Taken Freelance Insanity Plunge.......

Final Design Studios

Final Design Studios

Veteran
Well,

Just a couple a minutes ago I charged into my boss's office with a stalwart determination and asked.

"You got a minute?"

I gave my two weeks. And in two weeks I'll be working for a church helping them develop their media department (part time), while in the afternoons pitching my own production studio.

Thats it, I've taken the plunge. I know that if I don't try now I'll regret it for years. But I have to know, can I survive on my own?

So the agency is willing to contract me freelance when they need me and I'll be trying to prove to myself I've made the right decision.

So do you guys have any advice?
Any sage wisdom from the lower 48 (thats what we call you up here)?

Wish me luck, I'm gonna need it. :thumbsup:
 
Excelent! You have graduated to Potty Robert.

Ya know what's a great job for scraping by? Security guard. You get to sit around and work on films. Just a suggestion, if it starts to get down to it.

Good luck!
 
I envy and respect the size and physical make-up of your... um, guts. Yes, you have big, brass guts!

Best of luck to you!
 
Good luck! One key factor will be recordkeeping. Make sure you keep very detailed records. Are you going to incorporate? S-Corp, LLC, etc?
 
kai said:
Good luck! One key factor will be recordkeeping. Make sure you keep very detailed records. Are you going to incorporate? S-Corp, LLC, etc?
Click to expand...

I'm not terribly sure yet. I think LLC, it seems to be the way everyone is telling me to go. But I need to research a bit more on it.

Got any suggestions?
 
Good luck my friend. I am looking at doing the same thing right now. I know I could make more money doing one or two gigs a month then I'm getting paid right now sitting on my ass doing the same shoots every day. This sucks if I was half the man you are I would go into my boss's office that is right down the hall and tell him to shove it. Oh sorry lost my self there. Any good luck hope it works out for you.
 
Imgentertainment - I'm in the same boat. With this part time job to pay the bills I'm only going to need one job a month to make the same amount of money I got now. At first, I'm just going to concentrate on keeping myself on my feet but I hope to branch out enough to keep myself busy.

I didn't make this decision lightly. In fact, I've been wanting to do this for a year and 3 months. But was just too chicken to do it, thankfully circumstances have made it less of a risk and its a "now or never" sort of mentality.

If I'm making a big mistake and fall flat on my face, this is the best time in my life to do it. Once I realized that, everything was easy. Failure won't kill me, but the regret I would have by not trying would hurt for a long time.
 
Welcome to the freelance pond. Its cold and you cannot feel the bottom but boy is it refreshing....sometimes...hehe
Good work Bob I'm really happy for you. I hope the church gig works out.
As Michael Cane once said 'I never regretted anything I did in my life, just the things I didnt do.'
My best wishes are with you.
 
FOOOOOOL.....Hope it's not to late, go back in the bosses office and tell him you're sorry...Tell him your on an experimental drug, tell him you had an incurable brain disorder, but your OK since you flew to Botswanna an saw the witch doctor!!!!

Just joshin:evil:

When freelance is good, it's good. My advice is to bank heavy for rainy days, something I never did in the beginning. Best of luck!
 
Thanks a bunch JP and all the rest.

Mino, you don't happen to work for my boss do you? Yeah, I'll be learning to save so I can make it through the tough parts. Freelance is kinda like a financial suicide, but that just makes it interesting right?
 
it's good to know you're in the position in life that the risk is managable if something were to fall through (but it wont). It's much harder to take a plunge like that with a family to care for, mortgage, etc etc... Best of luck, it'll be worth it.

ps: get yourself a good accountant to take care of your books. It will make things so much easier. Also, definitely incorporate. You just need to research which type fits your situation best. The main difference is the taxation. I chose S-Corp, but many do LLC. You'll want to cover your butt legally, so make this a first step. Plus, you can finance gear, etc through the "company" vs your own back.
 
market market market. Spend an hour everyday on marketing. Every business in town needs to know you are there. If more than 50% of your work comes from your old employer, you are doomed.
 
Good for you!

Security is an illusion and knowledge is portable wealth.

It doesn't matter whether you make a go of it first time or not. You will learn tons. If you have to go back to working for someone else for a bit. So what! Try again. You'll have more information to go on the next time around. Just keep trying and be persistent! Never give up! Never quit!



When you are finally running you're own multi-billion dollar media conglomerate, can I get a Job?
 
Galt,
You're right, I'm working on a number of things, including my website and a DVD cards, and anything I can think of to get my name out there.

Craig,
I never really thought of it failing and giving it another shot down the road. But you're right, I will learn alot, and it can only mean I'll be more prepared later on.
 
ACtually, I'd spend more like half your time marketing yourself in the beginning. The biggest problem that people have when they go to work for themselves is discipline. It can be tough to put in a full week when you are your own boss, especially if clients aren't knocking down your door. I would set high (but realistic) goals about how many potential clients you talk to every day. And the time you are thinking about work doesn't count. Spend a few months really getting your name out there and you should be in good shape.

WAIT! You're up in Alaska? I didn't know you guys even had 'lectricity.

Good Luck Bob. Working for yourself can be a great adventure.
 
Man, freelancing is tough. I did it for 2 years while in college. I found I couldn't make a living at it in the midsize market I was in (St. Louis) I think a lot of one's success depends on the market you're in and what exactly your doing. Also, a lot depends on how long you worked in that market before becoming a freelancer and how well your known.

My biggest problem was that I was competing against other freelancers who had worked in the business 20 years and since humans are creatures of habit I just couldn't convince companies to go with me over these established relationships with proven freelancers. I now work in Chicago as a producer and there are plenty of freelance producers, and the one who are doing well for themselves worked on-staff for at least several years at reputable, well-known companies before going freelance. People know who they were and they have credibility.

First time fresh to the freelance game I sent out 400 packets about my work and follow-up called every single one of them. I got one job out of it. It lasted for 3 months then ended and I was like well hell, now I have to start calling these people again. It was constant marketing and fighting for survival. I wish you the best of luck.

I don't know how it would be in large markets like LA, NYC and Chicago. I am assuming it's better just based on the market.
 
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