Latest news with #freelancing
CNET
20 hours ago
- Business
- CNET
I Leveled Up My Retirement Strategy Thanks to AI. Here's How
Some retirement tools have AI features that can help you craft the right plan for you. Getty Images/Viva Tung/CNET Three years ago, I left my cushy corporate job as a software engineer to write and explore my creative projects. I wasn't making as much as I had before, and sadly, I no longer had my shiny 10% employer 401(k) match either. I knew that leaving the corporate world meant I wouldn't be able to put as much money toward savings and retirement during my first few years freelancing. I still saved regardless, but I needed help figuring out how my retirement plans would shift with career changes. Come to find, artificial intelligence tools were excellent for this. Some AI tools can do a lot to help you plan for retirement. They can take your financial data and forecast retirement trends -- like job losses and market fluctuations. And the right prompts and queries can determine how much money you need to retire by a certain age, and even calculate your spending power at the time of retirement. But I found that AI has limitations. Here's how you can use AI to prepare for retirement and what I recommend if you're leaning on robots to help you plan for your financial future. How to use AI for retirement planning Different AI tools use different machine-learning models, and it's important to know which one to use and when. ChatGPT is a large language model useful for answering financial questions and performing dynamic planning through prompts and queries. For example, I like that ChatGPT can help project retirement timelines, especially when expenses, income, or taxes change. It may not be a financial adviser, but it's a great starting point when you can't afford one. However, ChatGPT is a general-purpose chatbot with limited capabilities compared to the AI tools used within banking and retirement software. The AI models that banks use in retirement apps are ideal for automated portfolio optimization and other financial tasks. So which one is best? It depends on how you want AI to help you plan for retirement. To get the most out of ChatGPT, use specific queries and include all of the important factors the model needs to analyze and answer your questions correctly. For example, I used the following query in ChatGPT: "If I currently have $200,000 saved for retirement at age 35 and want to retire at age 55, how much will I have at that time? Forecast with a monthly contribution of $500 and 10% interest rate." ChatGPT's response: "If you're 35 years old with $200,000 saved for retirement, contribute $500 a month, and earn an average 10% annual return (compounded monthly), by the time you reach age 55, you would have approximately $1,845,299." Then from there, I can ask clarifying questions to dig deeper, like: "How will that change if I can only save $200 a month?" "If my projected monthly expenses for my retirement age are $5,000 a month, what will that increase to in 20 years due to inflation?" "What would $1,845,299 be worth in 2045?" "If I have $1,845,299 at retirement and want it to last 20 years, how much should I spend per month? How would that change if I add $3,000 a month from Social Security?" An expert's take Jannese Torres, a fellow CNET Money Expert Review Board member and author of Financially Lit!, recommends using AI tools for financial guidance, too. Mainly, because of the transparency. "The truth is, AI is pulling from massive amounts of financial data and research to give you clear, actionable insights," Torres says. "It's not emotional, it doesn't have sales quotas, and it's not trying to upsell you on some shady investment like some unscrupulous 'advisers' do. That's a big win in my book." Torres pointed out that most of us didn't grow up learning how to plan for retirement. And figuring it out on our own can be overwhelming. That's where large language models can help, including ChatGPT and some of the tools I recommend. "It's like having a 24/7 money nerd who can break things down in plain English, no jargon included. You can ask anything, from 'What's a Roth IRA?' to 'How much do I need to retire by 55? and get an answer that makes sense," Torres says. The AI tools I trust to help plan my retirement Even though AI can help me plan for retirement, I still keep my money and data protected with my two trusted financial tools. My IRA and Roth IRA are with Fidelity, and I also have a brokerage account with M1 Finance. That being said, here are a few AI-featured tools that I use alongside the apps and tools I trust. AI tools and features I use for retirement planning Tool What it's used for My local credit union Monthly budget forecasting, spending analysis, and I'm able to securely connect my financial data to other apps, such as M1 Finance and Fidelity. Fidelity Retirement Planning Forecasts retirement readiness based on income, age, goals and assets. It can also estimate your future savings growth and recommend contribution strategies. Fidelity Go is a robo-adviser that automates investing