I thought it would be helpful for me to gather some of my favorite resources and tools that I use regularly. Everyone is struggling right now as our earth faces the COVID-19 pandemic. During this time when many of us are all feeling a bit anxious about our finances, or using this time as an opportunity to delve into a new project, I would love to help however I can!
I hope this is helpful! Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help!
Freelancing Info
- The Freelancers Union – https://www.freelancersunion.org/resources/
- Membership is free and open to freelancers of all kinds. You’ll find insurance info, community events, resources likes blog posts & a contract builder, member discounts, & more!
- What freelancers need to know about COVID-19 – https://blog.freelancersunion.org/2020/03/11/what-freelancers-need-to-know-about-coronavirus/
- Huge list of COVID-19 resources for Freelancers – https://covid19freelanceartistresource.wordpress.com/
Art and Design
- Adobe Creative Cloud Subscription Options – https://www.adobe.com/creativecloud/plans.html
- Adobe is offering 2 months FREE during social distancing! (I believe this is only for existing subscriptions)
- Attempt to cancel your existing subscription and you will be offered the next 60 days for free
- Create posters, signage, and all kinds of graphics easily with Canva – https://www.canva.com/
- Pro tip: Many Adobe key commands work in Canva!
- Free fonts from Font Squirrel – https://www.fontsquirrel.com/
- Free goodies for designers – http://freegoodiesfordesigners.blogspot.com/
- Creative Market (6 new design freebies every Monday!) https://creativemarket.com/
Web Presence
- I started my portfolio website in college using WordPress because it is a free, easy to use, and a highly customizable web platform – https://wordpress.com/
- To design a WordPress site that is yoursite.com, you need to purchase your domain & website hosting package beforehand
- There are a lot of opinions on which web hosting provider is the best, feel free to look over your options here – https://makeawebsitehub.com/reviews/wordpress-hosting/
- Don’t want to pay for a website? A few suggestions:
- Through WordPress.org, you can start up a free blog style site that says WordPress in the URL – https://wordpress.org/
- Consider making a portfolio page on Behance – https://www.behance.net/
- Create a Facebook page to share your portfolio with friends, family, & more – https://www.facebook.com/help/135275340210354?ref=CR
Learn Something New
- Skill Share online classes – https://www.skillshare.com/
- 99U is a creative career resource from Adobe – https://99u.adobe.com/
Business Tools
- Evernote online note taking – https://evernote.com/
- Passion Planner – I love my Passion Planer for helping me stay on top of my business, my other job, my personal life, etc – http://rwrd.io/kkn478t
- With the above affiliate link, you get 10% off your first Passion Planner!
- Dropbox file sharing & storage – https://www.dropbox.com/
Let’s get you PAID!
- I recommend using PayPal for business invoicing and getting paid! https://www.paypal.com/
- If you work hourly, track your time using Toggl – https://www.toggl.com
- To convert your hourly time to decimals for invoicing, use this converter – https://www.calculatorsoup.com/calculators/time/time-to-decimal-calculator.php
Take care of yourself
- Marketplace Health Insurance – Open enrollment may be over, but if you recently lost your health insurance, you may qualify for a Marketplace plan – https://www.healthcare.gov/
- Zenni Optical – Spending time in front of screens can be bad for your eyes! Consider investing in a pair of blue light blocking glasses – https://www.zennioptical.com/blokz-blue-light-glasses
- Insight Timer – Free meditation app – https://insighttimer.com/
- But First, Yoga – Free yoga videos by my friend Emily – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAoRHGMHEmOaX_qyfo3fN_A
I hope this list is helpful to those thinking about starting a freelance business! Being a freelancer is fun but very rewarding, and definitely challenging at times. I strive to be a resource to anyone who is interested in starting their freelance career, a small business, or simply looking for a side hustle.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me personally if you have any questions or if there is anything I can help out with!