Getting to work from home and making your own rules (and breaking them too) is the dream, right? We’re our own bosses (usually for the first time) and the freedom tastes so good. Until you look up and realize you stopped for a “mind break” and ended up catching up on an entire season of Criminal Minds on Netflix. Here's how to lazy-proof your day, plus get 22 time-saving hacks! 

Have you ever walked away from a restaurant or retail store and been so upset about the service you received (or more accurately didn’t receive)? Maybe you’ve been so frustrated with a business that you’ve vowed to never use their services again? It happens to all of us at one point or another in our lives, and it is really frickin’ frustrating! And if you’re anything like us you probably spend a good 2 or 3 minutes yelling – probably to yourself – about it in the car.

But, what if you’re the business that’s giving the poor customer service? Now, before you say, “no, no, no, that could never be me” or lose your mind on us about how unhelpful and unnecessary this post is going to be for you, just think about it….

I’m going to be brutally honest with you: Sometimes, we creatives can be a bit desperate.

When you work in a creative field, you often have to explain to non-creatives what it is that you do and why it’s a real job, and that you deserve to be compensated in real dollars for real work that has real value. It makes you want to barf. But hey, it comes with the territory.

Because of this, a lot of new creatives with new creative businesses immediately start freaking out about gathering clients as quickly as possible. They’re so worried about staying afloat that they take on any and all work that comes their way. I tenderly refer to this panic as “Business-Artist Desperation Syndrome.” It’s B.A.D.S.ville.

I’ve been here before, guys, and I can say with absolute surety that it is not a good look. I want to save you from some of the long-term effects of working with less than ideal people.

It’s about that time of year again. School is back in the swing of things, the holidays are about to hit, and new shiny planners are hitting the shelves. This is also about that time when you take a good long hard look at your business management and maybe kind of give yourself an eyeroll.

Whatever you’ve probably been using this year just ain’t cutting it so you’re keeping your eyeballs peeled for something to invest in for the next calendar year hoping that it’s the secret sauce to you not being a hot mess.