Podcast appearances and mentions of bryce bladon

COVID-19 has changed EVERYTHING, including the landscape of freelance work in the world. A team of Clients From Hell All Stars (host Kyle Carpenter, former host Bryce Bladon and site owner, Vernon Southward) meet to take stock of what it means to freelance now, how they're thinking about this new reality, offer actionable strategies for what you could be doing with any extra free time you might have, and what the future might bring.  These are strange times, but you're not experiencing them alone.  Today's links:  https://brycebladon.com https://twitter.com/brycebladon https://easel.ly Theme song by topmen.bandcamp.com! Want to support the show? Order a custom infographic from Easel.ly! Use this link (https://www.easel.ly/infographicdesign/) for a great price!  Think you'd be a great fit for the show? Let me know at twitter.com/KCarCFH Leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or recommend us to a friend. It helps immensely.

Life is full of changes. One moment you can be a freelancer, the next you can be working full-time for one of the most exciting blockchain projects in the world, and then a freelancer again! ...Okay, that's pretty specific. But that's exactly the journey Bryce Bladon has taken over the last few years, and he joins old friend Kyle Carpenter to discuss his return to the freelance fold, the strategies he's used to hit the ground running, and why knowing yourself is the most important thing you can do for your career.  Today's links:  https://twitter.com/brycebladon http://brycebladon.com https://easel.ly/infographicdesign Theme song by topmen.bandcamp.com! Want to support the show? Order a custom infographic from Easel.ly! Use this link (https://www.easel.ly/infographicdesign/) for a great price!  Think you'd be a great fit for the show? Let me know at twitter.com/KCarCFH Leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or recommend us to a friend. It helps immensely.

In this episode, we speak with Alan Carr, co-founder of KittyCalc and Product Lead at CryptoKitties, and Bryce Bladon, Director of Communications at Dapper Labs. In addition to his work as a game designer and product manager for CryptoKitties, Alan also contributes to other projects at Dapper Labs. He is a Jack of all trades, master of dragons, and previously worked on entertainment experiences everywhere from Blizzard Entertainment to Asterism Books, his own self publishing imprint for young adult fiction. Bryce is an award-winning writer and content designer with a background in emerging technologies and helping people understand them. While at Axiom Zen, Bryce was a part of the team that brought CryptoKitties to market. CryptoKitties is a game centered around breedable, collectible, and oh-so-adorable creatures called CryptoKitties. Dapper Labs is a company aiming to reshape how we use and interact with digital worlds with projects including CryptoKitties, Cheeze Wizards and NBA Top Shot. We have a lively discussion with Bryce and Alan covering a lot of ground to unpack how Dapper Labs and CryptoKitties have been so successful in kicking off and driving the NFT and crypto collectible ecosystem. Notes [0:32] Polyient sponsorship intro. [1:12] Episode intro. [2:23] Background on Dapper Labs. [3:30] Alan’s background. [4:48] Bryce’s background. [5:26] The origin stories of CryptoKitties and Dapper Labs. [9:24] How the user base of CryptoKitties and Dapper Labs has evolved over time. [15:25] Overview of the markets for Dapper Labs, CryptoKitties, Cheeze Wizards and NBA Top Shot. [19:54] Approach to community governance and management to cultivate a following for each project. [22:31] Team organization across the different projects and how cross-pollination occurs. [28:03] Perspective on what the most critical skills are to have on a team to build successful products. [31:15] How the different teams run experiments, analyze results and communicate them to the rest of the organization. [37:12] Strategies for taking products to market. [41:48] What keeps Alan up at night with regard to CryptoKitties? [43:38] How is the world different five years from now because of Dapper Labs and CryptoKitties? [47:01] Where listeners can learn more about Alan, Bryce and the projects they work on. Links Alan’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/Alanfalcon Bryce’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/BryceBladon Bryce’s Personal Website: http://brycebladon.com/ CryptoKitties Website: https://www.cryptokitties.co/ CryptoKitties Twitter: https://twitter.com/CryptoKitties CryptoKitties Blog: https://medium.com/@CryptoKitties CryptoKitties Discord: https://discord.gg/cryptokitties CryptoKitties Open Positions: https://www.cryptokitties.co/careers Dapper Labs Website: https://www.dapperlabs.com Dapper Labs Twitter: https://twitter.com/dapper_labs Dapper Labs Blog: https://medium.com/dapperlabs Dapper Labs Telegram: https://t.me/dapper Cheeze Wizards Website: https://www.cheezewizards.com Cheeze Wizards Twitter: https://twitter.com/CHZWZRDS Cheeze Wizards Blog: https://medium.com/@CHZWZRDS Cheeze Wizards Telegram: https://discord.gg/6RxgZrZ NBA Top Shot Website: https://www.nbatopshot.com NBA Top Shot Twitter: https://twitter.com/nba_topshot Flow Website: https://www.withflow.org/ Flow Twitter: https://twitter.com/withflow_ KittyCalc Website: http://kittycalc.co/

