Creatives/Self employed people/Graduates - What info do you wish you knew before you started?
Is there things you wish had been taught at university? A simple website that has all the info you need?
Let me know what was missing! Whether that's taxes info, where to post your work, finding fonts, etc.
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- Two things.1. I wish I had used youtube more to self learn2. I wish I had known that it was going to be unlikely one could get a job doing industrial design on its own; I wish my course had given me more of an opportunity to learn UX UI and packaging design
- How networking will be the main core of your career.
- I wish I had been taught how to think, both at school and university. At school I think it would have been helpful so that I learned how to create my own opinions and draw my own conclusions. At university, so I could learn how to think creatively, something like Design Thinking.I think this would have set me up a lot better for the world in general, not just self-employment/work.Before going self-employed I wish I had known how important self confidence was.
- School and university teaches you a lot of theory and you learn how to be creative. However, there are "everyday" things I wish I'd learnt! For example, handling finances. I think creative courses should talk more about how to handle the numbers and build a sustainable income through the discipline.At the same time, there is no magic formula. You learn from doing. :-)
- HI Lauren, One thing I realise when I look back at my freelance / self employed career is how many twists and turns have been taken! It's good not to have a set idea of what you're going to do and sticking ridgidly to that. Pivoting and being flexible and also being ready to walk away from the jobs that are no longer serving you is really important. I guess this is really about listening to you gut and instincts!!
- That's it's ok to be wrong, that you can admit to having off days, that all those fuck-ups help can help to make you better at what you do and strengthen your resolve, that showing vulnerability is not a weakness. You go girl.
- Hello Lauren,There are some great things already said I would only add one:- there is no magic trick, process is everything
- Agree @Lauren Johnstone (colleges too). Aside the skillsets for running a business that Brian touched on, I think there needs to be a greater understanding marketing too as @Luana D'Elias Thomas states; a lot of graduates may work in a Marketing Team and understand how to achieve briefs but may not fully appreciate the overall end goal or targeted methods.
- @Mike McCoole: Design These are brill!! I strongly feel the UK arts universities are lacking in support for creatives. A lot of these courses lead to people becoming freelance or starting their own business yet they have no courses on business, taxes etc. I want to build a community to help with this :)
- All things below + the fact that YOU can shape your career, so it's important what kind of projects you decide to work on.
- Definetly wish I knew how to network properly, alot on tax and freelancing, bit of marketing too?
- You won't get many better answers than @Brian Grant 's below there!To add to this sage advice I'd say:- Enjoy what you do, and when you don't- take a step back.- If you start questioning yourself take a look at something like @Stefanie Sword-Williams' work in F**k being Humble to put you back on track/ reignite the energy for the project.- Whether working with clients or with colleagues; don't be afraid to ask the 'stupid' question(s) or go back to the brief or touch base; especially when you feel like you are hitting a creative dead end or a project is causing a little anxiety.- You're always learning. Block some time in your working week to learn; whether that is a enrolled class like skillshare or a 10-minute tutorial with adobe etc., reading an article (Creative Review, Campaign, It's Nice That to name but a few), dreaming up a creative brief for yourself. Learning also includes learning from feedback and mistakes.- Form relationships with your clients where you can check-in with them long after a delivery of a project. Dropping them a note to see how an event went or wishing them well doesn't have to feel like fishing for more work but can lead to it.- Work smarter. Shortcuts, actions, scripts, project managment tools, assets, lists, directories, filing systems & naming conventions- get into a good practice.- You don't need to appear know everything / have all the skillsets. Don't be afraid to use invaluable platforms to reach out for advice.
- Hello Lauren,That is a great question.I guess that every mistake or challenge is an opportunity for learning and growth, and yet I would have loved to have known some of these things when I first started.I’ll leave a few here.
- No one is better than you and no one is smarter than you, appreciate yourself and the value that you can offer to the world.
- You make the rules for your life, and your reality is created by the way that you perceive the world around you.
- When my accountant messes up then I was still responsible and had to pay for his mistakes. So I learned to be careful in selecting people to work with and taking responsibility for everything.
- You do not need contracts, however I would always have a one page agreement or concise email outlining exactly what each party is doing and expects from the other, including payment terms… believe me, that saved my life on a number of occasions…
- People and social skills are vital for getting work and building relationships. A great number of geniuses are starving right now because no one knows that they exist.
- Save a portion of everything that you earn for taxes and expenses, it will save you so much hassle in the long run with a bit of careful preparation at the start.
- Agree to staged payments with clients (25% upfront, 25% mid project, 50% on completion), you do not want to complete a job and be told that you won’t be paid for 180 days, or worse the client disappears altogether with a completed project. Do not hand over final files until you are PAID IN FULL.
- Do not fear rejection, I knocked on hundreds of doors when I was building my client base, it takes strength of character and if you believe in what you are doing then you will find a way to persist when the going gets tough.
- Be nice to clients, but also get rid of clients that cause you pain, stress, are abusive or think that they own you because they are paying you, there is a principle called the Pareto Principle which means that 80% of your money will come from 20% of your clients, so keep refining your clients and keep your marketing efforts going even when you have more work than you can handle, you can outsource to other designers and scale your efforts.
- Take risks and be bold, you may strike out, but you may also strike gold. A major reason that I was able to work with leading clients was because I had to courage to approach them.
- Do not be afraid to charge your worth, when starting out it would make sense to discount your rates until you have more work than you can handle, then increase your rates accordingly.
- Use creative methods to attract clients, do not be scared to try new things you are young and the time to take risks is now.
- Take some breaks, it is tempting to overwork because you are not sure when your next gig is coming from, do not allow yourself to get stressed, take breaks and try to look at the big picture occasionally, it is easy to get caught up in day-to-day activities and lose sight of the why you are doing what you are doing.
I hope that helps, and if you need any more help then give me a shout.Good luck!!
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