Too long for Tweets, too short for posts. Too brilliant to keep in the drawer. 1. In all, I calculate that by avoiding moves that seemed too risky and frightening, I saved myself at least $12,390. I also calculate, that by avoiding moves that seemed too risky and frightening, I have missed out on(…)
How much can you earn? Really.
How much can you realistically earn as a freelancer? The short answer is: “As much as you want to earn.” I know that sounds smartass and unsatisfying. But it is as close to the truth as I’ve found. Virtually all the freelancers I know end up making precisely what they want to earn. Period. The key word(…)
Pricing: Kill the zeros
In quoting your fee, you are allowed one zero. No more. I recently sat in on a conference call where a design group was talking about a big branding project. They listed all the things they were going to do, in detail. Then, they said it would cost $20,000. Ooh. Fail. The client started questioning everything,(…)
How to answer the phone. And when.
The phone is so retro, I know. But here’s how to do it. If we’re in, we answer on the third ring. Which means it rings once, then twice, then on the third ring we pick up. (This is the rule. It is proven and tested. Do not argue.) This shows we’re working. It takes(…)
Proposals and bids: Put the price on page one. In bold.
This is for when you have to submit a bid or a proposal. Maybe for a big job, or for some complicated work. Or whenever you have to explain in detail what you plan to do, and how much it will cost. (You don’t need this for casual quotes or simple estimates. Just for the(…)