Monday Spark: Why working is like sleeping [VIDEO]

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deep sleep deep workWorking is like sleeping? Absolutely.

I wish I could take credit for the insight, but I can’t. This is one of the observations shared by Jason Fried in the video below.

Incidentally, Jason is one of the people I really pay attention to when thinking about business. He is one of the founders of 37Signals.com. He is also the co-author of Rework, one of my favorite business books. And he is the co-author of a second book, Remote: Office Not Required, which I have pre-ordered and is slated for publication later this year.

In the video he makes a number of points about getting work done. But the point I want to share with you is the one he makes about comparing sleep to work.

When you nod off, you don’t instantly arrive in a state of deep, blissful, restorative sleep. You move through different stages of sleep. And to get to the really good part, you have to move through the parts that precede it. And as Jason points out, if you wake up several times during the night, for whatever reason, you can’t immediately get back to that place of deep restorative sleep. You have to go down through all the stages again.

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When quality content serves no purpose at all.

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rubbish web contentWhen the topic of web content comes up, whether I am talking with a solopreneur or someone at a large company, I ask a simple question: “What is its purpose?”

Right now everyone seems to be focusing on the quality of content. I get that. Quality content is good for your readers, and good for increasingly picky search engines.

In particular, quality content builds reputation and trust.

However, we still need to come back to the question of purpose.

Let’s look at this at the page level and at the strategic level.

What is the purpose of that individual page?

Yes, you want to wow and impress your readers. You want to entertain, surprise or educate them. No cut and paste. No boring stuff. Each page of content you publish needs to add to your reputation.

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Monday Spark: Don’t wait to be rescued.

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drowning freelancerAs freelancers we work alone, and sometimes we have bad days, weeks and even months.

When things aren’t going well, we sit at our desks, our heads in our hands, and wonder how we are going to make things better.

We are at a fork in the road here…we can lead our thoughts in one of two directions.

The first direction takes us to a place where we feel powerless and want someone to rescue us. Maybe an old client can give us a project to help fill the coffers this month. Maybe a mentor can miraculously introduce us to a new client. Maybe that new e-book by this month’s hot guru can instantly result in a flood of new prospects.

We are passive. We feel we are the victim of circumstances. We want to be rescued.

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Why you should invest $1,000 in launching your freelance business.

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cost of starting a businessIf you wanted to open a coffee shop it would likely cost you somewhere between $50,000 and $100,000.

If you wanted to buy into a franchise fast food chain, it would cost you six figures or more.

And if you want to begin a freelance copywriting business, and are aiming to make six figures a year…how much would you be willing to invest?

What, you thought starting your own business would be free?

It can be free, if you want to freelance as a hobby.

But it’s not free if you want to build a freelance business that will earn you a big, fat income.

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Monday Spark: The secret of success is to not give a damn.

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don't give a damn negotiationOddly – at least I think it’s odd – I’m pretty good at negotiating.

I’m at my best when sitting across the table from someone and figuring out a price for my services. (I’m not so good when I’m alone at home and putting together an estimate.)

In one memorable one-on-one negotiation I just sat there without saying a word, while the other guy kept raising the fee.

Another time, when interviewing for a job as an employee, I totally dug in my heels and refused to budge an inch on the salary I was asking for. What was surprising about that interview was that I really, really needed the job…and if I didn’t get it, I would probably have had to wait months and months for a similar position to become available. And yes, I got the salary I asked for, even although it was a lot higher than the figure they had in mind.

How did I pull this off?

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3 Ways in which Freelancing Rocks.

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freelancing rocks on waterI’m a big fan of the freelance life. I should be, because I have been freelancing for most of the last 32 years.

I have raised four sons. I am raising a daughter. I have lived in two different countries and, here in Canada, have lived in four different provinces. I have worked on the kinds of projects I choose and enjoy. I can’t be downsized. I can’t be fired. And I love what I do.

What’s not to like about being a freelancer?

Let’s look at 3 ways in which freelancing truly rocks.

As a freelancer, I can focus on what I do best.

This doesn’t often make the top 10 list of reasons to become a freelancer, but for me it’s huge.

Over the last couple of decades I have been an employee three times. Each time I lasted about 12 months before becoming a freelancer again. There was nothing wrong with those three companies, but in each case I ended up being asked to do work that was not central to my core skills.

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