Freelancing Rules and Advice Circa 2018
So about two years ago, I went full time freelance. It's been a ride full of lessons learned. On my instagram, I asked people for their diehard rules of the trade, and I compiled a list that should help people run their businesses a little more smoothly. If you have some design rules you live by, feel free to comment or message me. These illos and bits of advice were compiled a while back, and I am going to have to do an updated version soon.
Be Your own Cheerleader
I don't think anyone really likes to be a salesperson when it comes to promoting yourself, but there's a difference between bragging and laying out what you can do. Imposter syndrome is real, but you can't let it stop you from bringing home the bacon. Be honest with your abilities and recognize when you are overpromising. Learning what you can provide and create and what you can't comes with experience.
And a side note- If you're pushing down other's work in order to push yourself up, you've gone too far. There's a difference between selling your work based on value vs. selling your work based on the abilities of who came before you or who else is on the table. Never ever berate another designer to a client unless they've stolen work. Other than that, it's unprofessional and immature.
You're a special butterfly and no one can do the exact anchor point placing, brush stroke making, clip mask clipping, and color selecting you can. Just focus on being better than the day before because that's all you can do.
Build Your Social Media the Right Way
A lot of people approach social media the wrong way- they view it as the way to become the center of attention in the design world. They follow people for attention, comment to check out their profile, and spam like because they think that's how you get followers. And followers= success, right? No. Social media outlets like Dribbble, Behance, and Instagram are some of the best ways in the world to interact with other people who are passionate about design like you. If you're worried about keeping your follower to following ratio in the black, you've already lost this game. It doesn't matter how many people follow you or like your stuff; it matters how much fun you're having and you're making connections with other people that will fuel that passion you have for your work. Lose yourself in excitement at that cool thing someone posted. Share people you genuinely get passionate about and build them up. Interact with the people who are in the creative trenches with you and form solid connections. The design community is such a wonderful one; some of my best friends were found through connecting on social media. They'll give you tips, feedback, advice, and sometimes even leads. And you do the exact same for them. Post positive stuff. Encourage people to give you feedback and grow. Leave comments and build others up. If you like something, tell them. We're stronger together.
At the same time, do not get sucked into spending all your time on social media to see those interactions roll in. It's easy to get addicted to that endorphin rush of "Oh awesome, someone liked my stuff!", and you have more important things to focus on. If you find yourself in a social media time suck, take time instead to check recent and explore to see if there's any small fries that need more exposure.
Honestly, posting to social media is less about attracting clients and more about contributing to the current zeitgeist of design while connecting with like minded people. So the take away from this is: As shallow as social media can be, use it in a genuine way. Clients come and go, but design buddies are forever. <3
Designate a Workspace
While it's great to have the ability to work from the couch, I highly recommend having a workspace where you specifically work. Only work in this space. That way when you sit down in it, you know what you're about to do. If you get distracted by things, leave it to go sit on the couch or stop and continue to work. Make sure you have a good supportive chair and the right tools as well. Your workspace should be clear of clutter and have everything you need nearby so you don't go running off mid stride and get distracted by a shiny object. If concentrating is hard, maybe it's time for a break. Generally, I set a 15 - 60 minute timer and go do other things like chores, video games, or just some self care when I get distracted. You'll learn what makes you want to work and gets you in the mood, but it all starts with a base to work from. If you're struggling with working from home, maybe it's time to look into a shared space meant for freelancers or a nice coffee shop you can post up in. Either way, find what works for you and run with it.
Get a Contract
Get a contract. It helps you establish what is agreed upon, and it keeps you and your client honest. Even with friends and small projects, this little piece of paper will take the stress off. It guarantees you your pay and your client their work. If you struggle with writing contracts, there are services out there who write them for you. I use Bonsai for my clients, and it's made my life run so much more smoothly. Some clients will have their own contracts, but make sure you read through it carefully. At the end of the day, anything worth doing is worth doing on paper. Protect yourself and don't push that stress to further down the road. Get. Your. Contract.
Really Take Sick Days
You might be tempted to work through sickness because you're a hermit who doesn't see people besides video chat and Instagram live. Seriously, take a few days off when you're sick. The stress of work and the lack of rest will just prolong your illness. If you're under a tight deadline, it's nice that you can potentially keep working, but you really want to take some time to let your body heal. So kick back, make some nice soup, and take a nap. Your body deserves some time to heal. And get medicine, your immune system is getting older and you can't fight it off on your own like you used to.
