The Freelance Shift

How do you save for retirement, cover healthcare costs, and handle unpredictable income as a freelancer? In this video, I explain four accounts that can help: a Health Savings Account (HSA), a personal IRA, a SEP IRA, and a high-yield savings account. I’m sharing how these accounts fit into my financial setup—and how I’m balancing retirement savings with paying college tuition for my two daughters...

Related video: Health Insurance for Freelancers: My Experience & Sticker Shockhttps://youtu.be/Kg-I0ltntcYAlmost $1,000 a month for health insurance—and the pharmacy still asked, “Do you have another insurance?”I’m Jennifer from The Freelance Shift. Losing employer-sponsored health insurance was one of the scariest parts of leaving my professor job. Now, Blue Cross is discontinuing my PPO opti...

Related videos: Should Freelancers Try AI Evaluation Jobs My Honest Experience (Ep 116)https://youtu.be/fLMgGTbdkcIPreparing for an AI evaluator assessment? Before you click “Start,” learn how to read prompts carefully, compare AI responses, and explain your ratings clearly. I’m Jennifer from The Freelance Shift. In this video, I share practical preparation tips and what I wish I’d known—including...

Related articles and videos: What I Learned Building a Fractional Executive Careerhttps://www.fastcompany.com/91507342/what-i-learned-building-a-fractional-executive-careerA Day in the Life SeriesMonday: https://youtu.be/X9QUAuC-RzATuesday: https://youtu.be/KTBeAaNFpTYWednesday: https://youtu.be/zYRD9oaIV8IThursday: https://youtu.be/83JRN1jKIIoFriday: https://youtu.be/hEotaqKcPcoWhat if the best n...

The freelance economy is booming—but are experienced professionals missing out on one of the biggest career opportunities?xI recently came across an Inc. magazine article, "The Freelance Economy Is Booming Right Now," and it got me thinking about why more professionals are choosing to build their own freelance businesses instead of relying on traditional employment. After more than 20 ye...

Related content to watch next: How I Use Copilot to Build a Project Plan in Minutes (Ep 102)https://youtu.be/NvwywOqk2rMTurn Meeting Notes Into a Project Plan With Copilot (Ep 131)https://youtu.be/qVMt8iRHi2MWhat if your project plan has problems you haven't noticed yet? Can Microsoft Copilot help you catch them before they turn into missed deadlines, delays, or unhappy clients? In this video,...

Turn messy meeting notes into a structured project plan with Microsoft Copilot in minutes. In this video, I show you how I use Copilot to pull action items, owners, deadlines, dependencies, and missing information from ordinary meeting notes and turn them into a project plan you can actually use. I’ll also share the Copilot prompts I use to identify gaps, organize the work, and create a follow-up...

Think AI jobs are only for programmers and tech experts? Think again. My background is in education, curriculum development, instructional design, training, and evaluation—and those skills have helped me find opportunities working with AI.In this video, I share how professionals from education, healthcare, finance, writing, science, marketing, and other fields may be able to use the expertise they...

Think you're too old to start freelancing? You might actually be at the perfect age. I did freelance work in my 20s, but I never saw it as a real career. Now that I freelance full-time, I sometimes wish I'd recognized the opportunity sooner—but I've also realized something surprising: I may not have been nearly as successful back then. In this video, I share why your 40s, 50s, and beyo...

The Freelance Shift Freelancers Are Missing This on LinkedIn (Ep 127) https://thefreelanceshift.com Think LinkedIn doesn't have opportunities for freelancers? You might be looking in the wrong places. Some of the best freelance leads and information I’ve found on LinkedIn and in professional Facebook groups weren’t in the posts—they were in the **comments**.In this video, I share how comments...

The Freelance Shift7 Clients… Why Am I Still Looking? (Ep 126)https://thefreelanceshift.comI already have 7 freelance clients—so why would I still consider new freelance opportunities? Because being busy doesn't mean I've stopped looking for something better. I don't spend hours searching job boards or applying for freelance work. But when an opportunity comes through LinkedIn that&#39...

The Freelance ShiftI Stopped Typing My AI Prompts… And I Get More Done (Ep 125)https://thefreelanceshift.comWhat if the easiest way to get better results from AI is to stop typing? As a freelancer, I use AI to plan client projects, develop training, brainstorm ideas, write content, and manage my business—but sometimes it’s much easier to simply talk through what I need. In this video, I show how I...

