For today’s Freelance Insights we have my friend, Jamie, of Spruce Rd. She is wildly talented and her blog is chalk full of helpful tips + tricks for designers. A few months ago, after I made my way through blog (I read it all from start to finish, yes – really) I decided to send her a little tweet and the rest is history. I asked Jamie to share some of her insights on freelancing. Below she talks about the value of following your vision and waiting for the types of clients that will help mold your business into what you want it to be. The right types of clients can really help set the tone for your creative journey as a freelancer, which is advice that I am learning to take myself…

“I recently opened up my design studio, Spruce Rd., full-time just a couple short months ago. While I have truly enjoyed work (probably for the first time in my career!), it doesn’t come without its struggles. For anyone who is just starting their design studio, I would say the biggest lesson I have learned is to be patient.

Patient in the types of clients + projects you take on. I have had to say “no” to a few potential clients, as I knew they weren’t in line the vision behind my studio. This was not an easy decision… especially when I JUST started my business! I think it is important to have a clear vision + intention behind your business, so you can dictate the direction you go, rather than allow others to passively influence you. If you want to attract creative entrepreneurs, don’t design a logo for your dad’s friend who owns a landscaping business. You will most likely be frustrated throughout the project, as it is not the type of project you enjoy working on!

I definitely don’t have it all figured out, especially after just a couple of months, but patience has been the biggest lesson I have learned so far! It has paid off so far as I have started attracting my ideal clients + projects, which I am absolutely thrilled about!”

So as promised, I have another installment of Freelance Insights to share with you today. This time around, Caitlin Ritchie, a fellow designer and blogger, approached me about being apart of this series. After taking a peek at her lovely site (which chalk full of simplicity + white space, two of my favorite things), I knew I would love nothing more than to feature her here and have her share her words of wisdom. Today, Caitlin is speaking on the importance of taking a break every now and again (which is what I’m currently doing), so I thought it was quite fitting…

“This year I am focusing on “being present” in life. As a freelancer that works from home I sometimes find it hard to keep my work time separate from my personal + family time. I talked a little about it here. Design doesn’t feel like work to me so it is VERY difficult for me to step away sometimes.

One thing I cannot stress enough is, don’t overwhelm yourself with work. Take the time to be present in your life and enjoy the little things. Freelancing requires a lot of work, but it doesn’t have to consume your life.  See what you can eliminate, or cut back in your work day. Are you putting too much of a workload on yourself? Maybe cut back on those blog posts. You don’t HAVE to post every day you know! I personally cut my posts back to three times a week (Wednesday, Thursday, Friday). This works for me, find what works for you. Just remember to “be present” and “turn off” every once in a while. It will benefit both your work and personal life greatly.”

I am thrilled to share another round of Freelance Insights with you all today. If you are new to my blog, this column features fellow designers as they talk about some of their tips, lessons learned, and share short stories during their lives as freelancers. Breanna Rose, is the art director and graphic designer behind Rowan Made + the co-founder of Be Free, Lance workshops, and is probably no stranger to you. Along with a handful of other creatives who have been featured in this column, Bre and I also attend design school together at UW-Stevens Point. I knew once I started this column that I had to have her as guest because when it comes to freelance, she knows a thing or two! So here she is, sharing a story about a client that went up …and missing?!

“Last year, I landed a branding project that I was pretty psyched about. It was for a local catering company that had an awesome vision + aesthetic that was right up my alley. After saying “yes” (it really was a no brainer), we dove head first into the design process and came up with a few solid design concepts that everyone was excited about across the board. Everything appeared to be going smoothly; we had a primary logo, mark, color palette, and font system all in place and ready to go. But just before the last checkpoint, the client went missing. For two months, I sent out friendly reminder emails with the final invoice, hoping that I would get some sort of response. I ended up getting paid, three months later, without any sort of explanation as to what had happened, which was a major bummer given that everything had gone so well up until that point.

To this day, I’m still not sure what happened. Freelancing is funny like that … it throws you curveballs just when you’re not expecting it. Sometimes they’re wonderful and sometimes they’re not. But instead of getting down on myself, I decided to turn a negative situation into a positive one! I still really loved the branding that we had landed on and decided to build everything out into a full scale conceptual project. Using the pieces we had already created, I designed catering menus, business cards, stickers, and a few other fun things as well. And you know what? It’s one of my favorite projects to this date!

