Archive for the "Finding work" category

We haven’t had many updates on here lately, but I’d like to share with you my thoughts on the new oDesk Manifesto that has come out recently. So many of the freelancing/outsourcing services seem to work against the provider or against the buyer to make their money, but what those services fail to realize is [...]

I think we got something going here. There’s a few more words I would like to get out regarding Bill’s post and mine. It’s no secret that Bill, Dave, and I are writers, and we tend to write on this blog with a writer’s slant. Keep in mind that a lot of what we say [...]

I’ve been holding back on you. There really is a secret to success on oDesk, your life, and anything else. Countless people have approached me and said, “I want to do what you’re doing. You seem to be having a ton of fun and making money at it.” So, I tell them about how freelance [...]

It’s happened to me, it’s happened to you, it’s happened to all of us.  You apply for a job opening, get the interview and then after what feels like some good solid communication you discover the job went to someone else. Well, you could do some yelling and screaming and run about the house tearing [...]

It’s not easy to be a freelancer. That’s just the way it is. It takes a certain kind of bravery. Lately, a lot of my friends have seen what I’ve been doing, and they want “in on the action.” Of course, I’m perfectly willing to oblige by pointing them in the right direction. I say, [...]

I was on the oDesk forums recently and came across a comment from a new provider who was worried by the ratio of working to registered providers. She couldn’t find the page, which was probably the main oConomy page here which currently shows 248 providers working and 95,545 registered int the system.  I admit that [...]

Job sites need to make money too. oDesk wouldn’t exist if it didn’t make money, and neither would its competitors.  The business model is simple, connect buyers and providers and take a cut off the top.  There’s more to it, but that’s fundamentally how they all work. It’s much like an agency relationship and it [...]

How much attention do you pay to the oDesk Community?  Do you ignore it unless you have a problem?  Freelancing is generally a solitary occupation, so I imagine many of you just like to focus on your own projects and ignore the community. For some of you it probably works.  Every minute you spend surfing [...]

In my last few posts I’ve been focusing on how you can make money on oDesk.  However, as I read the oDesk community I’m coming more and more to the conclusion that not all the providers really understand how oDesk works. Let’s start with what I consider the three most important factors: oDesk is a [...]

I continually discover new, exciting ideas in writing. This is because I was not formally trained as a writer. I had the usual college composition and creative writing courses, but I was never exposed to the real secrets; the secrets writers use constantly in their craft. Here are a few I’ve picked up. Nominalization What [...]