Scope creep, finger-pointing, and angry emails… these things happen when expectations are misaligned between agencies and clients.  If you've been there more than once, you probably asked yourself, “How did this happen again?” In today's wide-ranging interview with Bryce Bladon, we attempt to answer this question, and we  meander to other topics like hiring, sales, […]

This week we feature Bryce Bladon, Founding Team Member of CryptoKitties and Director of Communications at Dapper Labs. For the past decade, he has been a communications consultant specializing in finding use cases for emerging technology. Bryce tells us about the launch of CryptoKitties in 2017, explains the game and its significance. He discusses the possibility of CryptoKitties being interoperable with other blockchain-based games in the future and how CryptoKitties may improve adoption generally. He then discusses what he hopes the long-term impact of this technology will be and informs us of how to get involved with CryptoKitties.   Topics covered: - Bryce’s role at CryptoKitties and an explanation of what it is. - How the idea of CryptoKitties came to be. - The need for blockchain when it comes to CryptoKitties and their limited supply. - The trillions of visual combinations possible with CryptoKitties. - The latest innovations in CryptoKitties. - The challenges of achieving mass adoption of blockchain and cryptocurrency. - Revenues in the gaming industry     Links to Resources: https://www.cryptokitties.co/ https://twitter.com/cryptokitties https://twitter.com/dapper_labs https://twitter.com/brycebladon    

With blockchain, digital art can now be personalized, interactive, and extendable. It can truly be owned, digitally scarce, and even a cultural following can be defined in tractable financial terms. From creation to consumption, blockchain unlocks numerous possibilities that will redefine our relationship and understanding of art. Full video: https://youtu.be/YfQp71Zr2fQ All about TNW Conference: https://tnw.to/conference

In late 2017, the world’s second-largest blockchain was brought to its knees by a game featuring digital cats, underlining the obstacles blockchain needs to overcome before the technology can realize its potential. This talk explores the main technical limitations—stability, scalability, obsoletion, computational power—and the unique people-created problems that emerge when excitement and ignorance for emerging technology intersect. Full video: https://youtu.be/U2GLtN70oYI All about TNW Conference: https://tnw.to/conference

Things are changing at Clients From Hell! Long time Editor in Chief and all-round superhero Bryce Bladon is moving on to new adventures and leaving us behind. But that's okay, because Bryce is chatting with new host Kyle Carpenter about why he's making the shift from a successful freelance career to a full time position with his favorite client, and when you should stop playing the field and get serious. Change is scary, but if you have any tips for our new host, let him know at @Clientsfh or contact@clientsfromhell.net with the subject line: Podcast.  Follow Bryce at: https://twitter.com/@BryceBladon http://brycebladon.com/  

