Life As A Freelance Designer: Do’s and don’ts. (And -hopefully- how not to fail.)

After spending almost 5 years in various advertising agencies, branding offices and design houses, in the beginning of 2016, I’ve decided that it was the time for me to move on to a new realm; freelancing.

The motive behind working freelance is different for everyone. Some people want to earn more, some people want their 15 minutes of fame, some people are fed up with corporate lifestyle and some people just want to sleep a few more hours in the morning.

In my case, it’s a bit more detailed than that.

Firstly, I eventually noticed that I’ve never enjoyed being a team player when it came to professional life. Maybe it’s just me but trying to satisfy other people (colleagues, so-called seniors, executives etc.) while trying to focus on both creative process and the client expectations as a designer is a major pain in the butt. Literally. The more you sit, the more it hurts.

Secondly, working freelance is being independent. Being independent is being yourself. You’re not someone anonymous working under a corporation just to get paid so you can seize the day. Or the month. You’re yourself. In the flesh. Rocking your name and surname (and middle name, if you have one) proudly. Taking the credit for everything you do as an individual, like the famous designers you admire. This is the real value that I’ve found in freelancing.

Lastly, freelance life is based on time-limited projects which is seemingly refreshing and unique. You take care of a project and boom, it’s done. You can proceed to a new client in no time. If you’ve been to advertising industry you’ll get my point; the client pays a monthly fee to an agency for at least a year so every morning -as the designer- you see/use the same logo, same brand guidelines, the same corporate typefaces and colors for months. Day by day it gets more boring and dull. You eventually start to repeat yourself. And nobody wants that. Seriously, I cannot stress this enough.

Now, as a designer, quitting your job, setting up an online portfolio and getting a box of business cards printed is the easiest part. Takes only a week, tops. That part always works like a charm.

Then what? How will you get clients? How will you pay your bills? How will you promote yourself and your work?

Here are some quick but genuine facts I’ve experienced in past 9 months;

Like every job, you need a “post-graduation learning phase” in graphic design. You can’t just graduate and start freelancing. Real life is a whole different story. You need to learn how the industry works. You need to experience the client behaviours and how to respond to their expectations. You need to work with pre-experienced people. You need to explore different mediums and locations. It took me 5 different design/advertising agencies and countless client demands to make up my mind about freelancing and to see the things that I love and hate.
Do not rush and quit your job if you already don’t have -at least- a small network of individuals who’s been helping you connect with freelance projects for a while and already have upcoming projects in sight. If you start anonymous with no projects you’ll have some hard time.
Whatever industry you’re in, know the pros. Knowing the best people and their work on any topic will broaden your mind and give you guts to become one of them. I’m not saying that you have to imitate them or their work, just know who they are and what they’ve been doing to become an important member of the industry. Long time ago I started archiving the best works of my favorite graphic designers and reading their biographies so I’d get some tips from them. Since the last year I’m also uplaoding that constantly growing archive to a Facebook page I’ve created; Legendary Graphic Designers. I’d check it if I were you.
Networking might be the most important thing in freelancing. Meet people, let them know who you are and what you do. Don’t be a door-to-door salesman tho. Become a “friend”. Don’t be shy to say “Hi!”. Acquire warm connections. Another important thing, don’t only hang around with likeminded designers under the name of “networking”. You won’t be able to land any projects that way. You’re a designer so meet entrepreneurs, startup founders, marketing enthusiasts and business owners. People who need design services. If I’ve done, let’s say, 10 freelance projects in the last 4 months, only one of clients got in contact with me by checking my online portfolio. Other 9 were friends of my friends. That clears my point, I suppose.
Don’t be guy that does “anything” for money. In that case, you’ll always get the most unbalanced demands. Master only one thing. If you’re an illustrator don’t waste time on logos. If you’re focused on branding, carry on doing that and leave the website design to professionals. Forget learning coding or 3d software. That way you’ll look like someone who knows what he’s or she’s doing. Ever seen Michael Jackson singing some black metal? I haven’t. Pick a genre and work hard to be the star of it.
It doesn’t mean that you only have to focus on design, though. Always keep reading about design-related topics such as marketing, brand, communication, sociology, strategy, art, photography, digital trends, technology, music etc. You’ll notice that they always feed each other.
Brace yourself, the first year will be the hardest. Winter is coming. Learn rationing and save a lot. For the first six months I’ve earned and spent without looking back. Thought it’ll always be like that. Then came the month with no new projects and I even remember eating cheese sandwiches for the whole day for two weeks until I land a new client. Don’t be me. Save. It also feels great to know that you have some spare cash in your account. At the end, you’re running a business.
You need a clean, slick, work-centered website. No animations. The eye must catch the works at first. Then comes the text content. People are getting bored easily nowadays. I’ve seen millions of freelance designer websites full of giant “about me” sections, no works in sight, pointless pre-grad drawings and such. Don’t count on Behance or Blogspot, either. You need a personal website as the first step. Then comes the sidekicks. There would be no Robin without the Batman.
Learn to use social media. Even if you do the most elegant work, if no one knows or hears about it, it’s a waste. Learn hashtags, share links, interact with people. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram… You name it.
Learn to “design hustling” in times of desperation. When your connections fail to hook you up with new projects, ask people around if they need something design-related. This can be a friend, a 3rd wave coffee shop you constantly hang around or a burger house you order from time to time. You may offer them a new corporate identity even if they think they don’t need it. Learn to “sell” yourself, it’s fun. You can even search “designer wanted” or “looking for a designer” on Twitter to reach out to people in need. Seriously, this is what most aspiring designers fail to accomplish.
Maybe the most important rule; don’t start a project without getting an upfront payment. I mostly take %50 to start and other %50 after the concept proposal, if got accepted, before the execution process. Don’t work for free. Otherwise you might work for weeks and suddenly project gets dismissed or payments get delayed so you find yourself in the abyss of demotivation. Trust me, I’ve been there. It wasn’t fun.
Freelancing might sound like a hobby but it isn’t. Don’t spend your daily work hours with only one project. While doing something, always run after new opportunities. Master the art of time management. Freelancing is a job, not a hobby. The more you ignore this, the less you’ll earn.
Health is the most important, yet the most overlooked. If you’re sick or tired you can’t do anything. If you can’t do anything you won’t survive financially. Especially if you’re a freelance designer you need to put nutrition, exercise and sleep trio to a proper balance. They come first. Then comes the work, love, travels etc. Learn to eat properly, exercise at least 30 minutes a day and sleep for at least 7 hours. You’ll thank me later.
If your getting-out-of-bed motive isn’t becoming the best on your “genre”, if you only rely on money to take care of the month, if you’re enjoying being “someone”, just don’t freelance. Escaping from the corporate chains means becoming a “name” and working your ass off to be a famous designer. If you’re gonna stay anonymous, keep on working under a company. At least you’ll have your health insurance. Seriously, working for an hour and spending 10 hours watching The Shameless while wearing boxers as a freelancer is a grave mistake. I also did that mistake for a while. Don’t be me.

Last but not least, have fun. Have heart. Respect. Don’t judge. Smile a lot. Even if you can’t appreciate something, appreciate the effort that’ve spent on it. And remember, nothing “sucks” just because you don’t like it.

Good luck.