This blog post contains an AD.
I finished university a year and a half ago, ever since I've been Self-Employed. With the luxury of living at home I thought I'd see how freelance life was (spoiler. V hard and a little ambitious post uni for me personally... but not out of the question!) Although work is ever changing for me, I have learnt a lot in this time, so I thought I'd share some of my learnings with you!
BUSINESS CARDS
They may seem 'old school' but I can not tell you how many times I've had to give out a business card! Working in music, social media and photography/videography - it's often something people are interested in and might want to know more about - having a business card on you means they've got your name and contact details straight away. If like me, you want something a little more exciting than the usual standard cards, say hello to Basic Invite*!
With a beautiful array of customisable designs and unlimited colours, finding the perfect design for you will be easier than you think. My favourite colour combination is blue and white, so this painted chevron pattern stood out to me straight away and I spent ages picking out the perfect blues. I wanted to have something that looks professional but different that I would be proud to hand over - first impressions are important! The service was simple to use, the cards came quickly and packaged safely and I was very impressed with the service.
Not only are Basic Invite great for Business cards, they also have Custom Made Birthday Invitations, Thank You cards and beautiful customisable stationery.
They ship worldwide and you can get 15% OFF with this code: 15FF5
*I have altered the image of the business card slightly to keep my contact details private.
They ship worldwide and you can get 15% OFF with this code: 15FF5
*I have altered the image of the business card slightly to keep my contact details private.
WHERE YOU WORK IS V. IMPORTANT
I've said it before and I'll say it again, the bed office is not a thing - unless Netflix, naps and online shopping counts as work? Getting up, getting dressed and working at a desk or table will make a huge difference to your productivity levels. Some days I find I need to escape out to a new setting to inspire new ideas and get me out of the house. Find a coffee shop, my favourite one is filled with natural light, has a banging playlist, free wifi and the best coffee and cakes you could ever want. This means I can set myself up for the day and when I shut my laptop and head home, I'll be finished for the day.
TRY NOT TO WORK 24/7
It's important to be aware of how much you are working. One of the benefits of working for yourself means you're your own boss and you can be flexible with your hours. If you're sitting down to work for a 8 hour day, but realistically only working for 4 of those hours, realise that and spend the four hours doing something else productive - don't force yourself to be at your laptop because you 'should' be working a full day. Also, as hard as it is - particularly if you love your job - try and make your weekends remain as weekends!
PLAN AHEAD, SET GOALS
Set yourself goals to help measure your success, they can be as small or as aspirational as you please but it will help you focus on what to work on. I tend to have yearly goals, but I split them into smaller more achievable ones to help me get there. Write them down! Can you actually remember your NY resolutions? It'll be helpful to see them daily as a reminder.
ROUTINE IS KEY
Some days I know I have to wake up and get straight. to. work. and on those days I go in hard on setting myself a routine. I mean, strict timings from getting ready to working hours to tea breaks. This way I've got a structure and it stops me from getting distracted, I know if I work for a solid hour on this job I can stop for a tea and a quick social media scroll and then get back to work after. I write this down in 'notes' on my iPhone before I go to bed, so I know my plan as soon as I'm up the next morning! I first did this when revising for my AS levels years ago and found it was a structure that worked for me when I had various different topics to work on and wasn't spending my time wisely. It sounds a bit strict but when I've gotta get my head down, it works for me.
Being self employed has been one big learning curve for me and I'm grateful I've had the opportunity to try it out before having the full pressure of a home, bills and life on top of me. I basically have no idea what I'm doing, but I'm doing what works for me... like everyone else, right?
What are your tips for working for yourself?
*Big thanks to Basic Invite for sponsoring this blog post. All opinions are my own.
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It's that time of the year when you've got your results, you've had your big night out to celebrate and now some of you will be heading off to university this September! I'm going into my third year at uni. It's going so quickly but I'm having the most amazing time with the most wonderful people, so although it seems daunting, please don't worry about a thing!
This is obviously my way of raising a glass to you. Well done! A-levels are officially over. It's Uni Time!
Before I went to university, there was a substantial lack of videos about it on YouTube. So I thought I'd make some advice videos myself!