and retirement portfolio management. M1 Finance Uses rule-based automation to rebalance portfolios and manage IRAs. Capitalize Helps users roll over old 401(k)s into IRAs using an AI-assisted platform that automates paperwork and finds forgotten retirement accounts. Empower Tracks your net worth and automates your savings. It also gives personalized retirement and investment advice in a dashboard. ChatGPT Acts as a personal financial brainstorming assistant. It can simulate retirement plans and understand complex financial topics through conversational AI. The risks of relying on AI for retirement planning Just because AI can help you personalize your plan for retirement doesn't mean it should be your only source of truth. There are two points worth noting before you use any AI tool to help you with your money goals, especially your retirement. AI isn't a safe place to store your data It's important to be cautious about how you're exposing your data when using any financial AI tool. This doesn't mean that you shouldn't use tools like ChatGPT. Even I use it. The trick is to avoid giving ChatGPT or similar AI tools any personal financial data, like account numbers or login information. One upside to using AI tools for retirement planning is that you're getting objective advice about your financial situation, and not from someone trying to sell to you or scam you. However, these tools aren't designed to securely store information, which risks your data falling into the wrong hands. So it's best to be cautious of any information you share and double-check any advice you receive with another trusted source. It lacks the personal, second opinion you need for your finances Relying on AI alone to plan your retirement can be dangerous. Between the lack of human understanding, accuracy (AI chatbots do sometimes "hallucinate" wrong information) and changes in retirement, it's best to have a second opinion. Using AI can make retirement planning more accessible, but it can't understand your emotions, values or life circumstances that shape your financial decisions. These tools cannot weigh the emotional trade-offs of retiring early to care for a loved one or the peace of mind you get from having extra savings -- even if the AI tool's algorithm says you don't need it. Satayan Mahajan, CEO of Datalign Advisory, an AI company that connects Americans with advisers, recommends a hybrid approach. "It's like having a tireless analyst who can crunch numbers all day. But it needs a human check. If you're trying to figure out how much you need to retire, AI should be your starting point. But it shouldn't be your only point," Mahajan says. It's best to pair AI with a professional, such as one through your bank, employer-sponsored retirement plan or similar, to make sure you're proceeding with your financial plans correctly. There's no one-size-fits-all in any financial plan. Above all, do what works best for you.
The Sun
a day ago
- Lifestyle
- The Sun
I moved to a Spanish city where beer is just £1.50 – now I don't waste my evenings away watching EastEnders
A YOUNG woman who was sick of her 'miserable' life decided to ditch her hometown for a sunny Spanish city. Tori Clinton, from Dublin, says her life did a 180 once she moved to Spain and shared her favourite parts of the lifestyle there. 3 3 The 30-year-old has spent the last two years living abroad and said her favourite part was the £1.50 beers on offer. Now in the popular city of Malaga, she said the culture change has drastically improved her life and changed her mindset on booze. Now, she visits her local every day to soak up the sun with a 'cheeky caña'. The small beer only costs £1.50 in Tori's favourite spots, while a pint costs just £2.17. In comparison, the average price of a pint in her hometown is now a whopping £6.42. Tori, who is a freelance worker, says having the odd tipple instead of binge drinking, and embracing a culture where work isn't the be-all and end-all, has allowed her to 'become the best version' of herself. 'I was miserable back home. I look back and wonder how I survived so long in my past life,' Tori told Luxury Travel Daily. 'It is so normal to do things on evenings after work, not just go home like back home and watch EastEnders. 'Going to my local is my favourite time of the day - it's time for me to catch up on some life admin and work, but also check in with myself and journal my thoughts. 'I mean, who doesn't want to be sat out in the evening sun with a cheeky caña, thinking 'how is this my life?' 'In Spain, there is no binge drinking, and you never see people super drunk or messy. 'They sip their alcohol and pace themselves. 3 Benidorm 'becoming too POSH' as dejected expat complains of empty beaches & buzz-free bars after Brits 'priced out' 'Being Irish, our favourite thing to say is 'shall we get another?' when in fact there is no need for that other drink. 'This is something you would never hear people here say, and it has taken time to shift to this mindset. 