Working virtually brings with it many “perks” such as wearing fuzzy slippers at your desk, freedom to be a bit more liberal with your schedule and countless dollars saved on commuting.  It also brings the need to adjust how folks view the “company office.”

When you’re working virtually, there’s no more central meeting room down the hall on the left or impromptu power meetings at the water cooler.  Dropping a memo off at someone’s cubicle isn’t an option.

Does this mean it can’t be business as usual?  No. It doesn’t mean that at all.

Enter Basecamp.  Basecamp is the new headquarters for your virtual office.  It’s Basecamp that organizes and notifies everyone of meetings and sends reminders for project deadlines.  Basecamp’s message center replaces the chatter at the water cooler and great ideas and eureka moments still come alive.  The big gathering in conference room 7?  It can still happen in Basecamp.  All the information, documents, important files and illustrations are all available in one central location with easy access for everyone to use.  It’s like gathering around a long conference table except without the unusually oversized centerpiece in the middle.

Communication is one of the biggest ingredients for successful business operations.  Whether this be keeping a team of three up to speed on recent project developments or making sure all 20 assigned to specific tasks are working at the same pace and getting equal expected results.  The communication capabilities within Basecamp keep everyone informed, in the loop and on the same page.  No more digging through emails and long back and forth email threads.  See a conversation, from start to finish, in its entirety right in Basecamp.

Of course the message center in Basecamp lets your email know what’s going on so you don’t ever miss any important conversations.  No worries.  Communication is a big big feature.

Across the board, Basecamp encourages both team and client interaction and discussion. It’s a simple click of a button to add your comments and input to any conversation.

Sharing files, documents, images, and designs has never been easier.  When new information is added, anyone involved with the particular project or file is notified and Basecamp keeps a running version of the original right up to the current version.  No more wondering where the missing link is because it’s not missing!!!

Basecamp allows the user to assign responsibility, set to-do’s, set deadlines, work up a budget and track time spent.  Get things done the way you want them done; On time and within budget.

Basecamp offers 3 plans. Each plan is based on your needs, the size of your group or business and the frequency and content of your projects.  If you’re not quite at the level of needs to qualify for any of the 3 main plans, they also offer a basic plan with some smaller amenities or a free plan that works great for freelancers that work with one client at a time and want a great way to keep them informed through the process.

With a 30 day free trial on all accounts and only 60 seconds to get signed up once you decide you can’t live without it, Basecamp is bringing more and more people into the new “virtual office”.

Over 5 million people worldwide have used Basecamp to collaborate on over 4 million projects, track 57 million hours of work, share 46 million files, and complete 43 million to-dos. How will you use Basecamp?

As a freelancer, multitasking is simply a fact of life. Often when I am sitting in my office working at my computer, a call will come in that I either need to take notes on, or I need to keep working during the call. I also participate in online conference calls, where taking notes or working at the same time is a must. Recently I finally got tired of holding my phone between my shoulder and my ear, and decided to get a bluetooth headset. I figured that it would not only be helpful in the office, but when out driving as well, especially since some of the towns in my area have laws against holding a cell phone and driving.

Out of the slew of headsets out there, I chose the new Jawbone ERA. The ERA is the newest product from Jawbone, which has had great success with it’s previous ICON models. The ERA starts with the same basic foundation as other good headsets: good sound quality, noise cancellation, and easy to pair bluetooth connection. It then goes a few steps further. Like the ICON, the ERA keeps track of it’s battery life by displaying a battery meter on smart phones (iPhones do this automatically, Blackberry and Android phones require a download) or by speaking a low battery warning message. Also like the ICON you can add apps to the headset by plugging it into your computer and downloading them form the Jawbone website. You can change the caller id voice you hear and add various dialing apps such as Dial2Do or Jott (both of these services require additional fees, however the standard dialing app is free).

The ERA also adds a few new tricks, such as a built in accelerometer. This allows for motion controls to operate the device. Shake the headset four times to put it into pairing mode. To answer or end a call when the headset is in your ear tap on the front twice. When it is out of your ear, shake the headset twice before inserting it in your ear.

So all of these features sound great, the question is how does it work? First, lets discuss the physical. The headset comes with six different cushions to go over the end that fits in your ear. The one I am using is comfortable, although I might switch to a smaller one as when I first started using it my ear got a bit sore after a few hours. Taking the headset out for a few minutes relieved the pain, and after a few days it is not happening as often, so I may just need to get used to using a headset.

The motion controls work very well and make the headset very simple to use. It paired with my phone and computer instantly. If the headset is in my ear when a call comes in tapping on it answers the call right away. If it is not in my ear I can pick up my phone to answer, or shake the headset and put it in my ear to take the call with no problem.

