A quick addendum to the previous post on publishing your rates. I suddenly remembered another situation where posting your fees may be useful. Maybe. A while back I had gone through a long stretch of woeful skunk work. Worse, I could barely get anything approved. Clients attacked my copy with meat hooks. I was revising revisions [...]
Staying sane
Where the money is: Making stuff they really like
Ponder this: Over time, which is better for your bank account? For your freelance career? For your soul? Should you aim to produce truly distinctive and authentic and imaginative and impeccably crafted work? Or . . . Deliver what clients like? I’ll spare you the suspense. The fun, the fame, and the money in freelancing comes from building [...]
What to do after they say “We’ll call you.”
This happens a lot. You finally make contact with a juicy buyer: a heavy-using dream client who buys loads of what you do, and has a fat budget for freelancers. You have a pleasant conversation or two. They like your work. Your vibes are aligned. You’re feeling happy. Then . . . then, they say, [...]
The freelancer’s right to bail (TM)
This will spare you untold agony. And it can shape your career for the better. Let me explain. We freelancers must occasionally endure a lot of crap that never besets our properly-employed bretheren. Such as the client who doesn’t send the damn check. Clients who can’t make up their minds. Clients who themselves can’t design [...]
They can’t do what you’re doing
Keep this top of mind. Especially on those days when you feel bullied about by some intimidating client. Or when you have to endure the friend who endlessly raves about her swell new job at this cool company where everybody makes a lot of money and they all get dental and there’s free sushi in [...]