When I look back on this project, I don’t get mad anymore. There’s just no point. Sure, it may have been tough in the moment to deal with, but everything passes (even when it seems like it won’t) and solutions can be crafted. Overall, it was a great learning experience that ended up with a killer portfolio piece! And that’s something to be proud of. Definitely.”

Hey guys, I have another installment of Freelance Insights to share with you all today. Irene Victoria, talented graphic designer + small business owner based in Toronto, is such a talent and I just love her design aesthetic! Pinterest, again, is where I first discovered her and her lovely body of work, where I quickly fell into reading her blog on a week to week basis. So here she is, chatting about the importance of saving some creativity for yourself which opens the door for growth, discovery, and keeps us falling in love with what we do.

“Allow yourself time to pursue personal projects. Whether it’s a conceptual project to round out your portfolio, a blog post or a simple print, save a little creativity for yourself and play.

I used to feel guilty about doing this, especially when confronted with an ambitious to-do list and all the other responsibilities that come with running your own business and being adult in general (when was the last time I did laundry?). But I’ve found that the best way to face creative blocks and stay motivated is to open up a blank canvas and start designing – for fun. There is something really freeing about designing without limitations. It’s a great way to grow as a creative and practice new techniques that you may not use on a regular basis. At the end of the day we’re creatives making a living doing what we love. But sometimes we need to save a little bit of that creativity just for ourselves so we can keep falling in love with what we do.”

It was by simple chance that I stumbled upon today’s Freelance Insights contributor, Kory Woodard, when I was just meandering around Pinterest. Her posts on graphic design + freelance are immediately what drew me and I haven’t turned back since! So a few weeks ago I reached out to her to see if she would be interested in contributing to this column of mine, luckily she said yes and I am so happy to have her here! Below Kory takes us on a little journey and shares with us how she became a freelancer while offering some encouraging advice along the way.

“When I started my business, I had no idea what I was in for. I had never done anything like it, I didn’t feel like I was launching it to a large audience by any means, and I really just wasn’t sure if I would be able to make it work. Twenty-two months later, I’m hitting revenue goals, launching products, and creating my first e-course for passionate people just like you.

The thing is, I didn’t get to this point, which is far from the success that some may see, without struggle. There were months I barely made any money, where I wasn’t sure where my next client would come from, if I would be able to actually go full-time with freelance after graduating college rather than trying to find a normal job.

If you’re currently going through those tough months, wondering when you’ll catch a break, here’s a reminder: we all go through that. We all start at the same place, and many of us see those struggles many times throughout our career. The thing that makes you special is that when faced with these things, you don’t give up. You keep pushing forward and going after your dreams with a wild heart. So keep pushing. Don’t let the struggles hold you back from going after those dreams of yours.”

Okay, so I’ve been following today’s Freelance Insights contributor, Jane Riley, for quite some time now – some of you may know her as the talented creative director + owner of the design studio, Jane Reaction. Her body of work is awesome and I find myself strolling through her blog on a weekly basis! So, here she is sharing a story on overcoming challenges and using what you learn to better yourself and your business! Thanks so much for this great story, Jane – we can all learn so much from it!

“A few years ago I found myself designing a blog for a well known blogger. I had developed my own designs in the past and was pretty confident that I could develop this site on my own. As the development portion of the project rolled around I realized that I simply couldn’t make the site look the way I had mocked it up during our design phase. I Googled my heart out. I worked late into the night for days straight … I simply couldn’t do it. I eventually got in my bed and cried and was convinced that this would be the end of my career. I couldn’t develop sites the way I designed them and now everyone was going to know AND I was going to be disappointing a pretty awesome client – which made me feel even more embarrassed. I felt so defeated.

