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THE MONSTER.COM INDEPENDENT PROFESSIONAL (IP) NEWSLETTER

THIS WEEK: You're on Your Own; Now, What About Health Coverage?

Monster's IP zone is your online career home, whether you want to
start a new business, test out a new industry or strike out on your
own. What's up in the Independent Professional zone this week?

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****On Jan. 17, we're launching a whole new Monster.com!****

Visit Monster.com on Jan. 17 and take the time to update your resume
with the all-new Resume Builder form. Take advantage of faster
employer matches, our multiple resume feature and the confidential
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Coming Jan. 17 to a browser near you: the new & improved Monster.com!
Don't miss it.

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IN THIS ISSUE: Week of January 10, 2000

-- FREE AGENT GUIDE: You're on Your Own; Now, What About Health
Coverage?
-- WEB FREEBIES AND FINDS: Web-Based FREE Time-and-Expense Billing
-- HEARD ON THE BOARD: Linda, Please Don't Take That Regular Job!
-- THE INDEPENDENT PROFESSIONAL ZONE POLL: How Do You Charge Your
Clients?
-- MONSTER TALENT MARKET: PR Specialist Removes Your Foot from Your
Mouth

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FREE AGENT GUIDE: You're on Your Own; Now, What About Health
Coverage?

The loss of employer-provided health insurance is one the biggest
obstacles facing would-be free agents. How can you get in on some
sort of group coverage? What's COBRA all about, anyway? If you must
face the open market for health coverage, how can you do so with a
level head? John Rossheim talks with an insurance consumer advocate
to come up with a step-by-step approach.
http://content.talentmarket.monster.com/weeklyarticle/

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WEB FREEBIES AND FINDS:  Web-Based Time-and-Expense Billing

Sure, you know where you keep all your time-and-expense billing
information: It's in that spreadsheet -- or in your handheld -- or in
your Day-Timer -- or on Post-its hanging from your computer monitor
-- or on scraps of paper in your glove compartment. A couple of free
Web-based services promise to organize all of your billing data in
one online place with their nifty time, expense and invoice forms.

So what will these free services try to get you to buy? Here's a
sampling: For $9.95 a month, Red Gorilla will make your billing
database accessible from your Palm or cell phone. For $4.95 per three
invoices, TimeBills prints paper invoices and mails them to
your clients.

http://www.redgorilla.com/
http://www.timebills.com/

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HEARD ON THE BOARD:  Linda, Please Don't Take That Regular Job!

Monster member Linda recently asked:

"I've had a small solo practitioner graphic design firm for nine
years; some of those years were lean and others very good. I was just
offered a position as a designer with a company for what appears to
be a good salary, benefits, stock. The idea of leaving my 'own thing'
makes me kind of sick, but the idea of not chasing for my money and a
steady check sounds good, too. Any feedback on my dilemma is greatly
appreciated."

The Free Agent Advisor answers:

"You've really got a classic case of the free agent's dilemma, don't
you Linda? I don't want you to make yourself sick by becoming a
salaried employee, so let me see if I can offer you some suggestions
to start to take the stress out of your solo business..."

Read the rest here:
http://forums.monster.com/viewmessage.asp?messageid=737448

Got your own question? Post it to one of our two Independent
Professional experts:

Ask the Free Agent Advisor
http://my.monster.com/forum.asp?forum=800

Ask the Work-from-Home Coach
http://my.monster.com/forum.asp?forum=801

Or chat live with the Free Agent Advisor Thursdays at 9 p.m. E.S.T.
or with the Work-from-Home Coach Tuesdays at 8 p.m. E.S.T. For either
chat, log in to Monster.com Chats and join us in the
#Events room.

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THE MONSTER.COM INDEPENDENT PROFESSIONAL POLL: We Ask, You Answer

Last week we asked: How do you charge your clients?

You said:
-- Time and expenses: 60%
-- Per project: 29%
-- Based on performance (commissions, etc.): 9%
* Total votes: 442

This week's question: How does your free-agent income compare to
employment income?

Cast your vote here:
http://independentprofessional.monster.com

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MONSTER TALENT MARKET: PR Specialist Removes Your Foot from Your
Mouth

Here are three of the more than 35,000 auctions posted by over
124,000 independent professionals in the Monster Talent Market:

**SCOPE IT OUT**
The talent: "Landscape Architect"
The target project: "Landscape architecture, project management, site
and land planning, urban planning, park planning, 3-D design."
The desired rate: $30 per hour

**DON'T BE ALARMED**
The talent: "Security Consultant and Expert Witness"
The target project: "Consultant and expert witness to attorneys where
security is a relevant issue in civil litigation. Also available to
business and industry to design new security programs or evaluate
existing security programs that are experiencing difficulties and
require upgrading or reprogramming."
The desired rate: $225 per hour

**REMOVES FOOT FROM MOUTH**
The talent: "Public Relations Consultant"
The target project: "Strategic PR consulting, writing press releases,
white papers, application stories, planning and executing press
tours, and other PR related activities."
The desired rate: $50 per hour

Check out the Talent Market and build your own project or profile:
http://talentmarket.monster.com

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Comments? Suggestions? Let us know what you think about the Monster
Talent Market, the Independent Professional zone and Monster.com.
Email your ideas and opinions to: mailto:IP@monster.com

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