The other big draw for me was the apps. I am somewhat addicted to them on my phone, and being able to use apps on my headset was something I was dying to try. I like that I can choose the voice that is used for things like caller id and battery life.I also like that I can use different dialing apps for accomplishing different tasks. The basic app allows you to speak names you want to call. Jawbone’s Thoughts app lets you speak text messages, then send them using their free iPhone app. Other services such as Dial2Do and Jott allow you to do all kinds of things using voice commands such as send email and text, listen and reply to Twitter, get weather updates, and more. My only complaint here is that you can only have one dial app installed at a time. Which means when I installed Dial2Do so I could try it, I could no longer use voice dialing to make a call (I could however use voice to send text, check and send email, etc. as mentioned above). This is not a major complaint, just a mild disappointment that I have to choose.

The Jawbone ERA retails for $129.00 and is available at many electronics retailers such as Best Buy, and cell phone stores such as AT&T. Availability is a bit spotty right now since ti was just released (AT&T only had one of the four colors when I bought mine last week). It has plenty of bells and whistles for the tech savvy, however the motion controls make it easy to use for those that are not big technology users as well. I recommend this headset for anyone who like to work hands free, likes ease of use, or likes tweaking their technology to get it exactly the way they like it.

photo credit: Silly Jilly

I hate that there are only 24 hours in a day… and that I need to sleep and eat in there somewhere. As a freelance writer, after I’ve set my fees, my daily revenue is limited to the speed at which I can type. Faster typing = more money. (Yes, I realize that’s a simplistic equation). 

One way to improve productivity is with Dragon NaturallySpeaking . Dragon NaturallySpeaking is a voice-to-text program that, well, takes the things you say and turns it into text in your favorite programs. Additional voice commands allow you to perform various functions (a surprising amount of functions!) like opening and closing files, selecting and copying text, and so on. And what I really like about Dragon NaturallySpeaking is that you can train it. It becomes more and more useful over time because it learns how you say the things you say and it stores that information so when it hears you say that phrase again, it gets it right. 

Why it might be right for you:

• This can be a way to gain much more productivity, simply because we tend to talk faster than we can type. (I can type 75 words a minute, nothing spectacular, but most people talk around 140 – 200 words per minute). If you type slower than you can talk, this is a good way to get more typing done.
• If you tend to write the way you talk (for example, your writing is very conversational) then this is a good reason to use the program.
• If you like to get up and walk around or if you are having wrist problems because of excessive typing, this program can help to alleviate that. (I hurt my back on summer and found sitting to be painful and Dragon NaturallySpeaking got me through the summer).
• If you work from an outline then you can simply speak the content for each point in your outline and it will go quickly. 

Why it might not be right for you:

• Not all writing is conversational. I found it really useful for conversational writing but formal writing I found to be harder to speak. That’s not something against the software; it was just a challenge for me that I couldn’t overcome. Over the past few years, I’ve used Dragon NaturallySpeaking less and less because my formal writing has increased.
• If you type really fast or you mumble when you talk, this might not be a good tool for you. It can pick up what you are saying and you can correct and train the program but it’s not perfect. (To be fair, though, it is very good).
• If you work in an industry with very specialized terms, you will spend a lot of time correcting and training the program in the beginning.
• If you compose on the fly (instead of an outline) then you might find yourself starting and stopping your speech to think about what you want to say next.  

Dragon NaturallySpeaking can be a really useful tool for you to create good content quickly. It’s not for everyone but it can be very useful. It’s best (at least in my opinion) when you write informal content that is more like a conversation than an article or report. Think about whether it’s an investment you want to make in your freelancing business.

The website we’re reviewing today is SeeNow.com.

SeeNow is a clever site in which you can upload a picture of someone’s face and then have their face appear on someone else’s body in magazines, photos, and more. It’s like what you do when you go to a tourist destination and you stick your face through a hole in a sign so it appears like your head in on a pirate body or a medieval knight’s body. It’s fun and addictive.  

The site is insanely simple to use:

• Simply browse through their pictures and find one that you like.

• Then click on it and upload your picture.

The site is smart and can find the subject’s eyes and will also color-correct the image so that it blends better with the template.

Choose from all kinds of pictures, including random pictures of men and women, superheroes, movie stars, musicians, athletes, commercial models, scary Halloween characters, magazine covers and more. Basically, if it normally has a person in it, you can stick your face on top.

It sounds like fun, doesn’t it?

Give it a try. There is not memberships or sign-ups, it’s so easy, and it’s worth a laugh and a few minutes of your time.

Now, here are a couple of reasons why we’re reviewing it on this site:

1. The first reason is because we review websites. And this is a website.
2. The second reason is because, as a freelancer, you work your butt off and sometimes need to take a break but just want to browse around mindlessly on the computer. I get that. I do that, too.
3. The third reason is this: There might actually be something here for you to use as a freelancer. I’m not kidding. If your brand is one that is fun, funny or totally casual, you might want to periodically post a picture of yourself from this site. During the Halloween season, why not put up a picture of you that is extra scary? Or maybe during the Academy Awards you want to put up some pictures of yourself as a movie star. There might also be tie-ins with specials that you offer or a blog series you write. Get the point? Some freelancers want to maintain a professional image and this won’t be for them. But some freelancers are fine positioning themselves as having a good time and totally relaxed and easy to work with. Get your pictures here .