So...you wanna be a freelancer?

You've finally decided that trying to swim upstream with the fishes just wasn't for you.  You are bright, talented, motivated, and have some sort of skill that sets you apart from everyone else.  Let's face it, you've been doing your job for so long that you could do it with your eyes closed.  In your sleep you think about how to improve X, Y, and Z.  You decide one day while driving to your office (or walking, or taking the tram) that you don't need the overhead or micromanagement.  Quite frankly, wearing pants while you work is overrated anyways.  So, you do what any self respecting person your age would do.  Leave your firm.  Henceforth, you shall be known as Freelancer.

Lies! Lies! Lies!

So, you knew a guy who's brother's girlfriend's aunt does the SAME EXACT thing that you do.  She never has to worry about a paycheck.  She takes three week vacations yearly and her clients are happy.  She has never had a question about her taxes and she still has time to have dinner ready when her partner comes home.  No way! Sorry, but someone is a bold faced liar.  Freelancing, especially the first year, is difficult.  That my friend, is what we call in English, an understatement.

Crickets...

If you don't already have your client-base in tact, then you have to work to find one.  My personal rule of thumb is for every hour that I should be working, I need to be looking for work.  So, if I work for 8 hours in a day, I will be spending 8 hours doing something productive that will lead to my generating leads or promoting myself (and not spending a dime while doing so).

There will be days when you are under-worked.  Take advantage of the downtime but also don't forget about the "do you" time.

Friends With Benefits

Having a special friend is great.  Having a special, talented friend is even better.  Being that special, talented friend is the best thing in the world.  Every smidgen of talent and bubbliness that you have dies the second a friend asks for your opinion or advice regarding the field that you are in.  Never work with friends.  If you do decide to ignore this warning, think about all of the consequences before you sign on any dotted lines.  What if your friend doesn't like the quality of work that you produce.  Everyone knows that friends are supposed to stroke your ego, not stomp you into the ground.  Are you prepared for the criticism?  Will you do the 2nd, 3rd, and 15th draft without cursing his name and banishing his unborn children to hell?  What if your friend had an emergency and can't pay you for services rendered?  Raincheck?  Great!  But wait, how did she get money for those new heels???

Remember that you started freelancing for a reason.  The demarcation between constructive criticism and presumptuous opinions and advice are very fine once you add a personal relationship into the equation.

Which leads us to the next topic...

Hi, Haters!

When I tell people that I am freelance Writer and Language Consultant, the conversation usually shifts into one of the following scenarios:

• "Don't you wan't a real job?  How are you going to survive?"
• "I would do that too, except for (fill in the blank)
• Wait, so like, people really pay you for that?  No, really...what do you do?

This goes back to the age old theory of people hating things that they do not understand.  Yes, I sit at my computer for eight hours a day.  No, I'm not playing Angry-Birds or looking at sites that are typically blocked in a normal working environment.  Unfortunately, the general public tends to negate all of your hard work and ambition because of the fact that you don't have to get up and go to a brick and mortar building every day.

If you are just starting out and you  your bank account is looking slightly anorexic, whether you are "truly working" or not may be questioned when you pass up events due to time or money constraints.

Everyone will have an opinion about this and offer their suggestions.  Stay strong and focused.  Or, better yet, have the naysayers shadow you for a day.

Oh, My Ego...

Then there are the mornings that you wake up after an almost all nighter, check your emails and see the message from a client who says that your work was  not what they expected, not up to standard, not what they envisioned at all.  If you  are a perfectionist and pride yourself on your work, you are in for a ride.  If your self worth is dependent on your successes and your professional life, then just stop now.  Everyone gets these messages and letters at least once in their career.  You are not immune to it.  Your brain realises this, but you also start having thoughts of becoming a ditch digger or paper boy.

There will also be the days when you think that you are the ultimate Rock Star.  You keep getting new clients, you finish your projects on time, there is tangible evidence that you are successful (money!).  Don't let it go to your head.  Be careful and cautious.  Remember that there is a balance to everything.  These days, no matter how awesome they may be, cannot last forever.

