If a freelancer is absent from the scene for a long time, that means he is dead, sick, or he is busy with work. Luckily yours truly was busy, which means life is getting positive again. Today, we will talk about a very famous quote: " To be or not to be, that is the question" yea we know, at least those who took English class seriously, that Hamlet said those golden words. But these words aptly describe the life of a Freelancer. Perhaps Prince Hamlet was a freelancer himself.
Anyways, when you are a freelancer, especially a writer, half your life is spent looking for work. And when you do find it, you might not get offered a huge amount of money. It is not as if you are a designer or a programmer, you are just a writer. Trust me, I have heard that a lot. As I was saying, when you get a job offer for a small amount of money or even a fair amount but you feel that there is a lot of effort that you need to put in for researching it. But you have been looking for work for some days now. So now you are stuck between whether to go for it or whether to decline the offer.
What I am clumsily trying to say; is that you want to work but you want a good payment in return. The work you get offered doesn't fulfill this requirement. What to do then? Okay, I will share with you what I do in these situations. I usually ask for a bit higher rate so if I have to negotiate, then I will get a good amount. But that is when I have work already. If I don't have I might go for a lower rate because I can feel you guys, it is very stressful not having work.
Secondly, if the client is stubborn about the rate, then negotiate the time. Ask for more time, so that your current work doesn't get affected. You should evaluate the time before bidding on the project. But most of the time the client doesn't give much importance to the time and amount you bid and starts to negotiate even when you have mentioned the amount and time.
Now, if the client is not flexible on both the time and money, then I usually don't pursue the project because it can be very difficult to satisfy stubborn clients. However, if I like the topic a lot then I might take the project but that happens rarely. The point I am trying to make is that don't pick projects out of frustrations. Giving up work that doesn't suit you is a very good decision because eventually, work will come to you. There are people out there that are looking for writers or freelancers like you. because trust me, doing your best and getting less payment is not that fulfilling.
Here's wishing every Freelancer, including myself, a busy and prosperous new year!
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