Last year I covered:
This Year I'm Talking About:
You can head over to my channel & watch my University Videos on a Playlist by clicking here or on the links above. Or watch my new ones below!
So if you're off in September, I wish you the best of luck and hope you have a fantastic time! If I have helped at least one of you with my tips, that'd be amazing.
Please share these videos with your friends if you find them helpful!
I've just finished my second year at university and one thing I realised this term was how tricky it was to keep juggling all the different things I want to do in life. Something had to be put on the back burner and in this case it was my blog. I didn't neglect it, but if I had to be writing an essay on market research, I couldn't be writing a blog post about my new shoes. I also had to put going to the gym on the back burner as I just felt guilty if I wasn't at home writing essays and revising. I've put together a few tips on keeping on top of things when you're busy.
- Top Tips -
Don't push yourself.
If you have to get an essay done, revise for an exam or write up a report for work then make time for it and if you have to put other things on hold, that is okay. Your health is the most important things, a blog post can wait. Make the time to get the things you really need to get done, done and then if you're too tired to do the extra things, don't push yourself to do them.
Do what works for you.
If you friend can spend all day working and you have to have breaks, that's fine. Everybody works differently so don't compare yourself to others, just do what works for you. If your break means taking an hour out to shoot some photos and write a post then do it, if it means going out for some fresh air and taking time out, that do that.
Schedule. Schedule. Schedule.
If you do set some time aside to write up some blog posts, write a few if you can, then schedule them to go up throughout that week. This way your blog won't fall behind but you don't have to keep thinking about it. You can even schedule tweets about your posts too, with apps such as TweetDeck.
Don't stress.
We are all human and understand people have busy lives, your readers won't mind if you don't have the time to write new posts when you have deadlines or are very busy at work/ You blog because you love it, don't make it something that worries you.
If you have to get an essay done, revise for an exam or write up a report for work then make time for it and if you have to put other things on hold, that is okay. Your health is the most important things, a blog post can wait. Make the time to get the things you really need to get done, done and then if you're too tired to do the extra things, don't push yourself to do them.
Do what works for you.
If you friend can spend all day working and you have to have breaks, that's fine. Everybody works differently so don't compare yourself to others, just do what works for you. If your break means taking an hour out to shoot some photos and write a post then do it, if it means going out for some fresh air and taking time out, that do that.
Schedule. Schedule. Schedule.
If you do set some time aside to write up some blog posts, write a few if you can, then schedule them to go up throughout that week. This way your blog won't fall behind but you don't have to keep thinking about it. You can even schedule tweets about your posts too, with apps such as TweetDeck.
Don't stress.
We are all human and understand people have busy lives, your readers won't mind if you don't have the time to write new posts when you have deadlines or are very busy at work/ You blog because you love it, don't make it something that worries you.
I've recently filmed a collaboration video with 'The Bloggers Hub' all about Organisation when it comes to Blogging & Making YouTube videos! I thought I'd write a blog post to go alongside it! The video has some of my own personal tips (& this blog post has a few extras!) There's no rules to blogging, I just find these make it easier for myself!
Tidy Room, Tidy Mind :: I find having a tidy work space really helps keep things in check. My work space is in fact my living space, as I'm a student. So I try and keep my bedroom nice and tidy so I'm in a healthy work environment.
Photos, Photos, Photos :: Take photos in bulk! If you've got 5 products to review, instead of doing them all separately, set up your lights or find the right natural light & background then shoot them all. It'll save you time and then you're ready and able to do the rest, on the go, if necessary. I always feel stumped if I haven't got the photos done first, they're the thing I have to do at home, the rest, I can do anywhere!
Schedule to your hearts content! :: I have found that scheduling tweets has made keeping up appearances on social media so much easier! I can catch audiences I wouldn't normally due to a lecture at that time or not waking up at that time every day (oooops!). Also, I've recently discovered that scheduling posts helps too, I just need to be on top of things enough to do them both to work in sync... I'll get there eventually!
To check out my other tips, watch my video below!
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HELP! It's an emergency!
The solution to all your problems when living away from home, at university, are all in this box.
Watch, Tweet, Like, Subscribe, Comment, Make, Do!
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