At the end of the day, it's all you.

Don't get me wrong, freelancing is a wonderful opportunity.  Not only is it a test of your drive and ambition, but at the end of the day, everything that you do is for you and by you.  So, have fun with it.  Enjoy your independence, and don't forget to get out of your pyjamas every once in while for those video conferences.

What Role Will You Take As A Citizen of the World?

As a citizen of the planet, you are held responsible for yourself, your home nation, and to everyone around you.  Not everyone sees themselves as such.   Many people pledge allegiance to their nation only and refuse to acknowledge or educate themselves.  Typically these people fail to ever venture outside of their own backyards.  If they do, they are usually hit hard with a wave of culture shock or alienation upon their arrival to anywhere new.   If you can identify the roles that you must fulfill as a citizen of the Earth, you will not have the same problems or issues as someone who only has a nationalistic viewpoint of life.

Diplomat of Cultures and Ethnicities

We, the people, owe it to ourselves to be conscious diplomats of cultures and ethnicities.  Holding yourself in a respectful and tactful manner should be innate.  Any disrespectful or uncouth behavior will be remembered as a reflection on your nation, not yourself.  Sometimes, stereotypes are perpetuated by the acts of one person who is known as “the American” or “the Italian” or whichever nation that they are representative of.  

Whether you want to or not, you have lost your individual identity and are known henceforth as “America” or “Italy” in the eyes of anyone who is not your brethren.  Choose your words wisely and pick your battles, as what you say or do in haste can influence the decision of others about one of your countrymen in the future.

Not only are we national agents, we are also ethnic ones.  You may find yourself in situations where you are the ethnic minority.  Don’t be alarmed by the curious stares and inquisitive nature of those around you.  Yes, they may ask to touch your skin or hair.  Yes, they might ask intrusive questions that you may deem offensive and downright rude.  You must remember however, that not everyone has had the life experiences or exposure that you have had.  For many, the only knowledge of people outside of their neighborhoods, cities, and country may be through a television set or a webpage. 

Guardian of the Environment

Global resources are depleting.  Because of this, many countries are currently in an economic crisis and seeking help from stable allies.  When thinking about the environment, you have to remember that you can waste and destroy your own backyard then move to your neighbor’s territory.  After so many moves you will have no more clean land or resources.  Because of this, looking at environmental issues as a collective one will extend the life of these valuables.

Humanitarian

Humanitarian issues such as human trafficking, and sex slavery are not thought of as problems by some citizens of some first world countries.  Or, they are overlooked ones.  Countries you may not be able to pronounce or locate on a map are usually what is thought of when thinking about these topics.  There is a secret and prevalent issue of human trafficking and sex slavery in the United States and Europe.   Funding and education for prevention in lands that are “far away” is available.  Having the resources for prevention and detection in places like the United States and Europe are not as customary as raising awareness of these things happening in other areas of the world.  Accepting the fact that these situations bleed into each other and become a global issue may help to detect and stop these types of criminals at borders that are not typically suspected.

Transformer

Poverty is viewed differently depending on where you live in the world.  In some parts of the world, high poverty rates have become the social norm.  The average day consists of hunting and scavenging and attempting to make do with what they can find in order for sustainability. 

Other parts of the world address poverty by setting up national welfare systems that are not stigmatized or frowned upon.  For example, in many countries of Europe, new mothers are given money for each child until that child becomes an adult and they also receive free parenting classes, and supplies for the child’s first year of life.

Then, there are the countries that feel shameful for having visible homeless people and try to blanket the problem.  Having reintegration programs for these people that are substandard or come with cyclic contingencies for admittance does nothing but waste funding and increase the ratio of people who need help.

One way to remedy the issue of poverty is to take a look at systems from various parts of the world and merge aspects of each of these to build one universal system that can be adapted, based on the needs of each country, to increase its feasibility and efficiency.

As a citizen of the planet, we must look at all of these pieces through the eyes of an outsider.  Until we do so, we will continue to face the problem of not being able to relate to one another, thus causing conflicts to or lack of empathy for other nations.  These roles are not easy to play.  Then again, who said that life would be.

