As per the contract - Get paid as a freelancer

Are you a creative that doesn’t like to talk about money? Unfortunately, unless you’re planning on nabbing the patent for post-it notes, you will have to think about it - or worse, TALK about it.

Money is necessary, we all need it, and we all spend it every day. If you’re a freelancer and you need to hustle for it, you’re going to need to get comfortable with talking about it.

The first step to getting extra comfy with the big bucks is to know your worth as a freelancer. Knowing your value isn’t only going to help you keep cashing in on your work; it’s also going to enable you to communicate your value to your clients or buyers.

How much do I ask for?

How much you ask for is really up to you. You can base it off many things such as skill level, expertise or market availability. Take a look at what other professionals are asking for the same service, compare and contrast what your skills can offer. It’s widespread to undersell yourself when you’re only looking at one source, do extensive research and don’t stop at the first value you see. If you’re still not sure, write a list of the unique qualities that you bring to the table. These will move the needle not only for yourself but will help you to quote with confidence.

Do I ask for hourly or project-based?

This question isn’t so black and white, and you might even notice that some freelancers will give you a definitive one or the other. However, there are a few things to consider when deciding between the two.

1. What is the nature of the work? 

2. Is it ongoing work that may be occasional or consistent? Occasional work can be better suited to an hourly rate, whereas consistent can be a regular allowance.

3. Have they already proposed a budget? This can determine what your deliverables are.

4. Is there a clear outcome or solution? With a result set, you can calculate an overall fee for your time commitment.

Make a clear outline.

Outline everything that will be included in the project - more importantly, also outline the things that won’t. Sometimes you will get that one client that assumes you will pick up anything that isn’t part of the services you agreed on. It’s as easy as “can you quickly do this XYZ”, and before you know it, it can become free work.

Your services need to be outlined and discussed. You will also need to be aware of any costs that are not your responsibility.

These costs might include web hosting, images, font licenses, printing, or postage costs. Always make sure to quote and get approval before locking in any of these items. You can list these as ‘Additional costs’ when invoicing. 

What if they want changes?

Revisions are a part of the creative industry. But unless you want to get stuck revising a project until the end of time, you need to set solid expectations. You need to use effective communication throughout the process and have a hard limit on the number of reiterations. Two rounds of revisions are usually sufficient. After that, if the client wants to make further changes, there needs to be a conversation around adding to their final invoice.

What happens if the project gets cancelled?

Always a last resort as no one wants this to happen! But if the absolute dumpster fire that was 2020 has taught us anything, it’s that things get cancelled. Ensure you’ve set yourself up for this. An example is that you might refund any money that has already been paid to you. If you’ve already started working on it, be clear and make sure your client pays you equal to the amount of work done. This is where having a written agreement from the outset can be beneficial.

Invoicing and billing

When it’s crunch time, always go back to knowing your worth. Learn it, then add tax. You need to have confidence in the value you have settled on to reflect your skills. If sending an invoice gives you those awkward jittery feelings, go back to your facts. Look at your time tracking. I’ve done this amount of work; therefore, I need to be paid this amount. There are many time tracking apps, like Clockify that can pump out an invoice for you. Or if you’re not tracking your time, Xero or MYOB are foolhardy invoicing platforms that become very handy around tax time too.

Let’s wrap up!

While it’s nice that some clients think “It’ll be great for exposure” are the five words creatives most want to hear, it just won’t pay the bills. No formula tells you how much your work is worth. But if you have compared and contrasted to the market, you can start feeling more confident in having those conversations. Always take time to evaluate when starting a new project to make sure it’s the right choice for you. Clear communication from the outset is vital. If you prefer to have it all in writing (highly recommend), you can use tools such as Hello Bonsai for contract templates and advice.

Tips for Taking DIY Profile Pictures at Home

During this unprecedented amount of time at home you may be working through those ’nice to have’ projects, one of which may be the dreaded ‘profile picture’. I certainly found it daunting and was procrastinating like crazy, however, I had a deadline and finally sat down and worked out what to do. So, I thought I would pass on some tips and things I learnt along the way. 

Before I start, I would like to acknowledge that these tips in no way take away from getting professional headshots from a photographer, but rather are some DIY profile picture photoshoot hacks if you aren’t in a position to engage a professional right now.

Diffused, natural light

I found a spot in my house that was bathed in natural light (next to tri-fold french window-panelled doors) with a neutral background.

