Tag

freelance

FlexTal
In Leadership, Remote Work, Workplace Trends

A Workspace That Supports Focus – Not Hustle

a woman sits at her office desk and focuses on her computer and notes

Why Calm, Intentional Work Environments Are the Real Productivity Hack in 2026

Somewhere along the way, productivity got loud. And the idea of a workspace that supports focus got complicated.

Standing desks slid from tech-savvy badge of honor to boilerplate expectation. Slack notifications became a cacophony of noise akin to a spastic metronome. “Always on” stopped sounding like a warning and started showing up as a job requirement. And before anyone really noticed, the modern workspace stopped being about helping people think – and started being about proving they were busy.

But here’s the quieter truth most high-performing teams already understand: hustle doesn’t scale. Focus does.

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FlexTal
In Contingent Workforce, Hybrid Teams, Remote Work, Talent Focus, Workplace Trends

The Ultimate Home Office Makeover Guide: Design, Tech, and Wellness Wins

photo of a home office with a tan leather chair next to a desk with a laptop on it. The photo has the words "the ultimate home office makeover guide" in the lower left corner.

There’s something about the start of a new year that makes even the most rational among us believe we’re about to become better versions of ourselves. Better organized. Improved focused. More intentional. Maybe even someone who drinks water before coffee. Every year, January arrives and it seems like everyone resolves to undergo an ultimate makeover of something or other. While some resolutions fade fast, one reset that actually sticks is the one that happens quietly, every weekday, in the place where work gets done – a home office makeover.

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FlexTal
In Profile Updates, Talent Focus

Holiday Headshot: Refresh Your Profile Pic and Stand Out in 2026

female freelancer gets a new holiday headshot photo taken by male friend with smart phone. Woman is wearing a stylish silver jacket over a green sequined top.

As we roll into the final stretch of 2025, many around us start to slow their pace and shift their focus to OOO replies and office holiday parties. Freelancers, however, don’t always have the luxury of getting lulled into a seasonal hibernation era – but it is important for each of us to intentionally make space for moments of pause, times of reflection, a cadence of celebration, and a strategic profile refresh with a new holiday headshot.

Sure end-of-year deadlines are looming, that one stubborn project has dragged on since August, and a few clients have created a emergency projects and somehow made it your problem – there’s plenty to wrap up. But take time for the wins, too, and to look ahead at what’s next – and how to gain momentum and attention.

Remember, the photo you use on your digital profiles and social media accounts just might be the first handshake a potential client ever has with you. A solid headshot doesn’t just make you look good – it can make you get noticed.

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FlexTal
In Hiring Strategy, Strategy & Business, The Future of Work

Is the Résumé Dead? Long Live Skills-Based Hiring

image of a human juggling icons that represent skills. The figure is orange, the icons are an orange gear, blue check-mark, and orange and blue wrench and pencil.

Remember when hiring managers used to swoon over Ivy League degrees? These days, they care more about who can stop the app from crashing or make sales spike. Welcome to the era of skills-based hiring – where knowing how to get things done beats knowing where you learned it. Because while diplomas look great in a frame – and make for polite conversation starters when viewed in your Zoom background – results look even better on a balance sheet.

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FlexTal
In Freelancer Challenge, Talent Focus

15 Affordable Summer Adventures for Remote Workers 

a red convertible speeds down a coastal highway with waves crashing in the distance.

Because “Work from Anywhere” Should Include Fun

One of the best parts about being a freelancer (or remote worker) – besides dodging the commute and choosing your own Slack emoji – is the built-in flexibility and opportunity for spontaneous adventures. But even with all that freedom, it’s surprisingly easy to blink and realize you spent the entire summer working from the same desk, sipping lukewarm coffee, and promising yourself, “next weekend, I swear.”

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