUT FINDING YOUR NICHE FREELANCE MARKET

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The Importance Of Staying Organized As A Freelancer

How to Stay Organized as a Freelancer 

 

The Importance of Organization Skills as a Freelancer : How to Stay Organized as  a Freelancer

 

One of the most important things that you can do as a freelancer to make sure that your business runs smoothly and grows over time is to learn the skill of staying organized.  Staying organized helps you to feel less stress about your business because it keeps you meeting deadlines, staying in touch with clients and always being aware of what you've got on your plate.  Staying organized helps with the daily running of your business as well as the long-term planning and even makes the annual tasks, such as doing your taxes, relatively easy to accomplish.

 

 

 

 

Staying organized as a freelancer is done in a number of different ways.  The first is to maintain a calendar with all of the important deadlines that you have, meetings you need to keep and short-term business goals that you have in mind.  Without this type of organization, you can be overwhelmed with trying to remember what needs to be done when and trying to get everything accomplished.  A calendar makes this all more piecemeal so that you can handle it all with more ease.  Having this calendar easily accessible on your computer or online or posted visibly in your work space will help you to always remember what you need to be doing.

 

 

 

 

Speaking of your work space, you should maintain a specific area of your home to do your work.  Staying organized in this area will help work stay at "the office" even though the office is at home.  If you have notes and work items strewn throughout the house, you can feel cluttered and overwhelmed.  But if you have it neatly arranged in your work space, you can head there when it's time to work and away when your freelance "office hours" are over.  Keeping organized files and a neat desk will also help you to easily find the items you need when conducting your business.

 

 

 

 

Staying organized in these day-to-day things, with your calendar and your clean work space, will help your business in the long run.  By feeling more professional at home, you will conduct your business with a more professional air which will help clients to take you more seriously.  You can incorporate client contact dates into your calendar so that you're regularly in touch with the people who give you business which will increase your work flow and improve your income.  Staying organized in this manner will also make it easier to do long-term business planning.

 

 

 

 

Staying organized can be done either informally or formally.  For some people, a desk calendar with their chicken scratch on it is enough to feel organized and to know what's what.  For others, staying organized requires more formal organization, such as the use of computer software program for small businesses.  Get organized using whatever methods are right for you.  The goal is to make sure that you know what needs to be done when and have the tools to get it done easily at your disposal.  This is how a freelance business should be run!

 

HERE ARE MORE ARTICLE ABOUT HOME OFFICE ORGANIZATION AND STAYING ORGANIZED IN YOUR FREELANCE BUSINESS

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How To Win Projects On Freelance Job Boards

Winning Freelance Projects on Job Boards 

 

Tips for Winning Projects on Freelance Job Boards

 

 

It can be frustrating to spend half of the day bidding on projects on freelance job boards and then not get any work from them.  In fact, it can be so frustrating that many freelancers give up on freelance job boards and move on to other ways of trying to find work for themselves.  However, some of the best freelance clients can be found on these sites, so it's to the freelancers benefit to learn how to use them well so that they can get the right jobs.

 

 

Here's what you need to know to win the projects that you want to win:

 

 

  • Use the right freelance job boards.  You don't want to waste your time on sites that aren't right for you so take the time at the beginning to really get to know what sites are out there.  If you specialize in freelance writing, you don't want to be on a site that is primarily for freelance designers "¦ unless of course you offer niche writing that would appeal to this group and can use the board to your advantage.  Another thing to consider is who else is using the freelance job board.  If it is a bid-based site and you are competing with a number of people from foreign countries who can bid at prices you just can't beat, you might not want to stay on the site because it could be a massive waste of your time.

 

  • Create a detailed, thorough profile.  It can be annoying to take the time to set up your profile on each different freelance site that you want to use, but it's the place where you can provide the most detailed information about your freelance skills.  Make sure that it reads clearly, identifies your strengths and provides all of the information that clients checking it out are going to want to know.  If they can see it there clearly, they can easily decide to hire you.

 

 

  • Check the boards regularly and carefully.  By checking the boards regularly, you can easily tell which new work is worth applying for.  And by checking the listings carefully, you make sure that you're only spending time applying for the jobs that you're actually qualified to do.

 

 

  • Apply completely.  If a job asks for your resume and writing samples through the freelance job board PM system then make sure that you provide those things.  You should always make use of the PM or IM systems on job boards to get in touch with the people you're submitting your application to.  Simply going that extra bit to get noticed can greatly improve your chances of getting jobs on the boards.

 

 

  • Bid appropriately.  The fact is that if you bid too high, you aren't very likely to get the jobs.  But, you also shouldn't sell yourself short.  You don't want to win a bunch of jobs that aren't worth your time to complete.  Bid on the work that you can do for the price that you feel is fair so that you get the right kind of work.

 

Freelance job boards can be a terrific way to get the work that is available for you from clients all over the world.  If you're smart about your bids and clear in your communication, you can use the boards to your advantage and have a booming freelance business which grows over time.