Is That Chicken In Your Nugget?

If the American population hasn't already discovered that the tasty treat of chicken nuggets are quite questionable, the topic has been thrust into the forefront of our minds with the latest national food recall.  Today, (April 6, 2014) Tyson Food Inc. has recalled over 75,000 pounds of chicken nuggets that were sold at wholesale food distributors Sam's Club.  The recall is due to the nuggets being contaminated with small chunks of plastic.  This recall not only involves chicken nuggets but 20 lb. bags of white-meat chicken breast patties as well.

Chicken nuggets became glorified by fast food chains like McDonald's, Wendy's and Burger King.  The age old joke goes like this:  "What part of the chicken is the nugget?"  When asked, many responses will be said.  This may include beaks, toes, lips, and other parts of the chicken anatomy that should never be thought of as consumable to humans.

This leads us to what is being dubbed "The Green Revolution".  Many Americans are opting to go meatless and take up green juicing for health reasons.  If you ask someone to name a food that is synonymous with America, two will come up, hamburgers and fried chicken.  However, there has been a rise in vegetarian and vegan options in many grocery stores for what used to be household staples, including chicken and beef.  The surge in health education and awareness of our mortality as a nation has made programs like "The Doctors" and "Dr. Oz" very popular.  Both of these shows promote natural alternatives and upping your fruit and vegetable intake.

The rather suspect practices within the meat industry leave citizens with a bad taste in their mouths. Tyson's recall will affect thousands of households nationwide.  Will it be a catalyst to make people put down the dipping sauce and pick up the carrot sticks?  Ethical reasons are typically the reason for people to "convert" to vegetarianism. Having foreign bodies in mass produced food could also fall under this category.

We are what we ingest.  Whether its leafy greens and lentils or chicken chunks and PET, we have to be aware of how our bodies are affected by every morsel that touches our lips.  Holding corporations accountable for sanitary and low quality conditions that result in accidents like these will ensure that later generations will have higher standards of quality control.  After all, Tyson is feeding us... like family!

My top ten favorite Nirvana songs

I have seen a million posts and articles today about Kurt.  I still cannot believe that he's really gone.  

Here are my favorite songs by Nirvana, in no particular order.

Old Age

You Know You're Right

Do Re Mi

Sliver

Lounge Act

Love Buzz

Endless, Nameless

Blew

Curmudgeon

Sappy

Facebook + WhatsApp Marriage = Free Calls For You. But, Is that Enough?

Calling home has just been made easier!

Facebook has updated their systems to reflect that they have acquired WhatsApp.  Since the merger last month, many people were nervous about how these two companies would be affected by each other.  The  ramifications of the union are not yet fully known.  What we DO know is that as of today, Facebook Messenger has incorporated free calling to all members.  This feature is similar to WhatsApp's original features.  Look for Facebook to make more changes and upgrades in the near future to further the competition between rivals Viber, WeChat and even Skype.

Of course, the acquisition is profitable to Facebook.  However, not everyone sees this as a positive one. One concern among thousands of users deals with personal privacy.  Many WhatsApp users pride on the fact that former owners, Brian Acton and Jan Koum, stand by the protection of user's privacy and not wanting or needing to know much, if anything, about users.  Facebook on the other hand is based on personal information and data and correlates their advertising on user likes and shares.  Tech experts worry that hackers will have access to Facebook chat history with the new messenger system.

On March 3, 2014, WhatsApp's services were disrupted or lagged globally.  64 billion messages were transferred yesterday.  This outage, another red flag, may be considered a warning that Facebook is not ready or capable for the overabundance of calls being made.  However, people are now flocking to the new messenger system as an alternate means of communication.  It is free.  All that is needed is Wifi access or data coverage.

Facebook and WhatsApp's honeymoon phase has been a bit bumpy.  If yesterday's activities foreshadow the future, then this is only the beginning.  People are questioning this, but their questions are not making them apprehensive about using the app.  I guess the solution for now is to discuss it on a call with a friend.