10 tips for freelancers

bearkub · Feb 2010

Saw this on lifehacker this morning and I figured it was worthy of passing along. Enjoy!

http://lifehacker.com/5460247/top-10-tips-and-tools-for-freelancers

soulstice · Feb 2010

thanks for that bearkub, useful info!

DarthNater · Feb 2010

All good ideas. I always wondered about keeping my day job and freelancing on my off time. When you freelance though, how does it usually work? Would I have time to do this or do you usually have crazy deadlines or a ton of work?

bearkub · Feb 2010

The only thing I would say with balancing freelancing along with a steady day job (and I will let some of the artisty types chime in on this) is to watch your NDA's and Non-Compete clauses. You could go from having lots of work to having none pretty quick.

Gav · Feb 2010

I'd say look into freelance gigs that are quite different from your day to day job. Basically, avoiding any situation where ideas/materials could be crossed over from one project to another. Working on shooters? Maybe try getting some casual games or toy sculpts. Obviously, the rule should be - day job comes first, then work on the side.

I've found it hard to balance both a fulltime job and intense freelance work at the same time, so I usually only accept work on the side that has a really relaxed schedule such as article/tutorial writing and indie work. I'll usually go in runs, balancing both for a few months then taking a 'break' from it.

Thanks for the link kub!

rasmus · Feb 2010

Yeah, I'd second what Gavin is saying about it being hard to do both freelance and dayjob - freelance contracts tend to be full-time too, and pretty hectic.

Blaizer · Feb 2010

I smile with point 10: "make your schedule family friendly"... for me it's impossible when i have work, and i have had huge problems with that fact. ughhh.

Being Freelancer is crazy for me, i must not be very lucky, all the work i'm asked to do must be done in a rush. I usually work 12+ hours daily, and sometimes i needed to work 16+ hours in a whole day. I can say i haven't got time for my things now, my personal projects are all parked. I have ended ill several times due to the tight deadlines i have.

It's far better to work in a good studio with a good salary, but if you don't want to relocate, it's the unique alternative. Sometimes i'm full of work (working on sundays too), sometimes i'm without any work.

Being Freelance is not easy :poly127:.

kwakkie · Feb 2010

Blaizer wrote: »

I smile with point 10: "make your schedule family friendly"... for me it's impossible when i have work, and i have had huge problems with that fact. ughhh.

Being Freelancer is crazy for me, i must not be very lucky, all the work i'm asked to do must be done in a rush. I usually work 12+ hours daily, and sometimes i needed to work 16+ hours in a whole day. I can say i haven't got time for my things now, my personal projects are all parked. I have ended ill several times due to the tight deadlines i have.

It's far better to work in a good studio with a good salary, but if you don't want to relocate, it's the unique alternative. Sometimes i'm full of work (working on sundays too), sometimes i'm without any work.

Being Freelance is not easy :poly127:.

Hmmm.. it kind of sounds like you arent asking a high enough price. You mention 'a good salary at a studio', but my 'salary' has nearly twice as much as some of my ex-colleagues working at studios!

Also, if you are working too many hours on a day you should ask more, sure you get less clients, but you will be getting a few clients that pay more, so you dont have to do a shitload of work to make it in the end of the month! Im kind of surprised to hear you say that, because I think the quality of your work is way better than mine! Where do you get your projects from?

DarthNater · Feb 2010

Thanks for the tips guys! I'm actually a store manager at a communications store so I don't have to worry about conflicts haha. Central pa doesn't have any game studios so id have to move, and in the industies/economies current state, I was looking to gain some freelance jobs until I feel a little less uneasy about making the long 3 hou trek to Maryland for work (Bethesda, I'm coming for you! Haha)

Firebert · Feb 2010

The family friendly schedule ranking at number 10 is real cute. :poly132:
Any freelancing with a full-time job is difficult. Add family on top of that, and you may go insane and possibly find divorce papers on your Intuous. I'm not saying it can't be done, but it takes one heck of a spouse and supportive family to make it work. Also, certain circumstances may require freelance as the only way to obtain an additional form of income to make ends meet. In those cases, that can work so long as everyone is on the same page and it is intended as temporary.

Eric Chadwick · Feb 2010

Thanks bearkub!

Karmageddon · Feb 2010

Ha, that girl on the grass with the laptop was the pic I used for doppleganger week on Facebook. This article is okay but one of those "easier said than done" type deals I'm sure.

10 tips for freelancers

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