OnPage brings Secure Critical Messaging to Telemedicine.

There are many benefits to finding online courses that align with your personal or career goals. Read more about our reasons for continuing your education in technology.

With the shift in today’s hiring climate, many companies are choosing to hire freelancers to get projects completed efficiently and inexpensively. In order to get the maximum financial benefit from outsourcing, it’s essential that your project descriptions are crafted to attract qualified freelancers and promote effective communication.

Taking the time to organize your project description, requirements, an accurate budget, and realistic deadline will help freelancers discern whether or not they are a good fit for the project, thereby narrowing your pool of candidates and saving you time and money.
 

 
Follow these simple steps to create a winning project description, be a great client, and connect with thousands of qualified technology professionals available for freelance work to get your projects completed now.

Craft an Eye Catching Title

Your project title is the first thing that a freelancer sees. Be mindful that your project will be one of many on a list, and will often be viewed at a glance by someone looking for freelance work. Make sure your title stands out in the crowd. Many sites have a character limit for titles, so make it simple, catchy, and informative. If you’re stumped, try writing the project description first and coming back to the title afterward.

Carefully Consider Budget

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It’s an age old story, whether you’re looking for full-time employment or contract work. In order to land a job, you must have experience.

If you want to move up through the ranks in your technology career, talent and hard work are the bare necessities. But they aren’t enough to make you stand out.

Expanding your skills, actively promoting your accomplishments and using promotion strategies will help get you on the short list and into the “yes” pile.

1. Sharpen your skills

Get certified 
65% of employers take certifications into consideration when deciding between two equally qualified applicants. Commit to acquiring at least one new certificate every year if possible.

Know (and learn) what's hot
Forrester Research put end-to-end business technologies at the top of their list of emerging technology trends. Add the internet of things (IoT) and current solutions like the cloud, mobile, and data analytics and you should have enough long-term knowledge on your plate to last you the next few years.

Love what you do
You are going to spend 8-10 hours a day at your job, plus extra hours acquiring more knowledge. Make sure the direction you have chosen is one that fills you up at least as much as it drains you out.

Try new things
It’s important to know how to do one thing really well, but don’t stop there! Experiment with solutions outside your comfort zone until you develop enough general knowledge to be useful or provide cross-over support.

Follow the 80-20 rule…

One of the biggest challenges facing freelancers is balancing multiple projects and deadlines. Organizational skills and time management are key to keeping up with projects and staying on track. Luckily, we’ve curated seven tools to help you focus on the work at hand, boost your productivity, and build a thriving freelance business.

1. Avoid Scope Creep with BrainLeaf

Are you constantly worried about the dreaded scope creep? BrainLeaf is a handy online tool that allows you to scope your tech projects quickly and accurately. It also allows you to process billing  and share updates with clients, making it a versatile way to track the progress of your projects and not over commit your time. BrainLeaf beta is free, so act now to try it out!

2. Create Next Generation To-do Lists with Wunderlist

There are plenty of ways to check things off of your to-do lists, but our personal favorite is Wunderlist. With reminders, notifications, and great organizational options, Wunderlist will quickly become your go-to planning program for personal and professional tasks, since it is compatible across all of your devices. The ability to use hashtags for tracking is one of our favorite features. The best part? It’s free!

3. Track Your Time with Hours

When you’re working from home outside of regular office hours, keeping track of your hours can be a challenge. Hours…

Live is the evolution of Q&A. Get your technology problems solved instantly by connecting with technology experts instantly. Pair programming has never been easier.

How can you create a game plan that lets you focus on special projects instead of running from cubicle to cubicle every day and feeling like you’ve accomplished nothing? Try these strategies for prioritizing your tasks, offloading what you can, and managing your time effectively.

This comprehensive conference-networking guide will help you prep, practice and pack for success, reach out with purpose and confidence, capitalize on connections, and turn all those new leads into long-term connections.

Transparency shows that a company is the kind of business that it wants people to think it is.

The process of eDiscovery comprises a very critical early process known as litigation hold. This is the preservation phase which dictates that all which has a bearing on a pending case be preserved. This data is then collected, processed, reviewed, and any other relevant activity. Of all the phases, it is the holding phase that ranks in priority. A failure to preserve the data in the required manner can attract spoliation claims as well as sanctions. 
There are professional companies that are ready to help you achieve the optimum alignment of your document retention policy and your litigation hold strategy. Without help from expert hands, it is very impossible to balance the competing interests of the responsible departments. This effort covers the IT and Legal departments which must coordinate their efforts for a common good.

Search for options online and research on the nature of services that are available. You should also know more on the reputation of your prospects in the market and also search for online reviews before settling for a single provider.
 
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This article is a 'how I did it' of converting from a full-time employee to an independent contractor with my own business.  

The target audience is any technical employee that's been around a block or three that has had some exposure to consultants and contractors, either affiliated with a company or independent, and wants some background information and motivation on how to become independent themselves.

Disclaimer:  I'm not a lawyer, CPA, IRS agent, or your fairy godmother.  Just a guy that’s been there and done that as an independent gunslinger.   None of what you read below implies a contract or a guarantee, so you can't sue me based on this advice.   Having said that, pop some popcorn, grab a comfortable chair, strap yourself in, and enjoy the show.  
 

Not Me

In Scope

Benefits and Risks
When to declare ‘Freedom!!!’
Money
Marketing
 

Out of scope

How to get a job.  There are plenty of those articles out there.
Any technical skills that would help you get a job.  You're on your own there.
How to price your services.
 

Benefits

Freedom
From a single employer, from support, from old or specific technologies, from being tied to only what your employer asks you to do, and from being told...

Wow, you received a 0.74% raise?  That's one of the bigger ones.  Be happy with it.

 

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Yes, my time is valuable. The more skillful I become, the more valuable my time becomes. However, sometimes the value of a service is more than just the time I spent on that service. A couple of years ago, I switched my company from an hourly rate to an almost entirely flat rate billing system and I could not be happier with the results.

First, let's define what I mean by "flat rate". When I say I use a "flat rate", I have a rate card that I refer to in order to give estimates for a client. It is very similar to an auto mechanic who refers to a "book rate" for repairs. Most mechanics look up a certain repair in a book that tells them roughly how long they expect this job to take and thus how much to charge for it. I take this same idea and apply it to computer services. I expect x task to take y amount of time and use that to calculate the rate that service will cost. The services are modular so that a typical service call is a combination of one or more of these "tasks". For example, replacing a hard drive usually includes "basic hardware install" and "data migration". If I come across a task I have not considered on my rate card, using my experience I estimate the time it will take to complete the task and quote accordingly and then add that rate to my card for later reference, adjusting as needed to account for any errors in my estimate.

My Clients Love It!

I rarely have any squabbles over price with my clients since going to a flat rate …