Monday January 05 2009
Invoice Sent
I’ve completed a wordpress theme (my first) for a client and sent the final invoice just now. Just waiting on one bit of text so i can modify the photoshop file, but that’s it. The theme is done and I feel better.
Tuesday December 30 2008
2009 Goals
I don’t believe in making resolutions, particularly at the beginning of a new year. To me it seems more natural to make goals throughout the year and update them regularly as targets are achieved or deadlines are missed. This is the first time that I can remember making goals for the new year, but the timing is correct this time around.
I also strongly believe in the S.M.A.R.T.E.R system of goals, which I’ve been using with my university students for the past four years. Clearly S.M.A.R.T.E.R is an acronym, but what does it mean?
S = specific
M = measurable
A = acceptable
R = realistic
T = time oriented
E = extendable
R = recorded
The point of this system is to help one create true goals rather than dreams or wishes. Goals are targets that while challenging can be realistically achieved within the set deadline. The most important aspects are that goals are acceptable. This means that one is making them for ones own reasons. The goals has intrinsic value and meaning to the creator of the goal. The goal is not made because your employer has set it, your spouse or some other external entity. That may be a contributing factor, but should not be the primary one.
The next two most important aspects are time oriented and recorded. A goal needs a deadline. Stating that you want to open your own business …. eventually – is not motivating, has no sense of urgency and will likely fail stated like that. A better goal would include a deadline.
Goals also need to be written down and reviewed daily. The act of writing a goal down makes it more concrete and like a deadline adds to the sense of urgency. Write your goals down where you will see them regularly – post-its on your monitor, bathroom mirror or refrigerator. Another part of recorded involves sharing your goal with others, this can be done in a blog post or more privately with a small group of friends or colleagues.
My original plan when I set up my freelance business back in July was to try and get 1-2 clients completed before the new year, solidify my understanding of CSS and start to learn jQuery. To that end I’ve been more successful than expected. I’ve completed two sites, have another almost completed, have learned some basic jQuery and feel much more confident with CSS. I’ve done all this while teaching full-time and having most of my evenings written off due to my wife working late and needing to watch my young children. I’ve also got one more client secured and two more in negotiations.
Time to up the ante and get my goals set for 2009.
- Become a member of the ExpressionEngine Professionals network
- Complete 4+ clients before Jun 30
- and a further 4+ clients by December 31
- Redesign CreateSean Web Design – it was put together in hurry and I’m not happy with it
- Improve my understanding of typography to the point where I can make informed decisions about why a font is good or bad for a project rather because it “just looks right”
- Be more disciplined when working – learn how to turn off twitter, RSS feeds, Email and Lexulous
My current med-range goal is for Summer 2011. At that point I will be returning to Canada, after 14 years overseas. Web development is going to be my new career so I need to be able to have a stable and large enough income to support myself, my wife and two children. It’s large, not guaranteed, but definitely doable and I’ll be returning to Canada regardless of where the business stands so the urgency is definitely there.
Wednesday December 24 2008
A-to-Z of web design
via a tweet from Smashing magazine a wonderful A-to-Z list of resources for the web designer/developer. Many on the list I already knew but there are definitely some new ones for me to check out.
Friday December 19 2008
9 tips for Brand New Freelancers
Freelance Switch just posted up 9 tips for brand new freelancers.
- Build an emergency fund
- Set a suitable work rate.
- Utilize the web to the fullest.
- Choose the optimal work environment.
- Network frequently.
- Track your performance.
- Broaden your freelance offering.
- Breakdown.
- Outsource.
Each of the above points has an associated paragraph explaining in more detail. The list is really useful and the comments are helpful as well. I would suggest an alternative to number one would be to Have a day job until you are established which is what I am doing. Fortunately my day job gives me lots of free time and vacation to spend free lancing and building up my skills until I completely switch careers.
Sean. inscribed these words of wisdom on Friday Dec 19, 2008 at 07:43 PM
(0)
| 
| tags:
freelancing |
Tuesday December 16 2008
Thoughts on Support Email
Almost everyone receives email support from various web sites and companies. The problem with all of these different companies is that the name associated with the email is almost always Support. This includes various forums, message boards and blogs. When recieving emails from all of these different entitites it is usually difficult to determine which company/web site sent the email until opening it.
For the end user, that’s me, this is confusing and a potential waste of time. Different forums and support emails have different priorities for me. I know that I can set up email filters and have done so for many of them - Gmail is awesome because it also allows you to color tag as part of a filter. But this still relies on the end user setting up a filter, which is not the ideal situation.
I suggest that companiess and message boards set the from name to something a little more meaningful than merely support. For example all support email from my hosting company Site5 are prefixed with Site5, for example Site5 billing, Site5 support. But forum emails from ExpressionEngine come with the incredibly descritive name of “Support” other names from emails I’ve recieved are Sales & EllisLab. Unless one knows that EllisLab is the parent company of ExpressionEngine that name is not going to be very helpful.
I could go into countless other examples of bad email sender names. Generic names such as Sales and Support should be prefixed with something more meaningful like the name of the Company.
Practice what I Preach
I’m trying to find the settings that set the name for comment notification in ExpressionEngine to check what I have set, but can’t find it. Once I do, I’ll be sure to have a descriptive name in the sender field.
