Jobsaholic Blog

Most freelancers have already encountered clients which would do and say anything just to get the most out of their hired freelancer or part-timer. Some clients exploit the negotiating process and low-ball the rate of the project while other’s milk their service providers with every cent that their paying them, making revisions after revisions and minor adjustments that take forever.

These “clients-from hell” often promise more work in the future if you’ll give the “present” work at a discounted rate. Saying that they need to “test” you out first before they pass on projects at a regular basis. When you get this type of client, watch out. The pay you’ll be receiving (if it’s enough, that is) is not worth the headache and stress that you’ll get.

In case the inevitable happens and you got cornered and said yes to a project, try finishing it as quickly as possible (with quality of course). After that, learn to say NO once they seek your services again. You are better spending your time on other valuable and less-stressful projects with not-so-picky clients.

Some things are just not worth it.

Jobsaholic is now on twitter! Follow @jobsaholic to get real-time updates on fresh and hot jobs available right now! Follow us and we’ll follow you!

You might be working harder and longer in a desperate bid to succeed, but if you are doing so at the cost of your health, then you need to get rid of those workaholic habits. “Many people feel like they have to push themselves to unhealthy levels in order to succeed. But high-pressure jobs and long hours take a real toll on your immediate and future health,” said George Griffing, M.D., professor of internal medicine at Saint Louis University.

These are the seven worst habits of workaholics…

1. Forgetting to relax
While some stress can be good because it keeps you alert and motivated, too much stress or chronic stress will take its toll on your body.

2. Eating on the go
Between meetings, conference calls and deadlines, workaholics forget to take out time to sit down for a healthy lunch. But a good meal is exactly what a person needs to stay mentally sharp throughout the day.

3. Putting off sleep for work
Even busy professionals need seven to nine hours of sleep every night. Missing out on sleep can lead to irritability, difficulty concentrating, memory problems and poor judgment. It has also been linked to obesity.

4. Not making time for exercise
Getting at least 30 minutes of exercise most days is very important to immediate and future health.

5. Working even when sick
Many people come to work despite being ill. But there are three common sense reasons to stay home – Nobody wants your germs, you’ll be less productive and you need your rest to get better.

6. Drinking (too much)
Excessive drinking can lead to alcoholism, liver disease and some forms of cancer.

7. Skipping annual medical checkups
In order to detect problems early, prevent others from developing and get the best treatment if you have a condition, you need to know what’s going on in your body.

[via Huffington Post]

Image by thomcochrane via Flickr

I recently bought an Acer Aspire One netbook. It has a 8.9” lcd screen, Intel Atom processor, 8gb Solid State Drive (SSD), 1gb ram, webcam, 3cell battery, and came preinstalled with Linux Linpus Operating System.

Some of these netbooks are cheaper than most mobile phones that can only do half as much as this notebook can. This is a hit for those always on the go like students and freelancers, or even telecommuting workers.

Running a standard windows installation on the Acer Aspire One’s SSD is soo slow so you need to have an nLited version (stripped-down essentials of Windows XP) in my case, TinyXP so I can run most of my applications like Microsoft Outlook, Yahoo Messenger and Google Chrome.

I also tried running Adobe Photoshop CS3 and Dreamweaver CS3 on this netbook and it loaded just fine except for the small screen you have to contend with.

Having a fully functional super portable netbook, with a bargain price like that? Who am I to complain. I love this machine.

Do you own a netbook? What functions does it serve you?

Being a part-time web instructor, I advise my students to start posting their works online and to go the free route. I encourage them to make their collections of designs as mobile as possible since at one point in our curriculum, they are required to find a client, deal with that client and create a project either pro-bono or with a fee.

Sure, they can get a web host and domain name for their portfolios, but being beginners and students, I want them to be as resourceful and intuitive as they can in using available tools online and perhaps save them lunch money to spend on other important things..

Here are some free sites that can host your work for free!