Today’s guest is Bryce Bladon, author of Hell to Pay 2: Everything a Freelancer Needs to Earn Good Money, and editor-in-chief of Clients From Hell. He joins Charlie to discuss the differences between being an entrepreneur and a freelancer. So many creative professionals get stuck and confused because they are unsure about what type of business they’re building, and why they’re choosing that kind of business. Key Takeaways: [2:02] - Bryce thinks that freelancing is going to be the way of creative professionals in the future. Based on surveys conducted by the Freelancers Union, it is predicted that more than 40% of the US workforce is freelancing in some capacity. While it may take different forms, freelancing essentially means personal self-employment. [3:23] - Is there a difference between an entrepreneur and a freelancer? A freelancer is typically selling skills or services in their one-person (for the most part) business, while an entrepreneur is usually trying to start a business that will grow and scale, and may possibly be interested in selling it. Historically, freelancing is the way most creatives were employed. [6:01] - Now, we are seeing more of a renaissance of freelancing (and entrepreneurship), as some aspects of today’s workplace make it hard to employ really specialized talent. Advances in technology and changes in mindset have also given rise to many tools and platforms that are empowering for creators. [9:25] - The defining difference for Bryce between an entrepreneur and a freelancer is how each business scales. While there is overlap - maybe the entrepreneurial spirit is in a freelancer, or the meaningful, personal touch may be there as an entrepreneur builds his business - the difference lies in what your ultimate goals are and how you see yourself doing this three or five years down the road. [13:40] - Another big difference is that entrepreneurs typically take more financial risks, acquiring investors and hoping to gain profit. For a lot of freelance businesses, they are able to work on a smaller scale and get paid for the work they produce. Bryce talks about some of the lifestyle and work style differences between the two. [15:43] - Charlie talks about how the nature of entrepreneurs and freelancers has changed, and how perhaps our definitions need to expand to include more types of businesses. There is some grey space between the two extremes of entrepreneurs and freelancers, where the term solo-preneur seems appropriate. [20:05] - Labels aside, it all comes back to what you’re trying to do. There are different trajectories based on what your goals are. Once you determine what you’re trying to achieve, you can figure out what business models are going to work best for you. [21:28] - There are some skills that a freelancer should have: some amount of marketing, business, and accounting skills would be helpful to help them promote and manage their services. These skills are arguably more important for entrepreneurs because they are usually trying to build a big business, and need a solid foundation to keep building up. [24:08] - As you creative people think about your pathway forward, one way of thinking about it is specialist versus generalist. An entrepreneur needs to be a better generalist that thinks about several things at the same time. A freelancer will need to be a better specialist, that hones their skill to be better than whatever is out there. [28:30] - Another big difference is that almost anyone can freelance in some capacity, but not everyone can become an entrepreneur, at least at the start. There needs to be an appreciation of the risks you’re going to be taking before you take them. [30:00] - Many businesses start by selling a service, and this can sometimes morph into selling a product. Starting with selling a craft or a skill is something that most people can do. Building products around that requires a different skill set with a different mentality around it. [36:24] - No matter where you are on the spectrum (entrepreneur, freelancer, solo-preneuer), most people’s first business either fails or is not the business that ends up being sustainable in the long-term. Where you start is very rarely going to be anywhere close to where you will be when that business matures. [37:57] - The scale of risk that you might take when starting a freelance or service-based business is much lower than making a product and all that that encompasses. [41:11] - Charlie and Bryce talk about how startup companies differ from many of the other freelance/entrepreneurial companies out there. It is not logical for all businesses to grow tenfold. You have to think about what makes sense for the individual business in terms of what you hope to accomplish. You need to be able to answer the question, am I building a business that I will want to be in in five years? [43:16] - Many people get into the freelance business for personal growth reasons. Though they may not be more financially independent, they are enjoying a higher quality of life. The real payout for Bryce is the idea of independence, and what you can do with it, and how you spend your time with regards to the business. [46:43] - The market and opportunities for freelancing are only getting better these days, and that’s a very exciting thing. Freelancing is a great vehicle for autonomy, mastery, and purpose. In some of the smaller companies that are emerging, you get an opportunity to have the freedom of creativity with the security of getting a paycheck. When you drop the six-figure expectation, you can find a balance of work that works for you, your clients, and your life and relationships at the same time. [49:03] - Bryce’s challenge for listeners: Find and reach out to somebody who is doing something that inspires you or that you would like to do someday. Say something nice about what they’ve done and what it has done for you. Mentioned in This Episode: Productive Flourishing Bryce Bladon Clients from Hell Drive, by Dan Pink Hell to Pay 2, by Bryce Bladon Leave a Review

Today Bryce Bladon from Clients from Hell stops by to talk about…clients from hell.  Also, how to protect yourself as a freelancer, how to be a good client, what to do if you decide to stop working with a client, and much more. Get 50% off your entire web hosting program by using the promo code “solo50” at […]

