Lot of people ask me if they need to be picky while selecting jobs online. Being a writer, it might be easy for you to take on any job that is offered because you are just improving your resume of writing online and are trying to get your name out there. This seems all fine but there is a need to draw a line.

If you are struggling with something and are finding it hard to complete a job then probably you should quit. One cool thing about online work is that there are a lot of people who can substitute you. I am not saying that you should quit your online job the minute you get frustrated or upset while trying to complete anything but there has to be a line drawn somewhere and you should decide this line.

One thing that I can suggest you is that you should finish the work that you have taken and then talk to your client. Tell him you feel that there might be someone else who is more qualified to do the work. They might be able to help you with the work and teach a few tricks of trade.

You don’t even need to get that far. If you are uncomfortable with the job in the initial stages; then you can leave it there itself. You don’t have to start working instantly just because someone wants to hire you. There are plenty of companies trying to hire freelance writers so you can be picky about what you want.

When you are first working online, you might find it hard to pass jobs just because you are trying to sink in your foot. Also, you might like to try different jobs to see what you like the most. I was too taking all kinds of jobs when I first started working from home. I let my employers know that “I haven’t done this kinda work before but I’d like to try and you can hire me if I meet your expectations.”

I have been upfront and honest and it has given me great results to date. Some might argue that it isn’t a professional way of getting things done but then I don’t care because things have worked for me that way. I like to be honest 100% while working with anyone and I am not just saying this to make myself sound better to you. Believe me, honesty will take you a long way while working with people who you won’t see face to face everyday. It helps in building a trust and bond which can last for a long time.

Every blogger and Webmaster these days is looking to increase his Google Adsense earnings. Recent trends show that the intext advertisements help you to earn extra bucks through the Websites and blogs and when it comes to the intext ads, the first thing that springs up in our minds is ‘Kontera’. It is the biggest intext advertisement provider and has companies like Ford and Microsoft in its list.

Kontera is a great way to make money but there is one problem – Kontera ad earnings are very low. Every Webmaster and blogger is complaining about this and some of them have even disabled Kontera because of this and I am writing this article to tell you how to increase Kontera earnings by making some small changes. Here are my two bits -

• Link colour : I always recommend to change the Kontera links colour. The default colour is blue and this might be successful for some people but I recommend changing this colour to the default colour of the Website links.
• Link density : If the articles are relatively bigger then I would advise you to contact Kontera directly for adjusting the link density accordingly.
• Using the keywords : The best parts of your Website should have the highest paying keywords because Kontera will give links to the keywords that are used most often.
• Filter the ads : If the blogs are showing ads of any particular company which isn’t related to your Website or blog, then you should ask Kontera to restrict these ads from these companies.
• Keyword Variet : Use different keywords. For instance, if you are writing about online games then instead of just online games, you should use ‘Facebook Games’ or ‘ibibo games’.

These tips are simple but are very powerful for increasing Kontera earnings.

It is great when clients come knocking on your doors; all you need to do is hand over a quote and start writing after sending freelance writing contract. But sometimes, you need to go hunting for them. People may not know that they need you and hence you need to approach the situation with some skill.

Hunt for the clients that you want

Look around for people that you want to work with. There are people who are looking for freelance writers and there are also people who are willing to spend money on freelance writers. People like private tutors, Web designers, doctors, and lawyers know that written words are precious and will be willing to hire you for generating more revenue for them. This is a win-win situation for both of you.

• Go on the Internet and look for professionals in your area. There are some people who just want to deal locally and you can use your hometown as an icebreaker.
• You can ask your friends if they know any professionals in their families.

Reach out for getting in touch with them

Not literally and certainly not lawyers. But you can contact them for letting them know that you are there and willing to help. You will need to make a phone call or send a mail but don’t be discouraged about this. The worse thing that can happen is that they will say no or they won’t answer at all. On the other side, you might end up with a lot of money if you get the contract. If this is just one amongst those 50 emails or phone calls, it is totally worth it.

• Friendly and short emails can do wonders. You can start with something like ‘Hi, I went through your Website while surfing the Internet and wanted to tell you that I am a copywriter just in case you need my services’.
• Don’t get nervous about calling people. In worst case scenarios, you will end up learning flowery new language if you are interrupting during lunch. Just call up the guy and tell him that you are a writer. Also tell him that you have some experience that will help him in growing the business.
• They might ask you for samples straight away so be prepared about this. You can simply fire up an email showing them what you can do. Keep your freelance writer resume updated.
• If you have a Website, make sure that it is fashionable and upto date. People do peep to check in and if it looks bad, then they certainly won’t have any faith in you.

If you have any other tips about getting more clients do let me know in the comments section below.

Not everyone out there is a leader and leadership isn’t meant for everyone. However, there are a lot of people who don’t realize that they are leaders. Leadership is multi-faced but it is just a question of knowing how to lead and why.

I am jotting down ten skills of leadership for businesses.

• Leading by example – This is really important. If you want to be a leader, you should lead by example and pitch in when people need you. You should als lend a helping hand to people when they need you. Also, you should make sure that you team members understand the work that you are doing.
• Passion – It is hard to think of a leader without passion. He might be a leader at the lowest level but passion drives a lot of things. You should inspire others with your enthusiasm and passion. This doesn’t mean that you need to be cheery all the time but you should know what is your role in the company and your company is doing.
• Good organization – Disorganized leader can never lead well because he is always chasing his own tail. You should avoid being disorganized because it will lead to further disorganization. If you are messy and frazzled, your team will end up doing the same. Your productivity increases when you are well organized and you end up with better results.

• Delegation – It is not possible to do everything and hence a good leader needs to delegate his tasks well. When it comes to delegation, you should give your employees a sense of ownership of the work that you assign to them. They need to feel that they own the work.
• Take full responsibility and ownership-You might have delegated the work well but you also need to take ownership and responsibility of what your team is doing. Every team will go through a good and bad time. You will have to face both the situations.
• Effective communication – It is known that great leaders need to be good communicators. But there are some communication points that people forget. For instance, you need to tell your employees about the work they are doing and how beneficial will it be to the company in the long run. You should tell them that the work you are doing makes a big difference to the company. You need to be precise while communicating.
• Be honest and brave – Cowardly leaders will be shy of facing the different challenges that turn up when they are leading a team. But you will have to be brave and face any kind of situation that you might face in the organization. Honesty too is important. Do not sugarcoat or obfuscate. Learn to present things well.
• 

  Great listener -This is another part of communication – good listening. If you just talk and don’t let your people talk, then you are a bad leader. It is important to keep your people motivated by asking questions and listening to them. You should also understand their issues well. You will respond more effectively if you listen more. In the end, you will get to the heart of the things faster.

• Know your people – You need to know your people. You do not need to be best friends and don’t need to socialize after work but you need to know them well. It is important that you know thing about their personal lives because this matters a lot during work. You can keep a track of their marriages, children, birthdays, etc.
• Be a follower – Great leaders are good followers. If you don’t follow anyone, it means that you are a dictator and not a leader.

There are many leadership based degrees available, including an organizational leadership masters degree, for aspiring managers.