'Everything feels so much cheaper as the prices are so different in comparison to Ireland and England. Work and career are a lower priority here - it's all about living and enjoying, rather than chasing work pressures. Tori Clinton 'When I go back there to visit family, it can be quite a shock - even when getting a coffee.' Tori quit her job and travelled to Malaga, a place she often visited as a child with her family, in 2023. After falling in love with her new life, she decided to settle down in the Spanish coastal city. She added: 'Work and career are a lower priority here - it's all about living and enjoying, rather than chasing work pressures. 'There are, however, some cultural aspects that have been hard to grasp and still grind my gears. 'As everything is slower paced here, so too is paperwork and getting things done without over complicating everything, but look - we can't have it all. 'It can also be like being on a rollercoaster with your emotions as you're trying to build a life and a home in a country where you're not fluent in their language.' Moving house hacks 1. Declutter Before You Pack Sort through your belongings and get rid of anything you no longer need. Donate, sell, or recycle items to lighten your load. 2. Create an Inventory Make a list of all your items. This helps keep track of everything and ensures nothing gets lost in the move. 3. Use Quality Packing Materials Invest in sturdy boxes, bubble wrap, and packing tape. This will protect your belongings during the move. 4. Label Everything Clearly label each box with its contents and the room it belongs to. This makes unpacking much easier and more organized. 5. Pack a 'First Day' Box Include essentials like toiletries, a change of clothes, snacks, and important documents. This will keep you from rummaging through boxes on your first day. 6. Take Photos of Electronics Setup Before unplugging your electronics, take photos of the wiring setup. This will make it easier to reconnect everything at your new place. 7. Use Suitcases for Heavy Items Pack books and other heavy items in rolling suitcases. This makes them easier to transport and reduces the risk of injury. 8. Colour-Code Your Boxes Use different coloured stickers or markers for each room. This will help movers quickly identify where each box should go in your new home.
Forbes
a day ago
- Business
- Forbes
5 Ways To Stand Out As A Freelancer And Keep Clients (Almost) Forever
Stand out as a freelancer by delivering good work—and by how you do the work! How do you know if you stand out as a freelancer? I can tell you how I know. Just last month, I got a call from one of my very first clients. Back in 2002, after I first opened my freelance writing business, she hired me via Elance, now Upwork, to edit a company brochure. That small project could have been a one-and-done transaction, but it became the start of a relationship that has lasted for more than two decades. As she's said to me more than once, 'That's longer than most people have been married!' My client has since sold her original consultancy, started and sold two more businesses, climbed into C-suite positions at several different companies, and brought me along for the ride each time. New companies, new roles, same freelancer—me. Guess what? That's not luck. (And she's not been my only long-time client.) It happened because I know that freelancing isn't just about delivering good work. It's also about becoming the kind of person clients don't want to work without. On the client side, I also hire freelancers. And I've worked with plenty who treat projects like transactions: Deliver the work, collect the payment, move on to the next gig. But the real money—and the real satisfaction—comes when you delight your clients, doing the things that turn them into repeat buyers, word-of-mouth advocates, and long-term partners. Based on my 20-plus years of experience, these are my top five ways to stand out as a freelancer and move from gig-getter to go-to freelance professional. 1. Stand out as a freelancer by always closing the loop Stand out as a freelancer by NOT going on vacation in the middle of a project—without letting your ... More client know! I once hired a freelancer to transcribe research interviews for a client project. She seemed like a good fit from the start. She was capable, asked good questions about formatting and turnaround times, and delivered solid early work transcribing the first couple of interviews. I was relieved to know that I could move on to the next task on my list. Then, suddenly, she disappeared without explanation or warning. She just went quiet in that way that makes you wonder if your last email got lost, or if something happened, or if you're being slowly, politely, albeit rudely ghosted—all the while as your client deadline looms closer and you still have half a dozen interviews left to transcribe. I sent a follow-up message, then another. The days passed, and I grew more worried. We still had some time before I needed the rest of the interviews, but as the silence stretched, I found myself bouncing back and forth between annoyance, anger, and genuine concern. Had something happened to her? Was I about to get stuck trying to hire someone else? When she finally resurfaced—eight days later!