 

 

MORE ARTICLES WITH TIPS FOR HOW TO WIN PROJECTS ON FREELANCE JOB BOARDS

 

ARTICLES ON FINDING FREELANCE JOBS

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Do You Need Project Management Software?

Should You Buy Project Management Software for Your Freelance Buiness? 

 

One of the greatest flaws that many freelancers run into is that they feel like they don't really run a professional business.  Because of this, they often fail to take advantage of some of the resources (such as project management software) available to small business professionals that help businesses to run more smoothly and more efficiently.  They feel like they aren't quite at that level or don't need it yet or can't afford it.  This simply isn't true.  If you want your business to run like a professional business and to earn you a professional income, you need to start treating yourself like a professional.  Having the right tools is the first step you need to take to getting any job done, so if you're a freelancer, you need small business tools at hand.

 

 

 

Of course, not all small business tools are going to be right for the individual freelancer who is working from home.  For example, you aren't going to need payroll tools because you don't have a staff that needs to be paid.  However, many of the tools which apply to small businesses do apply to freelancers and starting to implement them into your businesses can make a huge difference in your bank account numbers.  Project management software is one of the types of tools that falls into this category.

 

 

 

 

Project management software may sound like a fancy term for something that you don't really need yet.  But it's not.  The term refers to all of the software programs which are used to keep small businesses running smoothly.  The main components of project management software programs are spreadsheets and applications tools which are designed to improve communication, documentation and scheduling.  Basically, project management software is designed to help keep your business more organized and to keep you in better communication with your clients.  So, with it, you start looking and feeling more professional and your work (and income) will reflect that.

 

 

 

 

There are many different types of project management programs available, so you'll have to do some searching to find what's right for you.  If you have a large client contact list and you want to start staying on top of keeping in touch with them, using such items as template-based newsletters and regular email reminds could be a great way to go.  Project management software which is geared towards improving online communication in this way would be what you're seeking.  On the other hand, if you only have a few clients and you're regularly in touch with them but they give you a large number of projects and you're having trouble keeping them all organized, project management software which is focused on documentation (and maybe scheduling) would be right for you.

 

 

 

 

Ask yourself what you need as a business to run more professionally.  By beginning to think of yourself in terms of a business, instead of as just doing some work, you will begin to approach work more professionally.  And by incorporating the use of tools such as project management software into this business, you'll be able to get more work done with better quality, keeping clients coming back for more.

 

 

 

HERE IS A LIST OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE

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Group Health Insurance for Freelancers & Self-Employed

group health insurance tips 

 

Group Health Insurance for Freelancers & Self-Employed 

 

Did you know that you can possibly get group health insurance as an individual freelancer who is self-employed?  Probably not because even though it's a common health insurance option in many different states, it's not something which is considered common knowledge for the average freelancer.  Many freelancers don't even have health insurance at all because of their concerns about the hassle of trying to get health insurance or worries about the cost of health insurance monthly.  Because they haven't looked into it much at all, they aren't aware of the fact that group health insurance might be an option for them.

 

 

But is it a good option?

 

 

The answer to that question depends on your situation.  If you, as a freelance individual, have other options (such as getting insurance through a spouse or domestic partner or getting insured at a low cost as an individual in your state) then you might not want to think about group health insurance.  But if you're having trouble getting insured at a reasonable price (perhaps because you have an existing medical condition) then group health insurance might be a good option for you.

 

 

At a basic level, what group health insurance offers in comparison with individual health insurance is coverage with special perks designed for small business employers.  This can mean better rates, different details on your health insurance policies and certain legal rights that don't come with individual insurance.  For example, individual health insurance can be denied to you as a result of existing medical conditions but group health insurance can not be denied in this way.

 

 

Fair enough, but how is it possible to get group health insurance if you aren't a group?

Well, there are two answers to that question.  The first is that you might be able to be considered a group even though there is only one of you.  That's because some states have a clause which allows group health insurance for "groups of one".  Whether or not your state recognizes groups of one will be a factor in this, so you'll need to check with your state insurance commissioner's office to get confirmation on this before trying to get group health insurance.  If your state doesn't recognize "groups of one", then you might be able to become part of a group to get group health insurance.  Certain states recognize groups such as freelance unions and small business associations.  Again, check with your state insurance commissioner's office to get the details on this for your state.

 

 

Group health insurance offers benefits to individuals which differ from those of individual health insurance.  It may sound like a hassle to look into it, but your health is worth any hassle that it might be.  And really, it's not going to take that much of your time or effort to find out if a group health insurance plan is available in your state that might suit your needs.  In fact, you've already gotten the basics down so now you just need to get the details!

 

MORE ARTICLE ABOUT GROUP HEALTH INSURANCE

 

MORE ARTICLES ABOUT HEALTH INSURANCE FOR THE SELF-EMPLOYED

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Health Insurance For The Self-Employed Freelancer

Health Insurance for the Self Employed 

 


Being a self-employed freelancer is a wonderful thing in many ways.  It allows you a flexible schedule, you can generally do jobs that you like and you get to have almost complete control over your work environment.  But these benefits come with a cost; you lose out on certain things by not being the employee of a small business or larger company.  One of these things is health insurance.  Health insurance is almost a given in places of full-time employment, and you should consider it a given when working for yourself, even though you are going to have to do the footwork to make it happen.

