One of the cooler features on being on Twitter (follow us here) is that you’ll bump into like-minded people that you otherwise might not have had the opportunity. Such was the case with my running into Jeremy Tuber (follow him here), an Arizona-based graphic designer who runs the very-appropriately named website, Being a Starving Artist Sucks (indeed it does). I’ve met lots of designers on Twitter, but it’s Jeremy’s pragmatic, almost utilitarian approach to the business side of graphic design that I found notable. Over the months that we’ve chatted back and forth via Twitter and e-mail, I’ve come to see Tuber as a fellow-traveler, someone who believes that graphic design isn’t a glorified hobby or creative outlet but a business. And a business that freelancers need to approach like any other professional does – like their livelihood depends on it.
Jeremy’s also published several books, including Being a Starving Artist Sucks and Verbal Kung Fu, both of which would be excellent additions to any designers’ arsenal. I’m always loath to recommend resources to designers without knowing something about the author, or the book itself, so Tuber sent me over a review copy of his Being a Starving Artist Sucks to take a look at. Not a bad read at all.
The book starts off with a self-diagnostic test where readers are asked to answer a few straightforward questions about pricing, a designer’s interaction with clients, and your general outlook on your flourishing, or floundering (depended on your circumstances), The test is broken into two halves – a pre-read and post-read – so that you can gauge how much you’ve learned once you’ve finished reading the book. And you will learn a lot. Some of the material is fairly basic and aimed at those just starting out on their design careers, but there’s enough information to keep even fairly experienced designers interested and reading on. The book is written in a designer’s language, and deals with concepts, business concerns, client and day-to-day issues that are exclusive to the creative profession. I liked that Tuber’s book isn’t just a reverse engineered re-hash of a standard business fundamentals text like so many other ‘earn money’ websites and manuals. Weighing in at over 500 pages, the book is hefty with pragmatic info, and covers everything from how to pick clients, to how to make sure a logo design job is profitable, to what to do when a client won’t pay your bill. I particularly liked the section that dealt with saving a gig that’s gone completely and utterly off the rails (had a few of those in my day) and even as an ‘Old Dog’ I found several of the chapters fairly enlightening. The thing that stood out the most for me is that Tuber’s main focus is how a designer remain competitive and profitable – something that’s becoming more-and-more difficult in the design industry with each passing day.
The companion book to Being a Starving Artist Sucks is the somewhat oddly-named Verbal Kung-Fu (which, once you understand the concept does actually make sense). Subtitled “Master the Art of Self Defense against Difficult Clients” (see, I told you it made sense), the book takes a very pragmatic approach to defusing problematic situations with clients (we’ve all had them – had one this morning). I didn’t read this one cover-to-cover (apols) but skimming through the various scenarios, I recognized many that I’ve had to deal with (with varying levels of success) over my career. Overall, Verbal Kung Fu appears to be a decent attempt to address some fairly common situations, and ones that you’re likely to run into, if you’ve chosen graphic design as a career.
Both these books are available on iTunes, Amazon (as paperback and on Kindle) and are available from the BASAS website. Jeremy’s also been kind enough to set-up an exclusive page where readers of this blog can get a 10% discount off their purchase. While you’re there, I’d also suggest you check out his “Work Smarter NOT Harder” Contracts and More Package, a fairly comprehensive selection of email templates, questionnaires and contracts that most designers will need at one time or another. Tuber also runs an informative (and often surprisingly frank) blog at his website and is always willing to offer design and business advice via Twitter.
Related posts:
- Get ‘em while they’re hot. The secrets to your Freelance Dreams…
- Design is a ’snooty’ business: Forbes
- Ten things you’ll need to be a great logo designer
- CMYK – America’s Top Graphic Designer
- Logo Design Contests – Bad for Business
Tags: business, careers, freelance, freelancing
There are also many advantages for a freelancer. A person who is self employed can usually choose their own work schedule. Income may be greater than when working for an employer. A freelancer is his or her own boss and has the freedom to work independently, usually from the comfort of home. Freelancers also have the opportunity to pick and choose which jobs are of interest.
Thanks for the information. As a freelance designer we should know our advantages and disadvatages of this job. And for how we should be a freelance web designer. But for me it is our choice if we want freelancer or work in the office
[...] I haven’t come across a book like this before and I highly recommend it. Its 166 pages are well categorised for easy referencing and is a ‘keep in your top draw’ kind of book. You also read what Steve from LogoFactory had to say about Jeremy’s books. [...]