Freelancing advice for myself
A good proportion of the income I make is from freelancing. Here are some lessons I have learnt on this journey. I apply this advice to everyday work/life.
“Take care of yourself “
You don’t want burnout. Illness can stop you from working! Set realistic deadlines.
“Wake up early”
I’m more efficient in the morning. I always aim to wake up by 6am. When it’s early, no one is around and you can get more work done.
“There will definitely be more work
for you in the future”
When clients say this, they usually want a cheap quote from you. Only drop your price if you believe in what they are doing and they really have no budget. Usually these clients don’t value design.
“My last designer left”
Why did your last designer leave? ALARM BELLS! It would benefit you to find out as much info as possible. You don’t want a repeat of what happened last time.
“Please write a brief”
Many clients don’t know what they want. This is fine if you are being paid by the hour but if you are paid per project, you need a brief!
“Can you show me what this will look like with…”
When clients do this, make sure you are being paid hourly. Some clients want to be more involved with the design process than others. Always aim to have 3 backup choices for clients to choose from.
“Be nice to arsholes”
Stay professional. You may meet them again. You may even get repeat work. The last thing you want is a bad reputation. Don’t risk it!
“Don’t be stubborn”
At the end of the day. The client is paying you to do a job. Advise the client and give solid objective reasoning. There are many solutions to a problem.
“Stay positive”
Design is competitive. Negative energy creates negative results. Always be on top of your game.
“Share ideas”
Don’t be scared to share ideas, you can always make more. Sharing is caring.
“Don’t be Anti Social”
Fit work around life, not life around work. You don’t want to wake up one day regretting you didn’t spend enough time with the family.
“Create stuff you like”
80% of the time I enjoy what I’m working on. Life is happier this way. I usually charge more for jobs I don’t want to do.
“Stay sharp with other projects”
It is easy to become focused on one discipline. Broaden your horizon. Keep your mind buzzing.
“Speak your mind”
You are paid to speak your mind. Just try and be nice.
