Freelance Writing for Nonprofits

Long time, no post. C’est la vie. Been really busy with NonprofitMarketingGuide.com.

But here is an article that got me to log back in here: Why Work-Life Balance Is a Bad Idea by Michael Gilbert. His point is that work and life shouldn’t be in conflict; they should be integrated.

As a self-employed professional, I have always felt that way. I struggle with balance in other ways — time on client work that pays now versus blogging or research that may or may not pay later, working in the evening when my kids are preoccupied with TV or video games versus forcing all of us away from the screens to do something together, face to face. But I do not see these as work-life conflicts, but rather time management struggles on my part. It’s all important, and it’s all part of me.

This debate reminded me of another one I’ve been having with myself lately: To what extent should I try to wall off my personal life when I’m using social networking sites like Facebook or Twitter? If I am just “professional” on these sites, then I lose out on connecting online with “personal” friends. But I don’t have time, nor do I think it is really possible, to maintain two different profiles on various sites. And I have lots of people in my life who are both important professional contacts AND good friends. I care about what they are doing in all aspects of their lives, and they probably feel the same way about me. And does revealing personal information in a professional setting really have the potential to seriously hurt me anyway?

I’ve decided that the answer to that last one is either “no” or “I don’t care.” I think there is value in letting potential clients see the “personal” side of who I am along with the “professional.” I’m a package, a complete human being. While I’m not going to force any of my professional contacts to wade through personal information on what kind of music I like or who I’m voting for on my main sites like NonprofitMarketingGuide.com, I’m not going to hide that information from that percentage of people who are interested in connecting with me through social networking sites.

And honestly, there are lots of nonprofits that I would NEVER consider taking on as clients because I strongly disagree with their mission statements. So why shouldn’t clients have access to information that tells them more about my personal missions in life if that information is truly important to them? In many cases, it’s all going to be irrelevant to the discussion about working on a project together. But when it is relevant, why hide it, especially when so many benefits come from social networking otherwise?

What’s your take on these questions?

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I’ve written a post on how I stay productive as a professional communicator over at my other blog, Nonprofit Communications. You can click over for the full post, but here is the quick summary:

1. Invest in speed.

2. Prioritize often.

3. File good ideas away.

4. Delegate.

5. Hire professionals.

6. Do similar jobs at the same time.

7. Make a little time for yourself during the workday.

8. Turn everything off and shut the door.

9. Get organized, but don’t obsess about it.

10. Be realistic about long tasks take.

Read the whole post here.

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If you are like most writers I know, you are constantly coming up with ideas for articles, stories, client projects, blog posts, marketing for your business, and more. All the ideas I get would prevent me from getting any real work done if I entertained them all as I got them. Instead, I have to get them out of my head and into my system for tracking ideas so I can get back to the current to-do list.

I use a combination of paper and electrons to keep track of everything. It’s not the most elegant method, but after many years, I’ve learned that my system is the only one that really works for me.

I have a big notebook on my desk divided into the major categories that represent my various writing enterprises, a tiny notebook in my purse for when I’m on the move, and a pad of paper on the bedside table for those late night, middle of the night, and early morning brainstorms.

All the random ideas I get go into one of these three paper places. Every now and then I move ideas that still seem interesting or relevant from the little notebook and the bedside pad into the big notebook. Notes about clients go into that client’s project folder on my desk.

I look through the big notebook regularly and when I decide to act on an idea, I move it into the PDA. The PDA only contains items that I really consider to-do items for the coming month or so. When I’m working, I look at the PDA only and don’t get distracted by the hundreds of waiting ideas in the notebook.
This may seem like a terribly inefficient method, but it’s actually a great way to filter ideas and let the best rise from the scraps of paper and into the PDA. Looking through the notebook also lets me see themes in my thinking over time, which inspire new approaches to projects.

How do you keep track of all the ideas you get? How do you prevent all of your ideas from overwhelming you or distracting you from your paying work? Write a post on your blog and link back here, or leave a comment.

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So it turns out that going outside makes your brain work better.

According to Brain Based Biz, the fresh air helps in many ways. Your brain gets more oxygen. The natural world stimulates your brain in new ways. Working memory kicks in and lets you solve problems in new ways. It relaxes your brain and brings calm.

This is the exactly the justification I needed for my sketchy patio furniture shopping behavior. While some people would shop based on how comfortable the furniture is for sunbathing or entertaining, I’m looking for a patio set that will allow me to work outside. I want a solid, smooth table top that I can write on, not one of those iron tables with the woven mesh tops or some weird bumpy pattern. I also want comfy chairs that sit high enough against the table that I can type on the laptop comfortably.

Some may say that shopping for patio furniture based on your ability to work on it is a sure sign of workaholism, but I’d argue that it’s a perk of the work-at-home lifestyle. What could possibly be better than watching your kids play in the sandbox outside among your flower garden in the middle of the day, while you are supposed to be working? Granted, I can’t do serious writing while watching the kids, but I can definitely catch up on email and RSS reading. An even when I’m not watching the kids, I still like to go outside, and then I really can get some good writing in.

Do you like to write outside? Let me know by leaving a comment.

Thanks to Jeff at Donor Power Blog for the tip.

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Deb Ng’s post on her frustrations about writing for search engine optimization (SEO) made a shiver run down my spine. I am so happy that I don’t have to do that kind of writing to pay the bills. It was yet another reminder to me to be thankful that I work as a full-time freelancer doing the kind of writing I truly enjoy. Sure, there are some assignments from nonprofit clients that I slog through, but for the most part, I really do like writing newsletter articles, web content, annual reports, etc. I love helping nonprofits tell their stories. I think I’d rather quit freelancing than be forced to write nothing but SEO articles on cheap refrigerators and pallet racks!

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