Showing Work, January for Freelancers, and Looking at 1/21.

Let’s talk about how you show your work. No, it’s not math class. We’re talking about how you show your best work in order to get potential clients to hire you. Suppose someone’s looking for a freelancer for things like editing, social media graphics, content creation, videography, field sound, etc.

Please don’t do this: say “here’s a link to my portfolio” and it’s a link to a Google drive with a bunch of files in it, which may or may not be labeled appropriately. Unfortunately, I won’t even look at it. It’s kind of overwhelming, and hard to view.

If you’re trying to get hired, it’s in your best interest to remove any friction that might stand in the way. There should be no questions about your role in the project. Opening files is not as optimal as clicking on a link and easily seeing your work, without a lot of questions about what you did in the project. That means it’s well-organized and labeled appropriately. This is a great project during the slow times (like January!).

So what are your options? I’ll provide three here. Choose one. Please note that none of them are creating a PDF with visuals/links, but that’s still better than the Google Drive option. And for goodness sake, do NOT send Instagram links. Ain’t nobody got time for that. If you’re proud of your Instagram stuff, include a hyperlink logo on the page where you’re showing your work, and let the visitor decide if they want to go there. This is not just best for the person doing the hiring, it is 100% in your best interest.

Create showcases on Vimeo (or playlists on YouTube) by freelancing role. Use the description to say what you want about that project, including any challenges you overcame.

Use the Gamma app to create a presentation. You can embed videos and even websites, adding your company colors and logos. Then just share the link to your Gamma presentation. Everything in one place!

Notion has awesome free templates for portfolios that you can publish as landing pages.

Here’s the hard part. You’re a creative. And professional. So you’re going to think your website or PDF or whatever sucks. But I promise even if you throw it together it’s better than a Google Drive full of files that say “IG REEL for Gy…..” or whatever 🙂

January is typically either slow, or off to the races with new projects. If you’re experiencing the slow, there’s stuff to do in your business, whether it’s tax prep, marketing, or business development.

Tally up your medical expenses, if you aren’t on someone else’s health insurance. I request a statement from both my dentist and my doctors for the year’s visits, and prescription costs count, too. As well as the transportation and parking costs for medical visits, so include that on your mileage journal. And yes, those hefty premiums count, too. Once you get all those numbers together, you’ll need to multiply .075 by your adjusted gross income (AGI) number. You can only deduct those expenses which exceed 7.5% of your AGI. Learn more about this deduction and what/who qualifies here.

Social Media Checkup: Update your LinkedIn, Google Plus, and other profiles. Are you joining, or have you joined Bluesky? Put the word out there, if you’re planning to use it for business. Your business evolves, so should your online presence. Add new pieces to your portfolio and explore new features on social platforms.

Client Evaluation: Assess your client relationships. Have you given each the attention they deserve? Reach out to those with potential for future collaborations, wish them a happy new year, and let them know you’re available for more projects. Alternatively, if you worked on a project that might happen every year around the same time, make yourself a reminder about 8 weeks ahead of time to reach out to the contact you worked with last year to ask if the project/event is happening again, and if you should pencil something in your calendar for them?

Clean Out Your Inbox! Declutter your inbox for a stress-free start to the new year. It might seem simple, but a tidy inbox can significantly boost productivity and efficiency. My favorite way to do this is to sort my inbox alphabetically and just tackle a letter a day. You’ll make a real dent over the course of a month, especially if you’re also unsubscribing to things!

First, you can look forward to the roads being re-opened around Washington DC (well, most of them. There are still several road closures near the National Cathedral on Tuesday for the Prayer Service). There are many roads, as well as some Metro stops, being closed this weekend. Learn how your plans may be affected this weekend here.

If Trump’s plans for imposing tariffs on foreign made goods goes through, equipment made in Asia (particularly China, with a proposed 60% tariff) will be much more expensive. But if you decide to hold on to your equipment, be aware that replacement parts are also made overseas, so those parts will still be more expensive.

Trump has promised to extend provisions in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which would include allowing many small business owners to deduct 20% of qualifying income, if your business income is below a certain threshold. Learn more about it, and if you qualify here.

There is a lot of unpack in Trump’s proposed economic policies, but a wide range of economists believe that these policies may drag us back into higher inflation and slower growth, perhaps even causing a recession.

It’s important to be conservative with your spending during an uncertain time, and consider what would need to happen for you to need to pursue a w-2 job. Make sure that you are always keeping track of the “resume worthy” work you’re doing, as you don’t know when you’ll want/need to send that resume off to someone. Use your LinkedIn profile to keep track of your projects and accomplishments, as the right job and the right person might just be looking for your skill set!