Running a freelance business comes with enough stresses as it is, so when the unexpected occurs that can affect the day to day running of your business, you need to be prepared. Whether you are a makeup artist, hair stylist, designer or photographer, you need your equipment to complete your job.   Imagine what your working day would look like if your entire make-up kit or Macbook Pro went missing? What would you do?

What do potential clients think when they check out your ABOUT ME page or look you up on LinkedIn? Perhaps they've even Facebooked you to see if you're trustworthy. Personal branding as a freelancer is an intricate part of building relationship and making sales. More clients buy into the person than the business so why do so many freelancers neglect this side of the business?

We bet that when you tell your friends that you're a freelancer they picture you waking up around 11am, checking email for an hour then hitting the cafe for a latte, right? Little do they realise who hard freelancers have to work to get ahead so we thought we'd show them. To put right the wrongs and show the world what freelancers actually do, we asked your help in our #MyFreelancerLife campaign and my word did you deliver.

Working alone can have its benefits. A tea round for one takes no time at all, for example. When things go wrong, however, it can be a lonely and worrying time. It’s down to you alone to put right any problems with your work, and placate unhappy customers.

Whether in life or in work, we often like to label ourselves. When someone asks 'what do you do?', we answer in a couple of words when really it would take hours to tell them the truth. Freelancers must be multi skilled in all manner of areas to run their business be it accounts, sales or customer service so why should our multitude of abilities stop there? We spoke with 3 versatile freelancers to ask 'can you afford to be just one thing in an ever evolving freelance economy?' 

The {anti} networking nights continue with The Freelancer Club's latest concept 'On Tour'.  Guestlist HERE.  Date: 30th July Time: 6:45pm (the bus leaves at 7pm). Networking for an hour on the move then until midnight at the venue. Location: Looking Glass, 49 Hackney Road, Hackney, London E2 7NX 

But it saves you money, right? The creative industries are plagued with weekend ‘pros’, friends who say “I can do that,” and corner shop services that seem like good value. They are often used because they are cheap and convenient. Inevitably, when a client buys cheap, they buy twice. How do professional freelancers convince employers that they are worth the extra investment from the off?

We are the instant gratification generation used to receiving fast, immediate information. From the 24-hour rolling news channels to the endless feeds on social media. Whilst we have evolved to take in text quicker, whether it’s scanning an online article or a quick glimpse at a tweet, the human brain will always absorb an image faster than skimming 140 characters. A picture used to be worth a thousand words but now it’s worth a lot more to freelancer's brands who want to connect with consumers on Instagram.