—she apologized for missing my messages. She said she'd gone on vacation. Vacation! She gave me no heads-up. There was no out-of-office message. She just packed her bags and left, apparently without a second thought for the work she'd left hanging or the client who might be wondering what the hell happened. Stand out as a freelancer by NOT going on vacation in the middle of a project, without warning or ... More informing! Here's what I learned from that experience: Good work isn't enough if your client spends the entire project wondering whether the job will get done. Or if you've vanished and wasted their precious time. Trust builds up in the spaces between deliverables; it grows thicker with each quick confirmation, proactive update, and simple courtesy of letting someone know you're still there. That's why I always close the loop, even when it feels unnecessary. When a client sends me a project file, I let them know I received it. When I'm a week into a project with a three-week deadline, I send an update even if nothing has changed. And if something threatens a deadline—illness, tech trouble, life getting complicated, vacation (ahem)—I definitely reach out immediately with a revised plan, not an excuse. I even follow up in reverse. For example, if a client promises to send me something by the end of the day, and the end of the day comes but I haven't seen it, I'll check in with the client before logging off. Not to nag, but to make sure nothing fell through the cracks. Sure, I sometimes worry I'm being annoying, but I've learned that clients would rather hear from me too much than wonder if I'm still paying attention. The fact is, clients notice. One of my earliest clients specifically mentioned how much they appreciated how I 'always closed the loop.' It was the first time I'd heard the phrase. I practically glowed. Both the phrase and the practice of closing the loop stuck with me. Loop closing is a way to signal that you're present, engaged, and taking responsibility for more than just the final deliverable. It's how you become the freelancer clients stop worrying about—and start relying on. 2. Stand out as a freelancer by charging like you understand the job Housekeeping isn't really freelancing, but it is a solo enterprise, so the same rules apply. I once hired a house cleaner who quoted me $245 for what I'd described as a thorough, top-to-bottom deep clean of my fairly large home. The number felt wrong right away. It was too low, and I found myself pushing back in a way that probably seemed ungrateful. 'Are you sure that's enough?' I asked. 'It's a lot of square footage, and we really want you to touch every surface.' She reassured me with a confidence that made me second-guess my own instincts. She'd done this before, she said. She could handle it all in a day, for that price, no problem. Maybe she had done it before, but she didn't do it that day. First, she arrived late—hours late! She told me she'd forgotten to buy supplies and had to stop at Walmart. Then, as she started cleaning in earnest, working methodically through each room, I watched the clock. As the hours ticked by, the sick feeling in my gut grew stronger. I knew my suspicions about the timeline were right. By the time dinner rolled around, she was still scrubbing. By 10 p.m., she was starting in the kitchen. By 11:30 p.m., she was still there, although (thankfully) wrapping up. I was exhausted and angry. And she hadn't even finished everything she'd promised to do. I didn't feel like I'd gotten a bargain. I felt frustrated and, strangely, taken advantage of. I would have gladly paid twice her quote if she'd just been honest about how long the job would take her. The same thing happens with freelancers who underbid projects, thinking a low price will help win the work. They don't ask enough questions, don't account for revisions, and don't build in buffer time for unexpected complications. I guess they just pick a number they think sounds appealing and hope they can make the math work later—if they even think about the math at all. Stand out as a freelancer by pricing right. Quoting too low hurts everyone—and your wallet. But pricing isn't just arithmetic. It's also a matter of communication. Your quote tells a prospect whether you understand the scope, whether you've thought it through, and whether they can trust you to stay calm when something goes sideways. If your price is too low, I worry you're missing something important. If it's too high without explanation, I wonder if you're padding the estimate to cover your own uncertainty. The sweet spot is the number that makes a client feel like Goldilocks, 'Yes, that feels just right'—not cheap enough to raise red flags, not expensive enough to create anxiety, but grounded enough to suggest you know exactly what you're getting into. Price like you understand the job, and clients will trust you to do it. 3. Don't be an order taker (unless your client wants one) Stand out as a freelancer by being an order taker—when your client wants you to. Otherwise, be a ... More consultant. I hate getting my hair cut, and for years, I blamed myself for not knowing exactly what I wanted. Then I realized the real problem: I keep encountering order-takers instead of consultants. Here's how it usually goes. I sit in the chair at Great Clips and explain what I'm looking for: something that looks good and takes practically no time to style. I may mention that I don't want my bangs cut straight across. Then I say the magic words: 'I trust your judgment.' What I'm really saying is, 'You're the expert here. Please use your expertise to give me a haircut that works for my face, hair type, and lifestyle.' Instead, I get interrogated. 