TIP: Take photos on your phone during different times of the day to see how the light changes. This will give you an idea of what time to plan your photo session.

Consider your surroundings

I now knew where I wanted to take my photos, the colour of the background wall and the type of warmth the light gave off. These considerations helped to decide on pops of colour for my clothing, jewellery and make up. Saying that, this is an outfit I would wear to work normally so I did feel quite comfortable and genuine in my presentation.

TIP: Black clothing can look striking but it can also flatten you because there isn’t as much light refracting so I would recommend lighter shades that work with your background.

Burst Mode

Use a camera that has Burst Mode which will allow the user to hold the Shutter Button down so it will keep taking photos (think cliche fashion photographer). 

TIP: Have an empty SD card in your camera because you will end up with a LOT of photos.

Friendly face behind the camera

Find as many ways to feel comfortable in a pretty contrived situation. Get your partner, sibling, friend or whoever you feel really comfortable with to take these photos. Brief them beforehand about talking to you through the photo session, getting you to laugh naturally from the conversation and generally instilling a fun atmosphere – it will result in genuine and natural expressions.

TIP: Play music that you love, that gives you energy, have fun and for a laugh channel your inner fashion model.

The 90/10 rule

You will undoubtedly end up a vast quantity of photos, I think I had around 300 by the end of my session. Brace yourself because most of these, about 90%, will be unusable just from blinking, talking, hair not cooperating etc. But, I guarantee you will find some gold in there too, approximately 10% of it. So, work your way through sorting the pictures and pull your favourites into a folder.

TIP: Aim to have about 10 options maximum to choose between for any number of uses.

Save and repeat

Take your chosen picture and apply any photo editing before exporting versions you may need. Generally, you will need a square (1:1) version at about 300px x 300px however it might be worth saving a portrait (3:4) and landscape (4:3) version too. 

TIP: Always keep a copy of your original photo and the native edited file in case you need to revert back or export larger sizes.

I am slightly mortified to see so many of my own profile pictures in one spot but I hope it served to illustrate my points.

Starting a creative business when you have young children

Kerrie Hollingsworth with her daughter

Whether you start a side hustle at night after the kids go to bed or launch a business during maternity leave, choosing the freedom of a business or freelancing is an increasingly popular choice for women who have young children. But there are questions. A lot of them. How, exactly, does it work? When do you work, how do you work, how do you decide what type of business to start? 

To answer some of these questions, we interviewed three Creative Women’s Circle members who have forged this path for themselves. They give us some behind the scenes insights into the process of starting their businesses, and how, exactly, it all works. 

Our interviewees

Nadine Nethery, based in Sydney with three children, runs Can Do Content. She is a copywriter who works with female entrepreneurs, helping them to find their brand persona and their ‘why’. A lot of these women are also juggling their business with family life, and it is Nadine’s mission to help them find their voice.

Nadine Nethery. Image: Sister Scout Studio

Kerri Hollingsworth runs antiquate from her home in Gippsland, Victoria . Combining two passions, one for upholstery and weaving and the other for sustainability, she uses recycled materials to create one-of-a-kind armchairs, each piece telling its own story. Kerri runs her business alongside being a mum to her three year old daughter.

Kerrie Hollingsworth

Melbourne-based Tess McCabe is a familiar name in CWC circles. The previous president of the Creative Women’s Circle board runs Creative Minds Publishing, a boutique publishing company that produces and sells high-quality books and resources that provide practical advice and inspiration for creative professionals­. She juggles this alongside part time work and caring for her two kids.

Tess McCabe

What prompted you to start your business?

Kerri: I started out doing standard upholstery before my daughter was born, while I was working as a flight attendant. But I was getting frustrated with the amount of waste I was producing in my home and my business. I was looking at the fabric scraps— my business of upholstery art, Antiquate Artistry, came from wanting to be less wasteful. The idea just evolved. If you let it evolve then it's amazing where it goes.

Tess: I could say that wanted to diversify my income to incorporate products, but really I just wanted to design nice books and make all the decisions! Plus publishing is not a big money-earner (at least the way I do it!)

Nadine: The flexibility, and being able to do what I love. Corporate life isn’t for me. 

Tess McCabe

How did you get started?

