Since becoming a freelancer, one of the hardest things I have had to get a handle on is time management. It’s not the typical 9 to 5, eight hour shift. I work a little, go mess around the house, work a little more, read the newspaper, do some more work, check out my facebook stuff; you get what I’m saying, right? I never had such a short attention span when I was cooped up in an office that someone else owned. It became apparent to me that a bit more discipline was warranted.

I have found just the tool to help keep me on track. It’s not a whip cracker like some bosses can be, but it sure does do a good job causing me to pay a little more attention to where my time is going. http://www.getharvest.com/ is a fantastic program that will track my time on several different tasks, keep an eye on my budget and expenses, and even notify me via e mail if I am close to exceeding my time spent on a project; thus saving me money. I love that feature!! Say you quoted someone on a job that you figured would take you three hours. Well, you’ve been picking and chipping away at the task and before you know it, your time spent on the project is well over three hours. At that point, it is costing you money to complete the job. Their email notification will let you know to step it up before that three hour time limit approaches. You stay on quote and earn every penny you calculated.

The server system is monitored 24/7 and constantly backing up data information. No worries of your entries being compromised. They’re safe and secure.
The program is constantly being upgraded at no additional cost. The fellows behind Harvest take customer input very seriously and improve the program based on their feedback. It is a fairly new application, created in 2006, by Danny Wen and Shaun Liu as an off shoot to their Iredesco company that they founded in 2003. Recently they moved their operation to a spacious loft in New York City and just yesterday, October 21, 2009, posted the need for three new employees on their blog page. If you’re in the area and would be interested in joining this still growing young company, they are looking to hire a user experience designer, a visual designer, and a front end designer.

A recent feature of the company is their New Founders Program. If you meet the 3 simple requirements; work full time as a freelancer, it is your first year in business, and you have a business website, you can enter their monthly drawing to receive the free year subscription and a featured interview in their newsletter, the Harvest Gazette.

Check out the free 30 day trial at http://www.getharvest.com/ . You don’t have to enter any credit card information to check it out for the trial period. If you like the gentle nudge towards being more organized and more profitable that the system provides, go ahead and sign up for only $12 a month. Soon your profits and productivity will show that it is money well spent.