 

Many freelancers fail to secure health insurance for themselves because they think that it is too difficult to obtain, too expensive to afford or too bothersome to deal with at the current time.  This is all fine and dandy during times of good health.  But in the awful case that you get sick as a freelancer and have a break in income because you are too sick to work, the last thing that you need to add to the problem is the fact that you're racking up medical bills because you didn't obtain health insurance.  It's better to be prepared for problems in advance than to have to deal with their effects after the fact.  Luckily, figuring out health insurance really isn't that difficult.

 

If you know which health insurance company you would like to work with (say because you had them in the past when you were employed by a company and you liked their service) then you can contact them directly.  Explain to them that you are a freelance employee who is self-employed and that you want to know what plans are offered to you for quality health insurance.  It is no longer rare for people to work from home so most health insurance companies are already prepared for your situation and will be able to explain the details to you.

 

If you don't know which health insurance company to go with, do some research online to find the right carrier.  There are certain things that you should take into consideration to help narrow down your search.  First of all, look at your family situation.  If you have dependents or a spouse who will need to be covered on your insurance as well, then make a note of this so you can discuss the options with the health insurance providers you are considering.  Then take a look at some of the basics of health insurance to figure out what kind of plan might be right for you.   Ask yourself what kind of a monthly payment you can afford, if you need to be covered for prescriptions, dental, vision and / or life insurance in addition to medical office visits, what type of office co-pay and deductible makes sense for your income and whether you are going to want an HMO or PPO plan.  Many online sites allow you to do searches and sort the results by these different types of criteria so knowing what you want should help you to find the right plan.

 

Once you have health insurance, make sure that you keep records of the payments that you make to cover yourself as a freelance employee.  This is because health insurance is one of the expenses that you may be able to deduct on your taxes when it comes time to file them.  So, if you think that you don't have the money for health insurance, consider the fact that you'll be essentially getting that money back.  Your health is worth the time and energy it takes to make sure that you get covered as a freelance professional.Here are More Articles About Health Insurance for the Self Employed.

 

 

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Keeping On Task When Working From Home

How to Keep on Task and Get Things Done When Working at Home 

 

If you work from home either full-time or part-time, you might find that you have trouble keeping yourself on task.  For some people, this is an all-around problem but for most of us, there are just one or two things that really get us off track.  Identifying that these things are problems for us and then choosing to do something about the problem can help get us back on task and able to work from home more efficiently.  This leaves us more time to actually enjoy doing the things that we do from home that aren't work.  Separating work tasks and other home life in this way can make it much easier to enjoy the benefits of working from home.

So, the first step is identifying what it is that takes you away from the tasks at hand.  Even if you don't think that you have a huge task management problem, you should spend a day paying close attention to what you do with your time.  You'd be surprised at how much productivity is lost each day by getting sidetracked while you're trying to get work done.  Make mental or actual notes about everything you do during one day of working from home and pay attention to how much time is spent on each.  Then you can ask yourself if you really need to spend your time in that way.

For me, there were two big distractions which were constantly taking my mind off of my work focus: email and IM.  I had my instant message programs running all day and had them set so that I would receive notifications every time that I received new email.  This seemed great because if a client needed me, they could hop online and ask me a quick question and get an immediate response.  I thought that it was benefiting my business.  But then I realized how many times I ended up embroiled in IM conversations that went on longer than they needed to or caught up answering email that was more personal than work-related.  More than this, I realized that even quick disturbances would cause me to lose focus and I'd have to take time to get back on track.

Even after I'd realized that this was a problem, I kept it up for awhile, because I genuinely believed that there was work I'd miss out on if I wasn't getting immediate notifications.  Finally, I set up a new email account and gave the address only to the few clients whose work was important enough to warrant taking time out of my day to give them attention.  I then set my IM to only notify me when that particular account received email.  I was able to stay on top of those important tasks without compromising the rest of my work day.

For some people, IM and email are not the problem, but most people who work from home have the distraction that regularly gets them off task.  The phone is it for some people; it rings and they feel like they have to answer it and then they get sidetracked.  For others, it is family knocking on the door or friends who show up in the middle of the day to "grab a quick bite".  And of course, the self is sometimes the biggest enemy to staying on task; you get up and wander through the house, look out the window, make something to eat, check the TV really quickly.

Whatever your distraction is, the first step is to identify it.  The next is to commit to changing it.  And then you can put the plan into action by eliminating the distraction.  This can mean turning off the IM programs or the phone, setting appropriate boundaries with family and friends or absolutely insisting to yourself that you stay on track for a certain amount of time.  Being organized with your time, sticking to commitments you make to yourself about when certain things will get done and rewarding yourself by making your "at home free time" completely work-free will all lead to a more positive and more productive work-from-home environment.

Here are more articles about prioritizing and keeping on task in a home office environment.

Here are some articles about home office time management and productivity for freelancers.

 

Here are even more articles about freelance time management skills.

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