Behance
Professional web portfolio site to showcase your work and connect to other designer (ala Linked-in)

Scrnshots
Scrnshots just started this year (2008) and is growing. Upload unlimited web comps and screenshots from your desktop with the downloadable application.

DeviantArt
DeviantArt has been there for many years. They have one of the best creative communities on the web today. Post and receive helpful feedbacks from fellow artists. 

Flickr
Flickr has a very active community behind it. You can utilize the site’s Group section to show-off your work and let people leave their comment. Video uploading is also possible. I use Flickr’s note labeling feature to add comments to web comps. The Free Account can view 200 stored photos, after that you need to pay for the Pro account to see the rest of your uploaded photos.

CarbonMade
CarbonMade is a paid portfolio storage website but they also have a free account which lets you upload and categorize your work. You can upload images, flash files and even video.

Why not print?

Although having print portfolio helps in presenting you as a very professional designer, students cannot afford to pay high-quality printing and binding services for multiple copies of their works.

The 5 disadvantages of having printed stuff as your portfolio:

1. Expensive – not ideal for student to spend on yet being beginners
2. Exposure – limited to those saw and received your printed portfolio.
3. Static Medium – viewers can’t interact with it (well, unless you have and thin OLED display there)
4. Mobility – sure it’s easy to bring a compilation of your work, but giving a link to your online work is easier
5. Upgradability – hard to update as new works are created

There are also some disadvantages in having an online portfolio (hey, nothing’s perfect), which I will discuss in a future post.

Image via Wikipedia

Telecommuting or home-based work is now gaining traction and popularity among Filipino workers and companies. Whether it is a design, programming, creative or technical job, telecommuting is now the “IN” thing, especially in this age of broadband internet and mobile communication. Is the work-from-home setup the new system that we Filipinos should adopt in our working society?

Here are some of advantages of having a home-based type of job, based on my personal experience as a home-based creative designer.

Saves money
Working from home, means that your work place (in my case, my work desk) is just be steps away from your bed. It would save you gas or commuting money. Saving up those precious 8 pesos jeepney fares or 15 pesos LRT fare every day can buy you a prepaid load or even cellphone a year! Do the math on your gas savings.

Reduces stress
Our mass transit is so messed up! You have to wrestle your way into public utility vehicles and trains before you can reach your workplace. And because your work is at home, you can sleep late and wake up late. No more deductions in your payroll just for being 15 minutes late because the MRT decided to conk out just before your stop. You can also do overtime and not be afraid to go “home” late at night. Iwas holdaper din.

More time to do other things
Because less time is spent on the road, you are left with more time to do other things like, spending time with your family, cleaning your room or making extra money from those side projects. You can also bring your Wifi-enabled laptop or mobile phone out in the park or beach and do your work from there, but that wouldn’t qualify as working from your home, would it? :p

Less pollution and less traffic
Imagine if just one-eighth of Metro Manila’s white-collar employees work at their homes. There would be no need to drive to the office and as a result would mean less traffic.

These are just some of the benefits on having a home-based job. Perfect as it may seem, this kind of setup also has its downsides which I will write on my next post.

Even so, I think Filipino employers and corporations should try checking out to see if the work that they are doing now in their offices can be accomplished, with the same level and quality, on a telecommuting arrangement. For example, a start-up company can save money by making some if not all their employees work from their own homes saving them on office rent expenses.

Employers may be surprised how cost-efficient it may be in the long run.

BestPinoyWebsite.com are featuring Philippine-made websites in their gallery. Visitors can submit and recommend a site to be featured.

Thanks to the people behind BestPinoyWebsites.com for choosing Jobsaholic.com as their admin pick

If you find this site useful, please vote for us there.

Hi there! We have recently launched Jobsaholic.com. Jobsaholic is a FREE online job site specifically for Pinoys in the Creative and IT industry.  There are permanent or freelance jobs for those looking for full-time work or extra gigs. Interested apprentices, interns or OJTers looking for work experience can also find their dream company and career here.

We hope to be the bridge between Employers and Creative and Tech Jobaholics (like us)

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