Hi Reader, It feels like it wasn’t too long ago that I was marvelling at how it was already July. Well, the month went by in a haze of busyness, and it's now almost August, and I almost forgot that August also marks my 4th year of freelancing.Yes, in a couple of days, I'll officially have been at it for four (4) years! 🎉To be honest, though, things have never felt as uncertain as they are now. How long will everything last? Clients can come and go—but then again, when has this statement never...
22 days ago • 2 min read
Hi Reader, I had lunch at Lou Shang (楼上) last week. It's a cafe whose decor is inspired by the look of Singapore's HDB flats in the 80s, and I went before they closed for good on 14 July. The cafe's founder cited a few reasons for the closing. One of them: the cafe's concept wasn't designed to encourage repeat visitors. In his words: “Every time I see customers coming in for the first time, they all look pleasantly surprised, but admiration doesn't build habits." I agree with this sentiment....
about 1 month ago • 4 min read
Hi Reader, I can't believe it's July already. The year is half gone. Meanwhile, I'm behind schedule by one or two articles due to reasons that aren't my fault. :') But anyway. Every now and then, I think back to a get-to-know-you call I had with someone looking to hire a writer—no, actually, she specifically wanted to hire me. Even though we hadn't chatted once before this call. Her reason: one of her team members—whom she holds in high regard, and whom I'd worked with while he was still with...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read
Hi Reader, (P.S. You may see sponsored content in my newsletters from now on—it's something new I'm trying out. Feel free to reply to share your feedback about this.) I attended artist CJ Hendry's Flower Market installation last week. In case you haven't heard of it, it was a "market" that you could walk through to look at and buy plush flowers. Entry was free, and all visitors got one free flower, with subsequent flowers being $7 each. There's only one word I'd use to describe the...
2 months ago • 5 min read
Hi Reader, (P.S. You may see sponsored content in my newsletters from now on—it's something new I'm trying out. Feel free to reply to share your feedback about this. Today's sharing also isn't legal advice. If you need legal advice, please consult a lawyer.) During my contracts workshop for coaches in April, an attendee asked an interesting question: "Sometimes, when clients give you a contract, they say it's just for 'formalities' only. Is this true?" I answered emphatically: NO! The client...
3 months ago • 4 min read
Hi Reader, I use the "important and urgent" framework to decide what to work on. It's a four-quadrant grid that sorts tasks into (1) important and urgent, (2) important and not urgent, (3) not important and urgent, and (4) not important and not urgent. Here's how this framework might look for my freelance business: (While creating this diagram, I had to tell myself that tweaking it to perfection is not important and not urgent, so I would stop doing this and MOVE ON, lol) If something is...
3 months ago • 3 min read
Hi Reader, Last week, I read this tweet by John Loeber: Sometimes, an acquaintance will reach out to me to "catch up" casually. There's nothing I like more than a nice wide-ranging conversation with no agenda, so I usually say yes. Then, 30 or 45 minutes in, they try to be very sneaky about this, they bring up -- oh-just-by-the-way -- some commercial request: an intro to so-and-so, maybe I'll consider buying their product, funding their company, whatever, and it's so disappointing: the last...
4 months ago • 4 min read
Hi Reader, I went through two rounds of interviews for a freelance writer role a few weeks ago. The first interview was a screener, while the second was the more substantive interview with the people I'd work with. To prep for the interviews, I did my research as usual—but I also decided to try getting AI's help since I recently signed up for a paid Claude plan. After my AI-assisted prep, both interviews went well. I didn't have trouble with the questions, and the interviewers also said they...
4 months ago • 3 min read
Hi Reader, I love collecting client testimonials. I mean, who doesn't love it when people say nice things about you? 😂 Not only that: these testimonials serve as social proof of the amazing work you do. Just check out what a client recently said about mine: And when you've gathered a nice collection of testimonials, they can influence potential clients to hire you. Here's my client testimonial process. Feel free to steal it. Decide who to ask for a testimonial The standard approach is to ask...
4 months ago • 4 min read