Drugi jezik na kojem je dostupan ovaj članak: Bosnian
By: Bor Klemenc Mencin, freelencer, bor.klemencin@gmail.com
I don’t know whether I got the timing right, whether it was luck, whether word got around quickly or whether it was a combination of all these, but over the course of my first month as a freelancer I somehow managed to have my hands full. Sure enough, it started off slowly. Almost painstakingly slowly. Admittedly, for somebody that’s used to working in an agency setting having to go home after lunch and not do work is like waking up in an episode of The Twilight Zone.
So as you might have figured out, it wasn’t like I didn’t have anything to fall back onto after I left my job. Even though I tried to keep my decision under wraps beforehand – I told only my closest friends and family and maybe casually mentioned it to a few acquaintances if we happened on the subject – I had some work thrown my way which I was able to start on first thing after I quit. Still, the absence of immediate deadlines, quick-fire brainstorming sessions, accounts running around my desk (miss you guys) and piling up to-dos felt more like a weird workation (god I hate that word, but that’s really how it felt) than regular work. That lasted for about a week or so. Then… Let’s just say things escalated quickly. I don’t want to bore you with all the details so here’s just a quick recap of this past month:
– I sat down for drinks with a dozen potential clients/partners
– I did a presentation at a major international company
– worked on a pitch for a shady business
– had a client bail on me
– said no a couple of times
– said yes too many times
– started helping out at a small marketing agency
– managed to get myself involved in a friend’s art project
– got my foot in the door of a long-term campaign for a major regional brand (which you’ll all be able to see soon enough)
– worked on an event for a well-known alcoholic beverage
Not too bad, right? I’ve gone from working only a couple of hours a week to having only a couple of hours of sleep a week. So yeah, maybe I was acting a bit too quickly and not really thinking it over, but I’ve been able to manage it so far (knocking on wood) and I have said no when I knew I wouldn’t be able to see things through to the end. Let’s just hope the luxury of saying no to a project never leaves my side (for now, I consider myself very lucky in this regard). The plan right now is to take on as much work as I can to spread the word even further and take some time to think things through at the end of the year. Then I’ll take a look back to see which types of projects were worth my while and sketch out the best course for the future.
Before I say goodbye for now, let’s just take a quick look at the books. After paying all my taxes I am pleased to inform you I made just a tiny bit less than I did at the agency. Plus, I expect to rake in a few more payments over the course of the next week or two so things are looking up.* And even though I worked my ass off these past couple of weeks, all in all I put in less hours this month than I would have back at the agency. In order to make sure I’ll be getting the most out of my time in the months to come, I started tracking the hours for each project I’m currently working on. That way I’ll be able to see which projects are more profitable and what I can charge for my working hour without wrongfully feeling greedy.
That’s it for this month. Tune in next month to see if I’m still saying no to projects while having clients bail on me.
*Note that I’m saying all this as a self-employed individual paying minimum taxes/mandatory contributions. So yeah, don’t get your hopes up, we’re still a long way away from banking on an exuberant pension…
