Ask FreelanceSwitch: Weighing Freelance Benefits and Saying No

In this issue of Ask FreelanceSwitch, we look at the pros and cons of freelancing and saying no to clients. Ask FreelanceSwitch is a regular column here that allows us to help beginners get a grip on freelancing. If you have a question about freelancing that you want answered, send an email to [email protected].

Question 1

I wish to start as a freelance Graphic Designer. But I am a complete fresher with no experience with Freelancing and no good contacts to start with. I tried working with a publication house for around 3 months but did not enjoy the work I was assigned with.

I deep inside always wanted to work as a freelancer but don’t really have any idea how to get started with it. Also I feel a little confused whether it could be the right choice for a fresher like me. I also find myself in need of developing my portfolio for the same.

I’m still discovering my true interest and don’t know which direction to proceed in. I have multiple interests like photography, illustration, designing, etc. I want you to kindly guide me with the pros and cons to help me make the right decision.

It sounds like you're facing some overwhelming choices in terms of what to do first to begin freelancing " as well as deciding what type of freelancing you might want to do. To break down a couple of the pros and cons, I've made two lists to compare. I'd like to note that because we all have different priorities, the pros and cons can differ in your own situation. Something that I might consider a pro could be a con to another freelancer.

Pros:

• You're the boss, not any employer that you might have to work for.
• You have flexibility to set your own schedule.
• You can refuse to take on projects that don't interest you.

Cons:

• It's entirely on you to earn enough to live on " there's no unemployment when a freelancer has a bad month.
• It's tough to take care of taxes, health insurance and the other things an employer is normally responsible for.
• You have to do a lot more than just creative work, like your bookkeeping and your marketing.

You'll want to think long and hard about how these particular pros and cons play out for you, to determine if freelancing is a good fit. You may need to consider them in terms of your different skill sets, as well.

Question 2

I’ve just wrapped up a nightmare of a project with a client who was terrible to work with. I lost sleep, made myself sick from worry, and lost a lot of money as I had to do triple the work I had planned on and was only paid my original estimated price.

In addition to just being generally miserable to deal with, this client blamed me and made threats of legal action against me if any service I recommended went wrong – for example he had trouble with his hosting account and he considered that my problem to deal with because I recommended a few hosting companies to him. Never mind that he purchased a shared hosting account after I advised him a shared hosting account was inadequate.

I was so happy to be done with this project as the months I spent working on it were pure misery. The client was so constantly unhappy and dissatisfied I was sure I’d never hear from him again, and was worried I wouldn’t even be paid.

Imagine my surprise when the client paid the invoice in full within 12 hours of receiving it and is now emailing me requesting quotes for additional work and praising my work and saying he’d be happy to be a reference for me for future jobs. I absolutely never want to work with him again, but I’m not sure how to let him know that.

Normally, I’d gently say I no longer have room for the work and recommend a few other developers to take over, but because of the history of this client blaming me with anything that went wrong with anything I recommended, I’m seriously afraid of being sued if anything goes wrong with a new person I recommended. And with the way this client is to work with, the chances of things going wrong with someone new are pretty darn high.

I’m not sure what to do, and he’s just sent a rude email angry that I haven’t answered his emails for a couple of days. Eek!

I'm of the opinion that when a client is about to make you physically ill from sheer stress, you need to get out of the situation as soon as possible. I absolutely would not recommend anyone else to such a client " I'm pretty sure no other freelancer would thank me. I'd simply send an email that I'm currently completely booked with work and can't take on additional projects at this time.

When a client is rude and disrespectful to you as a freelancer, you're not even under obligations to answer emails. I do recommend sending that one last email because there are ex-clients that believe that no response ins’t the same thing as a terminated relationship.

It might be cathartic to tell this client exactly what you think of him, but if he's got a history of being aggressive and threatening legal action, I'd say that you should just ensure that you're never available again when he needs a freelancer. It's not worth the hassle otherwise.

It's nice that he's apparently pleased with your work after the fact, but you don't need the issues that go along with working with that type of client.