While attending design school one thing I regretted after graduation was the lack of business and networking classes they offered (seems to be a trend among other design schools as well from what I’ve heard).
While social networking and blogging has filled that void, I thought I’d share 28 of my favorite freelance/business articles that have helped me over the years in developing and improving my freelance design business.
Freelancing Tools & Resources

» 270+ Tools for Running a Business Online
» 101 Essential Freelancing Resources
» The Ultimate List of Freelancing Resources
» Guide to Blogging for Freelance Designers
Find More Freelance Work

» The Monster List of Freelancing Job Sites
» 17 Places To Look For Freelance Jobs
» 101 Ideas to Get More Freelance Work and Generate New Client Leads
Promotion & Growth

» Freelancers: Here’s Why You Need a Blog
» Freelancing 911: Turn Your Business Around With Cold-calls
» 12 Triggers That Always Produce More Customers
» 10 Things to Remember When Promoting your Business
» 10 Ways to Promote a Business Online for Free
» 10 Tips for Recession-Proofing Your Web Site
» Kick Starting a Freelance Business… When You Can’t Afford to Fail
» 40 Resources To Become A Successful Freelance Graphic/Web Designer
The Paperwork & Legal Side of Things

» How Do You Write a Design Brief?
» 8 Things You Should Include In Your Terms of Service
» Freelancers: Why Estimates Are Important + Free Starter Template
» Setting Up a Basic Project Outline
» AIGA Design and Business Forms
» Legal Resources for Freelancers
» How To Write An Effective Design Brief
Must Read Freelance/Business Blogs

» BoDo: Business of Design Online
» FreelanceSwitch
» Inspired Startup
Miscellaneous

» 6 Things Every Freelance Designer Should Have
» Top 7 Reasons Why It’s Better to Hire a Freelance Designer or Small Firm
» 10 Ways Personal Branding Can Save You From Getting Fired
Feel free to contribute your own favorite freelance articles in the comments.










Wow, this is such a great resource. Thank you so much for sharing. I will have weeks of reading here.
You are right about school not preparing people for running their own business. I have learned so much in the four years I have worked for myself, and am always learning. Thanks again.
Hi Brian,
Great to see ‘Business of Design Online’ (BoDo) get a mention. It’s a fantastic resource, and not often mentioned (from what I can tell anyhow, maybe I’m wrong).
David,
I agree… BoDo is an amazing resource that I also feel is often overlooked. They cover a nice range of business/freelance topics that any business professional could benefit from reading.
A few more tips (mailly about the job boards/project trackers) could be found at http://freelancercrowd.com/tutorials.html
I’m bookmarking this for sure. In this economy, a list like this is priceless. By the way, your graphics are great! I don’t know where you got them, but the alphabet soup picture is especially cool.
great resource, clean and easy
Thx for putting my article in it
Thanks so much for taking the time to do this
Aaron,
Most of the images used on TDC are found via http://compfight.com/.
Hein,
No problem! It was a great article.
Rachel,
Glad you found the articles valuable like I did. Best of luck.
This is perfect, thanks
This is an incredible list of good stuff. I think I’ll read 2-3 of these resources per day. Thanks for the compilation of helpful links!
T-Law & Khoality,
You are both very welcome! And thank you for the comment. Hope to hear more from the both of you very soon
Plasis Jobs is another great freelance job site: http://jobs.plasis.co.uk
Awesome resource! Thanks for all the links
Thanks! The ‘Paperwork & Legal Side of Things’ links are great - probably boring to many but that area really is key to growing ones business.
Wow! I don’t know where to start. Thanks
Great list !
Thank you so much.
thanks a lot for the lovely article
Very informative and some great tips!
Thanks.
Great article. Thanks for taking the time to put this together.
Great list! Very useful.
Awesome post.
Thank you so much for gathering these together.
Brian, A compilation like this is a sign of an organized mind and generous soul. Good of you to share, and pick up where design schools leave off.
Nice resources!
Great list Brian, thanks for the mention.
Excellent post!
Very useful, thanks
Hi Brian
Thanks for a fab article with great resources. I love your blog too, and I agree with Aaron your graphics are great!
Thanks so much for sharing.
thanks for the huge useful resources !
Thanks for putting all of this information together. I’ve looked at a couple of these articles already and they are very helpful.
thx
What a fantastic list of resources! Keep it up
Thanks for this great list. I like this list “The Monster List of Freelancing Job Sites”
Thanks and greetz
Mario
Thanks man for the articles.
Thanks, hire me!
This is a good list.