Every day we read more and more headlines. Layoffs. Record numbers of foreclosures. Bailout. Inflation. While many of these headlines come as no surprise to us, when the word “recession” turns into something that affects our shopping habits, we tend to feel the pinch on a more personal level. Economic recovery is not a “switch” […]
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Free, Freemies and the Undervaluation of Goods and Services
Free services, free products and free samples have been the cornerstone of marketing ever since the first snake oil salesmen peddled their magical tonics, promising to cure all of your ailments by drinking the contents of their bottles (which was usually alcohol). In the early days, you might say that “free” was also considered a […]
Who Do You Write For?
As a follow-up to a few conversations I’ve had with other folk this week, I wanted to broach the question of “Who do you write for?” In an ideal world, where money grows on trees and coins spew from an eternal fountain, we would write for ourselves. When money is involved, however, this question gets […]
What Freelancers Can Learn from Retailers
When things get financially murky, the tendency is to work, work, work to pay those bills. This, in my opinion, is a very bad idea. Do you know how long you can keep up a frenetic writing pace? Burn-out is a killer for many freelancers and working yourself to the bone is only going to […]
Should you download getpaint.net? Free Image and Photo Editing Software
When William Aicher first told me about getpaint.net, I was pretty skeptical. “Free” doesn’t always mean “good” in my book, and free software tools are kind of hit-and-miss. I downloaded it anyway, thinking I’d give it a shot, and headed straight to their getpaint.net forums for some tutorials and how-tos. It’s been years since I’ve […]