Nadine: Like many female business owners I started my business as a side gig, around my day job in corporate events in communications. One of those boring days in the office I decided to give it a go. At the time I had two kids and was working full time. I thought, no pressure, and see how it goes. Then I got to the point where I almost had too much work, and went on maternity leave with my third child and have been working on Can Do Content since then.

Kerri: I was on maternity leave from my job as a flight attendant and when I was waiting to get the call to go back for retraining, I thought I would just give the upholstery business a go. Qantas called a few months later, but by then I had got into a magazine and had a front cover feature, had held an exhibition and I had three orders – one for eight chairs. I decided to leave flying. It was a really hard decision, but I couldn’t ignore the feeling, it was like my heart was bursting. And I knew I couldn’t combine flying and being away with motherhood.

Tess: It started unofficially through self-publishing Conversations with Creative Women in 2011, and was formalised into a company in 2014.

What obstacles and challenges have you faced?

Tess: Books need marketing to sell, so once the book is produced, while there is no more ‘making’, you have to find time to keep on top of marketing. Finding time is always a challenge!

Nadine: Probably confidence – imposter syndrome. I know I can write, I have a background in marketing, I know there is a need for my services but I still questioned myself. The self doubt and wondering if I’m good enough.

Kerri: I think the biggest challenge was probably my mindset. I’ve always been a really positive person, but you can’t help the fears that come up where you wonder if people think it’ll be silly, I’m constantly working to quiet those little voices that say ‘you’re stepping outside the norm’. A lot of us a fear of success because then people might react in a certain way.

What are the pros and cons to running a business vs having a job when you have a family?

Nadine: As a mum the paid sick days are a pro of a job. Whereas in your business everything stops and comes to a halt. You need a big support network if you have a deadline, partner, family and friends that can help. But the flexibility and the reward for finding a passion that you happen to get paid for, rather than showing up to an office everyday to get paid for something that you don’t want to do are the highlights of having your own business. And I love that no day is the same, no client ever has the same story.

Kerri: Financially having your own business there is more pressure. With a job you turn up and do your job and you go home and you know you’ll be paid. There was so much I loved about flying, but I know not being in the job I remember the good and not the hard parts – like the 23rd hour you’ve been awake and you still have to drive home.

Tess: I was running my own business as a graphic designer for various clients before having kids, so working for myself on my own books meant that I didn’t have external deadlines, only my own. But the money is different when you have a product-based business vs a service-based business. Time is not the only outlay and there is more financial risk.

How do you structure your business around your family?

Tess: Because I’m mostly the primary carer (and I have a p/t job) and my husband works full time, I use one weekend day when he is home to concentrate on my business. Outside of that, it’s night time.

Nadine: Before going on maternity leave, I worked on my lunch break, and then also in the evenings. I tried to keep the weekends free. At the moment it's during naptime and the evenings and I still try not to work on the weekend.

Kerri: It looks different everyday – when my daughter was younger, it was a bit easier, because I would go into my workshop and work while she was sleeping. Nowadays when I’m working, if she wants to stay with me and I have to keep going, then she loves to help so I’ll give her something to do alongside me. I’ll set up a little loom and she’ll weave alongside me. I try to include her in everything so she doesn’t feel like she’s excluded. I hope that she sees it more as we’re playing together rather than ‘mummy’s at work’. We go on walks around our property if need be to reset. The two days she’s in daycare I do the things that I need to do that I can’t be interrupted for.

Final words of advice

Kerri: The main thing is to remember who you are. It’s so easy for mums to lose touch with themselves. If you’ve got a bit of an idea, don’t say it's silly, because the voices that say that are just trying to keep you safe. Push through that because it's really worth it. Your children and family fill your heart in one way but having your own purpose – they don’t take from each other if you give each their space. 

Nadine: Don’t wait for the perfect moment, if I waited for the perfect moment it wouldn’t have happened. If you have that underlying passion and desire for something, just do it. If you think too much then you can always find a reason not to do it. Just give it a go and the worst that can happen is it doesn’t work out. Don’t be too harsh on yourself. Don’t listen to the mum guilt, something has to give, if the dishes aren’t done, whatever, it's going to be ok.

Tess: It takes a village! Utilise and ask for help. And don’t be too hard on yourself – businesses can evolve as your kids grow.

Connect with Nadine (@candocontent), Kerri (@antiquate_artistry) and Tess (@creativemindshq) on Instagram.