Learn to Give and Take Feedback
Clients are gonna tell you to change your work. They're gonna tell you to delete your favorite part and change pretty colors to ugly colors. Things happen. One of the most important things I learned early on was "Don't marry your work." It's important to protect the quality and soundness of what you put out into the world, but at the end of the day, as long as the client is signing the check, they get the final say. You do have a duty to stop them from making bad design mistakes, but if it's going to be more trouble than it's worth, just stop. If the changes go outside of work, of course speak up and tell them that it's gonna cost more. If someone is giving you feedback that isn't in the chain of command, talk with your point of contact to make sure they have say in the matter. (Beware of design by committee- it could make your life very stressful.) The way I handle feedback is generally a limited amount of revisions per round and any additional changes go to hourly.
Another side of this is being able to give feedback. Being able to put what you're seeing into words is a really difficult thing, but with practice, it'll come easier. You can get practice by asking for feedback on your social media posts and reading thoroughly what other people have to say. Also give feedback on other people's work if they ask for it and read what other people have commented. By giving feedback to other people, you can learn how to give feedback to yourself. Slowly, you'll start to get an eye for what works. It gets easier with fresh eyes to tell what a piece needs, so you can always step away from something for a few hours to a few days. Plus helping others is always a great way to give back to the community.
Get Your Retainer/Desposit
Get your deposit before work starts. Sometimes you can do a lot of work to get a project up and running, and the client will drop off the face of the earth. Before you start spending your precious grains of sands, make sure you're going to be compensated. If you have a client who is dragging their feet about paying, that's a red flag and you should be careful. It's completely normal to get compensation before work starts, and don't be afraid or concerned about asking for it. Depending on the size of the project, the percentage might change, but I generally go for 50%.
Look Out for Warning Signs
You can get bad clients. It's important to notice the signs to protect yourself against unneeded stress or (to the extreme case of financial loss). I have a few personal red flags to look out for, and they can pop up pretty immediately.
- If you hear any mention of "you'll get lots of exposure". While paying clients might make this statement innocently, it shows they have a detachment from the understanding of how you make money. You get paid by your current clients first; future clients are not the goal of working for them. Never agree to work for exposure. Artists deserve to be paid.
- If you see any shady internal business practices. Chances are if they're willing to do the wrong thing in one situation, they won't bat an eye at doing the wrong thing in your situation.
- If they start showing delusions of grandeur and promises of amazing future things. You'll run into a lot of clients who have the drive to start a company, and with that you'll get people who are determined, headstrong, and over confident. When they start badmouthing their competition, bragging about their money, flaunting their success and business prowess, and talking about their next plans like it's going to change the world, be careful. There's a yin and yang to successful people, and their plans need to be grounded in reality. Don't bank on them to keep succeeding for long, and definitely bank on them to not give your well being a second thought.
- If they start micromanaging. When a client sits behind you and directs you where to place anchor points or they send you a design they did instead of yours, just run. Run far away. Run for the hills because they do not trust you enough to do your job, and that's not a healthy relationship.
- If there's hesitation in payment or signing contracts. Good clients recognize what you do takes time and talent, and they will see the value in what you do. And they'll be willing to pay for that and promise to pay you that. The ones that don't aren't going to respect you, and there's a good chance you'll lose money on that. Run.
- If your client has a bad attitude towards you. If a client is irritable, snaps back answers harshly, or berates your work, leave. Life is too short to work with people who don't value you.
- If a client asks you to copy work or steal designs. Do not steal other artist's work. If you do, you're a disgrace to the design industry. Any client who asks you to copy and rip off designs is not honest, and it's only a matter of time before that comes back to screw you over.
As you work longer, you'll see other warning signs, maybe even silly ones that don't make sense, but do. My silly one is the frequent posting of inspirational quotes- people who do that generally would rather post them publicly than follow them privately. Freelancing can be stressful, and this is one of the key ways in making it easier. While you'll have differences in even the best clients, it's important to recognize trends and know when to leave. If you're struggling and can't afford to lose a toxic client, buckle down in beefing up your portfolio and actively look for other work. At the end of the day, waiting tables is better than having someone crush your passion for your career, and you should be working with people who encourage that career to flourish.
Practice Good Communication
Talk to your clients. Let them know ASAP when a project is getting out of scope, payment hasn't been made, you need some extra time, or whatever else they need to know. If you get anxiety before sending an email, step away for a little bit and come back to it. Having a peer look over it is a good way to see things you might have overlooked. Updates are appreciated. If you get an email you can't respond to immediately, you can take a second to send a quick response saying you'll get back to them when you have a little more time. Good communication helps in every aspect of life, and clients are no different. After a project is done, you can check back in to make sure if everything is running smoothly. It takes time to find the right words to explain things from your end, and you'll get better at that with experience. Just as long as you stay positive, understanding, and firm with your core values, you'll be just fine. At the end of the day, we're all human and we all operate a lot more smoothly when we know what's going on.