'How much do you want taken off? An inch? Half an inch? Do you want layers? What about the back?' And I'm sitting there thinking, 'Isn't this literally your job?' I came to a professional because I wanted professional judgment, not because I wanted to make every technical decision myself. But I'm too polite to push back, so I pick some random measurement and cross my fingers. The result? A cut that's technically what I asked for, but rarely what actually makes me look or feel good. The stylist filled my order. She didn't solve my problem. I've had the same frustration with all sorts of freelancers, too. Years ago, I hired someone to add dropdown menus to my website. The project seemed straightforward enough to me, although at the time I didn't realize that dropdown menus caused rendering problems. The developer I hired didn't tell me, either. He just built what I asked for, no questions asked. Stand out as a freelancer by informing your clients if anything in your life will cause a delay for ... More their projects. When I discovered that the new menus didn't work on every browser, my blood boiled. I had to hire a second person to fix the problem. Nope. There were now different issues! Seeing red, I hired a third developer, who told me that dropdown menus were 'a real problem' and maybe I should consider a different approach. Sigh. Why didn't the other developers tell me that? Why did they just take my order? Why didn't they know? By the time I signed the contract with the third developer, I'd already spent more than $1,000 on a feature that never would have worked. See, there's a difference between being an order taker and being a consultant, and you need to figure out which one your client actually wants. Stand out as a freelancer by knowing which way to go: order taker, or consultant Some clients genuinely do want you to carry out a vision exactly. They've thought it through, they know what they want, and your job is to deliver it efficiently and professionally. That's fine—as long as you're excellent at taking orders. But other clients come to you precisely because they don't know what they want, or because they suspect their initial idea might not be the best solution, or because they're just struggling with a problem, like my dropdown menus. These clients come to you hoping that you'll bring expertise, not just execution. They want you to do the deep thinking, ask the hard questions, flag potential problems, and guide them toward the best results. The trick is learning to read the signals. If someone gives you detailed specs and seems confident about their approach, follow their lead. But if they're vague about the details, or if you spot a potential issue with their plan, speak up. Most clients would rather hear 'I think there might be a better way to do this' or 'I think I see a problem here' than discover later that you noticed and didn't say anything. Your job isn't (always) to do what they ask. It's to help them get what they need. 4. Stand out as a freelancer by following the $!%& instructions If a prospect shares an RFP or if a client shares instructions, stand out as a freelancer by READING ... More them! I once posted a detailed request for proposal that took me the better part of an hour to write. I outlined the project scope, explained the technical requirements, specified the timeline, and even included a content-mapping document and annotated screenshots to make sure there was no confusion about what I needed. Then I started getting responses. I was annoyed to see that a surprisingly large number of freelancers had somehow managed to bid on my project without actually absorbing the information in it. Did they even read my request? One response in particular made me want to bang my head against my desk. 