Freelancing, as a full-time business, is becoming more and more popular. Generally, freelancers take a skill or multiple skills they used in the business world and converted into their own freelance business. For many reasons becoming a freelancer is appealing.
- Being your own boss
- Flexibility in your schedule
- No limit to income
- Only taking work you want to
The most popular freelance jobs are writing, graphic design, and consulting. While all three are very different from one is another, there are some common aspects of freelancing that will be the same no matter what kind of freelance business you operate. Here are eight tools that every freelancer should have.
Wunderlist
Staying organized is essential for every freelancer’s success. Wunderlist is a simple and intuitive task list application that can be viewed on the desktop or mobile device app. Tasks can be organized by project and client and then broken down into smaller tasks required to complete each item. Other features include the ability to add notes and files to each task, set deadlines, and create reminders with automatic data synchronization on all your devices.Trello
Trello is a project management tool that allows you to keep track of ideas, to-do lists, events, and completed tasks using a virtual whiteboard. Each element is configured as a map that can be dragged and dropped into categories making it easier to organize projects and your entire business. To make an account is free, and you can start using it immediately upon creating your account.
My Minutes
My Minutes is a productivity app that is only available for Apple users. This helps you set and reach productivity goals by using the “at least” and “at most” system. For example, you could set it to “spend at least two hours on client A’s project” or if you could set it to “spend no more than one hour on answering emails.” This application is meant to keep you on task and productive.RescueTime
RescueTime is an app running in the background and recording all of your usage and time spent online and other apps. The point of this app is to help you see where your time is being spent on time management. It is also a great way to track how many hours you work if you bill clients by the hour. This application can be a real eye-opener as far as where and how you are spending your time.Self-control (App)
Self-Control was designed for those who are easily distracted. This open-sourced distraction app lets people block their access to specific sites even if they remove the act or restart the computer. It will only block during a certain timeframe set by you. You create a blacklist of distracting websites such as Facebook or Twitter, or even your email. Once you click start until the time is up, you will be restricted from access to whatever sites are on the blacklist. The point of Self-Control is to keep you from distraction by restricting your access during certain times.
FreshBooks
FreshBooks is cloud-based accounting software for non-accountants. Not only does it track billable hours, but it also integrates them with an easy online billing system that automatically calculates totals and taxes to generate invoices quickly. FreshBooks also offers hassle-free spending tracking that automatically imports and classifies bank account and credit card expenses and records expenses simply by taking a snapshot of revenue. Its financial reporting tools include expense reports, quarterly analyzes, profit and loss, payments collected, tax summaries, and more. QuickBooks
Quickbooks is an accounting and bookkeeping software that is perhaps the most used accounting and bookkeeping software on the market. This highly-rated software integrates more than 150 third-party applications and features time tracking and payroll services. Quickbooks has dozens of other features and now offers an online cloud-based version.Conclusion
Whether you use one or all of these applications, you must use every tool available to you as a freelancer. These tools help you manage time, business organization, and accounting and bookkeeping. These areas are critical, especially to the freelancer who must operate their business on their own.
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