The Freelance ShiftI Replaced a $14 Office Tool With a $58 One. Was It Worth It? (Ep 124)https://thefreelanceshift.comYou don't need an expensive home office setup to run a successful freelance business. In fact, one of the tools I've been using regularly cost me just $14.My inexpensive ALTSON light worked for virtual meetings, training, and recording videos, but I recently decided to upgr...

The Freelance ShiftHow I Manage 7 Freelance Clients Without Losing My Mind (Ep 123)https://thefreelanceshift.comHow do you manage multiple freelance clients without constantly feeling overwhelmed? Right now, I’m actively working with seven different freelance clients and projects—from AI training and leadership development to instructional design, consulting, Microsoft training, and SharePoint dev...

The Freelance ShiftA Day in My Life as a Freelancer - Friday Was Different (Ep 122)https://thefreelanceshift.comWhat does a Friday look like when you run a busy freelance consulting business? In the final episode of my current Day in the Life of a Freelancer series, I'm taking you behind the scenes of a real Friday that started with Microsoft AI training and ended with something completely dif...

The Freelance ShiftMy Thursday as a Freelancer - Work, Family & Flexibility (Ep 121)https://thefreelanceshift.comWhat does a real Thursday look like as a freelance consultant? In today's behind-the-scenes vlog, I share what it's like balancing client work with one of life's biggest milestones—moving my daughter into college. I started my morning teaching a Microsoft Copilot in Powe...

The Freelance ShiftWhat I Actually Did Today as an AI Freelance Consultant - Wednesday Edition (Ep 120)https://thefreelanceshift.comWhat does a busy day really look like as a freelance AI consultant? Today I'm taking you behind the scenes of a real Wednesday filled with custom Microsoft Copilot training, stakeholder meetings, onboarding sessions, office hours, and client work. From teaching AI...

The Freelance ShiftA Day in My Life as a Freelance Consultant Realistic Tuesday Edition (Ep 119)https://thefreelanceshift.comWhat does a typical Tuesday look like for a freelance consultant? In this behind-the-scenes vlog, I take you through a real workday—from leading Microsoft Copilot Office Hours and teaching AI classes to managing client meetings, working on a SharePoint project, taking a cour...

The Freelance ShiftWhat does a freelance consultant actually do all day? (Ep 118) https://thefreelanceshift.comIf you've ever imagined freelancing as working from a coffee shop for a couple of hours before heading to the beach, this video may surprise you. Come behind the scenes with me as I take you through a real Monday managing multiple freelance consulting projects. You'll see everythi...

The Freelance ShiftWant More Freelance Clients? Start Being a Better Teammate (Ep 117)https://thefreelanceshift.comWorking with clients isn't always a solo experience. Many of the best freelance opportunities involve collaborating with instructional designers, facilitators, developers, project managers, graphic designers, and other specialists. In this video, I share the teamwork skills that h...

The Freelance ShiftShould Freelancers Try AI Evaluation Jobs My Honest Experience (Ep 116)https://thefreelanceshift.comThinking about applying for AI evaluation jobs with companies like Mercor, Pareto, Outlier, Alignerr, or Invisible Technologies? In this video, I share my honest experience working as an AI evaluator and explain what this type of freelance work is really like. I'll cover the b...

The Freelance Shift The Microsoft Copilot Update Every Freelancer Should Know About (Ep 115) https://thefreelanceshift.com Microsoft recently redesigned Copilot—but the biggest change isn't the interface. It's how you can use it to manage an entire freelance project from start to finish. In this video, I'll show you how I use the new Microsoft Copilot to research clients, prepare kicko...

The Freelance ShiftWhy Some Freelancers Get Rehired... and Others Don't (Ep 114)https://thefreelanceshift.com**Why do some freelancers get hired once... while others become the first person clients call again and again?**The difference often has nothing to do with talent. It has everything to do with how well you integrate into your client's world after you're hired. In this video, I&#...

The Freelance Shift I Built a Six-Figure Freelance Business Without Niching Down (Ep 113) https://thefreelanceshift.com Can you build a successful freelance business without niching down? Everyone says freelancers should specialize in one service or become known for one skill—but that's not the path I took. In this video, I explain why I intentionally chose not to niche down, how focusing on s...

The Freelance Shift How to Market Multiple Freelance Services Without Confusing Clients (Ep 112) http://thefreelanceshift.com Wondering if offering multiple freelance services will confuse clients or dilute your personal brand? In this video, I share how I've built a multiple six-figure freelance business by offering AI consulting, instructional design, technical training, leadership developme...