'Good morning, I am hoping that you might be able to go a little deeper into your project. If you don't mind, I'll put a couple of questions out there for you that would get us started. Do you have your detailed requirements completed? Can you give examples of the site you would like to emulate?' I stared at that message for a full minute. This guy was asking me for the exact information I'd already given in my original project description. It wasn't just lazy. It was insulting. With his response, that freelancer essentially told me that he couldn't be bothered to read my request for proposal. There's no way I'd hire him. My response when a freelancer asks for information I've already provided in the RFP... The thing about instructions? Clients don't include them for fun. When I ask for proposals with the word 'blueberry' in the subject line, it's not because I'm obsessed with fruit. It's because I'm about to get 75 emails, and I need a way to sort and organize them. When I give you a timeline, budget range, or formatting particulars, it's because those details matter to the success of my project. Following instructions shows your client that you read carefully, process information accurately, and pay attention to the details that matter. If you can't follow the guidelines in a job posting, why should anyone trust you to follow the requirements in a project brief? It's tempting to fire off quick, identical responses to multiple job posts, especially when you're trying to build momentum or fill your pipeline. But taking an extra five minutes to actually read and respond thoughtfully will put you ahead of half the people who are just spraying generic proposals and praying something sticks. Instructions exist for a reason. Follow them, and you'll signal that you're someone who takes direction seriously and pays attention to what matters to clients. 5. Trust your gut and set boundaries Stand out as a freelancer by learning to 1) develop and 2) trust your instincts. (It's not always ... More natural!) I once took on a client who seemed reasonable enough during our initial conversations. But then something shifted the moment we started working together. He began questioning every single recommendation I made, turning each suggestion into a debate. I suggested adding a PDF download to make it easier for readers to save and share the content. He said no, people no longer want PDFs. I recommended breaking up a massive wall of text with subheadings to improve readability. He preferred it as one solid block. I proposed restructuring his homepage to highlight the strongest value prop first. He wanted to keep his long, winding introduction that buried the important information three paragraphs down. He met (what felt like) every suggestion with pushback and explanations about why I was wrong and why his approach was better. It was like being hired as a consultant and then having to justify every piece of advice to someone who had already made up his mind about everything. The breaking point came during a 15-minute phone call, during which he managed to dismiss or contradict nearly every point I raised. I was so frustrated! I'd start to explain the reasoning behind a recommendation, and he'd cut me off with reasons why it wouldn't work for his audience, his industry, his particular situation. By the end of the call, I felt like I'd been arguing with someone who had hired me specifically so he could have someone to disagree with! Stand out as a freelancer by owning your expertise. I hung up and immediately sent him a full refund along with a polite note explaining that we weren't a good fit. I kept it professional, but the message was clear: If you don't trust my judgment enough to consider my recommendations, you don't need my services. Experiences like that one taught me that some clients hire experts not because they want expertise, but because they want validation for decisions they've already made. They're not looking for fresh perspectives or strategic guidance. They're just looking for a patsy—someone with the credentials they need to rubber-stamp existing plans. That's not the kind of work I do best. I'm not a yes-woman. I'm not here to nod along with everything you say. If you want someone to simply execute your vision without question, hire an order-taker, not a consultant. Now I watch for early warning signs, like clients who push back on every suggestion during our initial conversations, clients who seem more interested in explaining why things won't work than exploring how they might, and clients who treat every recommendation like a personal challenge rather than professional advice. Your expertise is worth something. Don't let difficult clients convince you otherwise. Stand out as a freelancer by doing the real business of freelancing Success as a freelancer depends on more than doing the work; it depends on HOW you do the work! Look, I'm here to tell you that you don't need to be the cheapest, the fastest, or the most talented freelancer in your field. But you do need to be the one clients remember when they need work done—and the one they recommend when someone asks for a referral. Those things happen when you make clients' lives easier, not harder. They happen when you solve problems clients didn't even know they had, when you show up consistently, communicate clearly, and treat their success as your own. Good work gets you paid. Great relationships get you rehired again and again. The freelancers who understand this distinction become the CEOs of successful freelance businesses. I want you to be one of those freelancers. Be the freelancer your clients can't imagine working without. Then you'll truly stand out as a freelancer and keep clients for (almost) forever.
