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Not as Easy as You Think
There are some good articles floating around out there about freelancing, how to get started, how to maintain it, etc. but I thought I would write my own, from my own experiences. Whatever your medium is, this pretty much applies to all. As a freelancer you’re essentially running your own business, which means you’re responsible for getting the work, maintaining the work, communicating with clients, billing, time-tracking, project management, communicating with co-workers, and… oh yeah, DOING THE ACTUAL CREATIVE WORK.
I’ve been working in the multimedia field since 2000. I started off out of college with a freelance gig, followed by a full time job. That first freelance gig was a direct result of me working hard at a job in college, so my boss of that job recommended me to her husband who owned a multimedia firm and needed a flash designer. I was hired. The back and forth went something like this for a number of years, while I gained great experience as both a freelance resource and full time employee, BOTH of which are invaluable. Starting off at a company with a 9-5 is a great entry into the industry though, where you can learn from others with more experience, hone your skills and start building your networks.
How do you get a gig? Call them up. Who is “them”? Before companies were really listed on Google, I went through the yellow pages under categories like “multimedia”, “design”, “recording” etc., made a list of the companies/studios and went through my list one by one asking them if they were in need of design assistance. Most said no, but the ones who said yes ended up paying my rent. It just takes one yes to get your foot in the door.
Save contacts and get in touch when things are slow to see if they still need help.
Get out and meet people. This beats sending out 100 resumes to the abyss. This kills my ego because out of every 100 resumes sent, 1 might respond. ONE. This is a swift kick in the jaw. This is when I sink into my cave and cry, thinking “I suck, nobody likes my work, I should change careers, I’m not good enough, whaaaaaaaaa….” Try to avoid this by getting all dolled up and going to different events to schmooz.
Keep track of your time. Whether you’re freelance or full time you’ll have to account for your time, so best to start now. I use www.toggle.com to keep track of my time to the second. A friend of mine told me about this site. It’s free but there are a number of other time management apps out there, most paid. Doesn’t matter, just use one and track your time to the minute. I used to use text edit. Have a basic contract you can send to clients. Look online for templates. Invoices; same as above. I use a basic Word template. Advice passed down from a colleague was to create a spread sheet to keep track of my invoices, with info such as the client name, the date and the amount. That way you know who has paid and who still owes you. This part is all incredibly boring and un-sexy shit, but you wouldn’t survive without it.
My current creative resources:
Mike Monday – He’s more geared towards the music producer, but he really helped me climb out a two-year creative block with both music and design.
Behance Network – Great blog for when you need a little help in the creative department, like rearranging your workspace, or tools to help you reach goals.
The 99 Percent – This is actually part of The Behance Network but has the really cool posts about creative thinking.
Everyone’s journey is different, but the initial period of freelancing is tricky for some because there are just things you have to learn as you go, usually by making mistakes. I’m very good at making mistakes. But as a result I’m highly competent in a lot of areas, sometimes much to my surprise. Some months are good, some are not. Sometimes I can’t go out to dinners with a group of friends, sometimes I can.