The Care and Feeding of Freelancers

Freelancers can be bright, savvy, ornery, creative -- a thousand descriptions apply, but 'conformist' usually isn't one of them. Here are some tips for hiring and working with freelancers, and for keeping your employees happy at the same time.

Adams, Eric J. Creative Pro (2004). Careers>Freelance>Management

How Much Is Enough?

Conventional wisdom defines business success largely by company size; the steeper the growth curve, the better. But is this model appropriate for freelancers? Most freelancers in publishing work independently; the amount of work we can accept is limited by the number of hours we can work and how many pages we can edit, proofread, or index per hour. For this reason, if we cultivate too many clients, we’re forced to turn down projects we’d like to accept. On the other hand, few freelancers have arrangements for receiving regular, predictable assignments from clients.

Shore, Lys Ann. Editorial Freelancers Association (1995). Careers>Freelance>Management

Your Next Job: Creating Your Next Company  

At a time when the economy is in recession, it may seem foolish to launch a new company. On the other hand, at such a time who better than you should be in control of your career and your financial fortunes? Starting a new company is one way to be certain you will always have a job. In fact it’s a great way to ensure that you’ll have two or three jobs, most of which technical communicators are well qualified to do.

McCarthy, Dennis M. STC Proceedings (2002). Careers>Freelance>Management

Do We Need to Hire a Salaried Technical Writer or Should We Go With a Freelancer?

You are a high-tech/Bio-tech company and your first product is nearing release. The product requires documentation and you ask your self what are our options? Before deciding you should consider these factors.

Hurwitz, Charles. Freelance Technical Writing in Israel (2009). Careers>Management>Freelance>Technical Writing

Freelancers: Do You Need a Business Plan?

Is it really true that a freelancer shouldn’t bother with a business plan? There are thousands of freelancers, after all, who started taking on clients without even thinking about writing a business plan. Nobody seems to have suffered from that approach. However, there are a few steps along the way that are significantly easier when you have a business plan in hand.

Bram, Thursday. FreelanceSwitch (2009). Careers>Freelance>Management>Business Communication