Globe and Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Meet Kinshasia Johnson, the Certified Virtual Executive Assistant and Transcriptionist Empowering Entrepreneurs and Executives Around the World
Johnson has transcribed thousands of audio hours over the years and has helped entrepreneurs and C-level executives meet and exceed their goals. Now, she's launched her services to clients everywhere. Kinshasia Johnson has been a freelancer since 2017, and since that time, she has transformed the workflows of entrepreneurs and C-level executives around the world. Johnson is a certified virtual executive assistant, expert transcriptionist, and freelancing mentor who specializes in streamlining administrative operations. She is also a member of the IAPO International Association of Professional Executive Assistants and the Virtual Assistant Networking Association (VANA). Johnson has proudly served clients around the world in a range of industries. She also shares her experiences as a freelancer to empowers others with one-on-one mentorship, group training, courses, and more. Her clients find her through her website, as well as through the world's leading freelance and outsourcing marketplace, Fiverr, where she is a Top Rated Seller with a long list of perfect five-star reviews. Johnson hones in on executive assistance, virtual assistance, and transcription to provide a wealth of solutions that offer clients precisely what they need to be more efficient and highly successful. With her executive-level virtual support solutions, Johnson provides diary alignment, calendar and e-mail management, internal and external communication, weekly check-ins, brainstorming, project management, and more. For clients seeking a qualified and seasoned virtual assistant, Johnson provides world-class services including administrative support, calendar scheduling, data entry, research, support tasks, and more. When it comes to transcription, Johnson's personalized services are the perfect choice for meetings, audio books, lectures, sermons, calls, interviews, and more. 'Providing exceptional administrative and management support isn't just a slogan, it's a reflection of my dedication to driving meaningful, positive change in the businesses I serve,' said Johnson. Moreover, she is championing aspiring freelancers by helping them get a jump start on Fiverr. Johnson offers the Fiverr Essentials Course for Beginners, the Fiverr Plug-N-Play Template Bundle, and The Ultimate Fiverr Guide for Beginners to help new Fiverr Sellers put their best foot forward in their new endeavors. Learn more about all of Kinshasia Johnson's solutions for entrepreneurs and C-level executives, as well as her jump start resources for Fiverr Sellers, by visiting Book one of her top selling services instantly at ABOUT KINSHASIA JOHNSON Kinshasia Johnson is a certified virtual executive assistant, transcriptionist, and freelancing mentor who has several years of experience supporting entrepreneurs and C-level executives alike. She offers her services via her website, as well as on the world's leading freelance and outsourcing marketplace, Follow Kinshasia on LinkedIn at Media Contact Contact Person: Kinshasia Johnson Email: Send Email Phone: 876-499-5477 City: SAINT CATHERINE Country: Jamaica Website:
Times
3 days ago
- Lifestyle
- Times
Don't say I've quit. I'm on a ‘power pause'
It's been a while since we've heard from the #girlboss of the mid-2010s, who hijacked millennial Instagrams with career-centric motivational speeches and lofty work ambitions. We didn't really question where she went — perhaps she joined a cult or married her MacBook — but fear not, she's now been found alive and well. She was just tending to her children at home. Coined by the American author Neha Ruch, who spent years working in advertising and start-ups, the 'power pause' is a new concept that aims to rebrand the modern spectrum of stay-at-home-motherhood for women choosing to 'downshift' their careers and make more space for family life. I am apparently in the throes of a power pause, having left a stressful career in fashion. Instead of working nine to nine, I'm now at home every day alternating between parenting, freelance deadlines and the Sisyphean task of tidying the kitchen. I left my previous career for a host of reasons, one being that I was on the precipice of insanity and another being that it didn't allow much time for children. I could have them, of course, I just wouldn't be able to see them during the week. I probably would have left eventually anyway. It's not very #girlboss to admit that aggressive emails leave me emotionally withered, like a bedridden Victorian, but that's the kind of person I am. And now, post-Covid and pre-AI takeover, freelancing and working from home has never been so easy or socially acceptable. Some days one child is at nursery, some days they are both with me and some days I have a full ten-hour stretch to focus on projects. I'm able to find fulfilment beyond my family while also being around to make misshapen cupcakes with my daughter, three, on Mondays or take my son, nearly two, to a farm on a Thursday. As far as I can tell, I haven't 'paused' anything, I've just chosen to change my life and work in a way that makes more sense in this life stage. • Read more parenting advice, interviews, real-life stories and opinions Perhaps when they're older I'll crave a high-stress job and crying in an office loo but, as of now, I haven't felt the draw of that siren's call. Maybe I wasn't ever powerful enough for what I'm now doing to be considered a pause, or maybe my pause just lacks power, but regardless, I don't really feel the need to repackage it with a sassy label. I'm just a mother, working from home, praying that no one sends me a rude email.
