New email notifications from NeoMutt
Although I use Thunderbird for work emails, due to its ability to manage HTML and accept meeting invitations, my personal email client of choice is NeoMutt. I wanted to be…
Electronic Dreams by Tom Lean
This review was originally printed in the 2016 edition of the UKUUG newsletter, which is now defunct. Authors: Tom LeanPublisher: Bloomsbury SigmaIBSN: 978-1472918338Pages: 288Price: £15.00Published: February 2016 Disclosure: I was…
How long should your initial consultation be?
Unsurprisingly, most prospective clients want at least a brief chat before deciding whether to hire me, and likewise I want to know a bit more before working for them -…
What are your niches and how did you find them?
I have four niches or specialisms: Sector: IT for financial services Programming language: PHP Type of work: Bespoke/legacy applications Working arrangement: Retainer-based These make up the majority of my business,…
Why and how do you set client financial exposure limits?
A financial exposure limit is the maximum amount of work I allow to be outstanding for a single client at any one time, which I've currently set at £1500. I…
10 years of freelancing full time
On 30th June 2015, I officially left my job as Software Support Officer in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Manchester, and started freelancing full time the…
How do you find clients as a freelancer?
Probably the most frequently asked question I get asked from other freelancers - especially those just starting out - is: how do you find clients? There are two aspects to…
What mix of work types does your freelance business involve?
My work is a mixture of: Per-project value based pricing (up 30% of my time, and probably a similar percentage of turnover - this has gone up significantly since I…
How do you retain your independence as a freelancer?
I work for lots of different clients, so perhaps it's a bit easier than if you’re working for one (e.g. as a contractor), but the things I’ve done to make…
Would you buy an existing business?
I was offered a business for sale a few years ago, but after looking into the risks and costs I wasn’t convinced it was worth the hassle. The things I…