Take Care of Yourself
As crazy as it sounds, you can work too much. You need to learn your limits and when to say no to yourself and clients. Establish habits that keep you working during your productive times and try to limit your work schedule to that. Instead of endlessly browsing Imgur or getting sucked into the black hole of Youtube, take some time to clean up your area around you, make healthy food, get some exercise, or just go play video games. If you work too hard, you'll burn yourself out, and it's very hard to maintain a creative career when you're mentally burnt out. It hinders inspiration and creativity, and you'll find yourself in a hole of spinning your wheels needlessly without going anywhere. If a client is pushing you to meet tight deadlines, make sure you are being compensated for that- there is such a thing as rush fees. When you become more comfortable with how long projects take you at a healthy pace, you'll know when something is rushed and needs to have a higher price point.
Save Your Money
You're going to make some pretty cool money, and if you're coming from working poor status like me, it's really tempting to go spend it all on things you want like really nice windshield wipers, organic lobster tails, and state of the art vacuum cleaners. But cool your jets. You're going to need to pay taxes and get a healthy cushion under you. You should be taking money out of every paycheck to put away from taxes. There might be times where clients aren't coming as easily, and you're stuck with no income. Those times honestly are just fine- as long as you've saved up. You can work on that new style you've been wanting to try, beef up your portfolio, or just take some well needed R&R. When you get a cushion you're comfortable with, definitely take time to upgrade some things in your life. If you find yourself struggling to save, take a look at where you might be bleeding money or if you need to raise your prices.
Stay Positive and Understanding
Many times in your career, you'll receive an email or have a meeting that isn't exactly what you expected. And you'll be slightly annoyed, maybe even angry. My advice is don't be. Your feelings might be valid, but take time to remain professional and positive. If you need to step away from the conversation to avoid an emotional response, do it. Check and make sure you're fed and hydrated- low blood sugar can sometimes get us up an arms simply because we read something wrong. Run the situation by a friend to get feedback on what to do. Your attitude is important, and a lot of time clients pick people who are the easiest and most pleasant to work with- not the most talented or best value.
There's also going to be situations where you have to patiently walk your client through the process. Lots of hand holding. This might involve reassuring them you can deliver this, explaining how the typical process works, what is and is not considered scope. Take this time to slow down and work with people. We all get anxious and confused, and life runs so much better when every remains calm and patient. If you find yourself working with someone who doesn't keep a calm head, you're probably working with someone who is just going to cause unnecessary drama and stress down the road, and you'd be better off moving on from the project. The same could be said about you, so no matter what, remain calm, professional, and firmly stand up for yourself without coming across like a jerk.
Support Other Creatives
The design community is tightly knit, and we all have our own little corners we bounce around in. Helping out such a big part of that community from giving feedback and critiques, promoting others, to suggesting them for projects. You won't be able to take on all the work that comes your way for various reasons: you might not be the right designer, be too busy, or need to take some time off. Instead of giving out a flat no, be prepared to recommend other designers for the job. You'll make the client happy by being honest and helpful, and you'll help out a fellow designer with some work. Keep your ear to the ground for who is looking for work and what their preferred project types are.
Also be available to provide a second pair of eyes, and don't be afraid to ask others to do the same. Sometimes we need others to take a look at work so make sure we didn't overlook something. Spill design tips, share useful tools for running your business, and try to help other people's design machines run faster. We're stronger together and there's no need to be secretive about the tips for success. There's plenty of work to go around.
Take Time for Time Management
When you're working for yourself, there's no one there to tell you when you're working too much or too little. It's easy to grab every single thing that comes your way, but it's ok to say no.
Timelines have a good chance of falling apart so account for that. Clients tend to get very excited about projects initially, but they have other balls to juggle and sometimes your project may get tossed on the back burner. It happens to the best of clients, but take note of troubling signs. Allow for timelines to be stretched and recognize when your hours have been used up. On that note, make your deadlines regardless. If you have a personal issue come up, be very open about your client if it's going to push back your delivery date. Don't over schedule yourself because things can come up, clients can pivot, and you're left holding and juggling so many balls that you can't keep track.
Track Your Time
Keep track of your time. Your little brain might lie to you and be like 'Oh you'll remember what hours you worked.' No. Punch in and punch out. Whether you work hourly or flat rate, keeping tabs on how much time a project takes you will help you. If you're flat rate like me, it'll keep you grounded in how much time a certain task takes you, and you can charge accordingly. There's lots of options for this- set a stop watch, download an app, Bonsai offers services. My favorite is Qbserve by @Irina Mir where it tracks your moves on your computer and can tell you how long you spent down to the second and even if you were in a certain file. It shows how productive you've been and makes these really guilt tripping sad noises if you browse too much Youtube when you should be working. You can find it here: Quotoqot