After a few hours of crying about how I was never going to get another client again I realized totally giving up was not an option. I had to come up with a graceful exit strategy out of this predicament and move forward in my career with this new reality. I told the client the issue and was totally honest: I was not able to develop the site the way I designed it like I thought I would. I offered to hire a developer at my own expense to finish the site the way I designed it. The client was totally understanding and the developer did an amazing job – and I still made money on the project. My new reality was that I am a really great designer and I am not a very good developer. So, now I hire out all of my development. Since then I have found a developer that I work with regularly and I just adore her. We work really well together. Now I am able to take on more work because I don’t have the development phase slowing me down. I am happier and less stressed out about projects. I am able to do what I love doing and leave the development to the developers.

My point is that when things get scary and hard it’s probably time to evolve – hire an accountant, take on an intern, get a nanny, charge more, expand, grow… Don’t think that challenges or failures mean that it is the end of the road. Look at them as lessons that are teaching you how to be a better YOU!”

Hey friends, have I got a little treat for you! For today’s Freelance Insights post we have my very best friend, Cassie sharing a some words of wisdom when it comes to staying inspired + motivated during the creative process. Her and I met in design school a few years back, particularly in our (somewhat challenging) print making class where we spent our weekend evenings getting down and dirty with plates and ink. She’s got killer knack for design and I am so excited to feature her here today – enjoy!

“We all know this feeling all too well, don’t we? You’re smack dab in the middle of a project with a client, and you find yourself struggling to finish a hand drawn logo, or choose the perfect sans-serif typeface to apply to a brilliant photograph. One thing is always true, you are not alone. This happens to every artist from time to time. The best thing to do in these situations is to find a little inspiration. Personally, I’ll dive into an issue of Kinfolk magazine, drink some hot apple cider (on chilly fall nights) or watch an artsy short film. Just remember to stay calm and focused. Create something your future self will be proud of.”

When I first started this Freelance Insights column, I sat back and thought of the designers who really made an impression on me back when I working toward my BFA degree in college. So, today we have my friend, Jon, him and I met back in design school and although we only shared a handful of classes together, I always appreciated his eye for detail + the handcrafted nature of his projects. I am so happy to have him here sharing with you a few of his tips for when you get those creative blocks.

“I love the process of design. It can be rather hypnotic if you get into a groove. It’s home. It’s relaxing. It’s comforting. You know what you are doing… until you run headlong into a creative blockade. The ideas stop. You lose your focus and you’ve only designed one of the 5 logo variations you need to. Uh-oh.

When my brain quite literally stops working (let’s not talk about how often this happens…) I typically find myself trying to tough it out, push on through, and wrestle my lack of ideas into submission which can be quite hard because there is nothing to wrestle with. I’ll start doubting my talent and second guess that third pot of coffee I drank this morning. Maybe I over did it? This is about the time I set my laptop/sketchbook/coffee/wine down and walk away.

Sometimes (most times) great ideas take time to mature and as creatives we jump the gun quite easily. We want to dive into the process and start creating, which doesn’t always work. Instead a great design, we get frustration and less than stellar ideas. Often we don’t realize that we haven’t given the project enough time to work itself out in our noggin. Sometimes all you need is 5 minutes – sometimes an hour. If I can afford the time I personally like to sleep on my ideas and see what happens the next day. Unique ideas form when our brain catches up with our creative drive. Give the design, and your brain, some time to breathe. That’s when you can unlock the genius designs that are chilling out, waiting to be discovered.”

First off, I would like to take a quick moment to thank you for your comments and support for this new column that I started a little over a month ago. It’s been wonderful to have some new (and old) faces sharing tidbits of their experiences, knowledge, and insight into this big, creative world. Today’s guest I am so excited + honored to have contributing to Freelance Insights. Cassie of The Veda House has been a huge inspiration to me on my journey as a designer. Her work is absolutely amazing and I’m super envious of her photo styling skills. I am so thrilled that she’s here to share some of her thoughts on exploring your different interests and using them to grow your business. Enjoy!

“As creative individuals we’re naturally attracted to many facets of creativity. You may be a hand-lettering artist who also enjoys home decorating and book design. I think it’s important to continuously have a “side hustle” because you never know where those explorations will take you. Unexpected doors may open and you may discover an aspect of your business you never knew could be profitable.

For me, I’m a trained graphic and web designer, but I’ve always had a passion for photography and interior design. Over time, my career has evolved to incorporate photography and styling and I couldn’t be more inspired. The diversity is what keeps me inspired on a daily basis.”