values shmalues
When you first set out to go freelance, you look into your values, write a mission statement and maybe a business plan, decide what you want to work on and who you want to work with. Then you get into the groove of things, and offer your services to the world, and – you don’t have clients. So there you are, standing tall, with your values and your ideas, but no income.
So you tell yourself it’s just a phase, it’ll pass, everyone has these difficulties when they’re starting out. And then – blessing or curse – the first clients come knocking. You’re so happy to finally be able to be making some money doing what you know you can do so well that you take on the jobs. Naturally, you see to it that the clients are in line with your values. Maybe there are some that aren’t, really; whatever, you’ll work with them anyways – just this once. Time goes by and you find yourself working with clients that aren’t necessarily in line with your values. Because, well – you need the money.
Most freelancers I’ve talked to confirm this bittersweet reality of ‘making it’. I don’t want to sound ungrateful for being able to run a successful business (because really, that is a kick-ass feeling), but yes, this realization can be frustrating at times.

gut instinct
Being a freelancer – and, I’m guessing, being in charge of a large company – means constantly readjusting your values and your output. You have to ask yourself: Where do you draw the line? How do you know when to decline a “not so ideal client”? The answer is simple and yet it can prove to be quite difficult:
Listen to your gut instinct. Time and again, listening to my gut instinct has led me to make the right decisions. As long as my gut doesn’t react negatively, I can live with working for clients that I may not have imagined working with when I first set out. And when my gut feeling does come into play, well, then – I listen to it.
And chill. You don’t have to save the world with every project you work on.

so what’s the point?
On some days – or nights, predominantly, with gin & tonic involved – you might ask yourself what the point of it all is – especially if you work in the creative economy. You’re not working with the clients you imagined, maybe you’re making a comfortable salary but not as much as you’d imagined, you might not really be working on what you love; all in all, life becomes mediocre. (I heard a rumor that this is what some call “adult life”, but I refuse to believe it!)
If you’re successful even though you’re not making money with what you originally had planned to, does that automatically mean you have to adjust? I don’t mean to make money the sole defining factor of success, but I think at this point the question you need to ask is: What was your motivation to go freelance? If it was to finally be your own boss, well then, congrats, you’ve made it. If it was to earn money doing what you’re good at – once again, congratulations are in order because apparently, it’s working for you. However, if you went freelance to fulfill your creative dream and you’re not earning money from it – then, and only then, it’s time to adjust. If not, you might just have to live with the frustration.

frustration is a good thing
Every now and then I become frustrated that I’m not living off of the thing I love doing the most (hand lettering), but rather off other things I’m good at (translating, teaching, editing). It always feels like personal failure: I’m not making it as an artist. But wait a minute – I never set out to be a freelance artist! I went freelance to earn money doing what I’m good at. Whaddaya know? That’s exactly what I’m doing, and quite successfully I might add. (Pause for applause.)
So, how do freelancers who want to make art deal with this frustration? True, there are the lucky few who actually work in their creative field full time and earn enough to live off of it. But the majority of the artists I’ve met do this part-time, next to their regular jobs. Admittedly, in many cases, these jobs are also quite creative and maybe even related to their field of art, but they’re still jobs – be they extremely creative designers who work at a newspaper, talented typographers who do webdesign, musicians who edit videos, writers who edit, or lettering artists who translate. What I’m arguing, though, is this: Working outside of your creative talent in order to bring home the bacon might be better for you in the long run.

Frustration aside, this is quite a smart way to do it. As a freelancer, you have your own hours, and can work on your creative calling whenever you get the chance. For this to work, you need two things: you need to constantly reflect on your workflow (hello, gin & tonic), and you need discipline.
If you want to have enough free time to work on your creative calling, you may have to resist the money monster. This too, though, keeps you in touch with your gut instinct – which projects do you decline in order to make time for your art?
But even if you don’t make a penny with your art, the fact that it’s in your life will make you a better freelancer. (Which in turn will make you more money – sweet, huh?) You’ll need to make time for your art. Not only will this balance help you make the right choices and have better time management as a freelancer, it will also keep you happy. And that’s what it’s all about, isn’t it? Being happy. Oh, and gin & tonics, of course.