Bryce Bladon is a freelancer, consultant and one of the people currently behind one of the most popular Tumblr blogs in the entire world, Clients From Hell. In this broadcast, Bryce Bladon and I talk about: How Bryce started managing Clients from Hell Some examples of how Clients from Hell has grown to what it is today The importance of cyclical content How the Clients From Hell platform is monetized The balance between having sponsors and maintaining brand integrity How Bryce decides what new projects to work on The metrics Bryce uses to analyze the performance of the website How time-consuming is managing Clients From Hell? The future of Clients From Hell Bryce’s aversion to social media platforms How to connect with Bryce Bladon Online: Bryce’s Website Clients From Hell Website Clients From Hell Podcast @BryceBladon Hell to Pay 2 (Get $10 OFF when you use the discount code “inthetrenches”!) Click to Tweet: If there isn t a product out there that I would ve wanted, and needed, and found valuable that s what I m going to do next.” – @BryceBladon If you enjoyed today s podcast, please leave a review on iTunes here. Thanks so much in advance for your support. The post ITT 101: How to Manage and Monetize a Popular Blog with Bryce Bladon appeared first on Tom Morkes.

My guest today is an editor, writer, and entrepreneur. With 10 years experience in self-employment, my guest has published 12 books, gathered 780,000 blog followers, and 25,000 email subscribers. He is currently the editor-in-chief and co-owner of Clients From Hell, where they help creative professional. Now, let’s hack… Bryce Bladon.

Freelance designer Dylan Smith joins the show to discuss why his business degree helps him as a designer, why finding your community is so valuable, and why Leonardo is his favourite Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle. Dylan's also organizing the Solo Conference for Freelancers (solo-conf.com) in September! Want to support the show? Leave us a review on iTunes! Links from today's show include: Solo Conference (https://solo-conf.com/) Dylan on Twitter (https://twitter.com/dylanatsmith) Check out Dylan's meetup group (http://www.meetup.com/londonfreelancers/) -- This week's episode is sponsored by the new edition of Hell to Pay: A freelancer's guide to making good money. (clientsfromhell.net/helltopay) Bryce's popular guide to freelance finances has a brand new edition out, featuring... An expanded tax section with step-by-step instructions for filing your freelance taxes More money-making advice New tactics for negotiating a higher rate As always, Hell to Pay teaches you: How to determine your rate How to charge your clients How to earn better money with less work Buy now and get the new edition when it launches in April! Podcast listeners save 40% with coupon code: CFHPodcast > Let's make good money!clientsfromhell.net/helltopay Already bought a copy? No problem: you get the new edition for free – expect an email regarding that soon.  -- Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell is on iTunes and Soundcloud Subscribe to us on iTunes and Android and RSS

Transitioning from full-time radio jobs to becoming a freelance video and audio producer: Steve Folland of the Being Freelance podcast joins Bryce to discuss his freelance journey.  Find Steve on YouTube, Twitter, and Instagram.  Do you have a question of your own? Shoot us an email!  Want to support the show? Leave us a review on iTunes! -- This week's episode is sponsored by the new edition of Hell to Pay: A freelancer's guide to making good money.  Bryce's popular guide to freelance finances has a brand new edition out, featuring... An expanded tax section with step-by-step instructions for filing your freelance taxes More money-making advice New tactics for negotiating a higher rate As always, Hell to Pay teaches you: How to determine your rate How to charge your clients How to earn better money with less work Buy now and get the new edition when it launches in late March!  Podcast listeners save 40% with coupon code: CFHPodcast > Let's make good money! clientsfromhell.net/helltopay Already bought a copy? No problem: you get the new edition for free – expect an email regarding that soon.  -- Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

Defining success, setting expectations, and avoiding clients from hell. Chris Hawkins of the 100K Freelancer Podcast joins Bryce to discuss all these things and more.  S'a good one this week, guys.  Do you have a question of your own? Shoot us an email!  Want to support the show? Leave us a review on iTunes! -- Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

Bryce is the freelance writer behind the Clients From Hell blog and podcast... but how the devil did he get to where he is today? He takes us through the isolation, the daily marketing habit of reaching out and how actually - maybe getting a job with an agency might have been a good idea. Love learning from other freelancers like this? Check out the website beingfreelance.com, subscribe to the podcast and to the newsletter. You'll also find useful links for this episode. That's beingfreelance.com Like VIDEO? - Check out the Being Freelance vlog - YouTube.com/SteveFolland Steve also appeared on Bryce's podcast sharing his own story - take a listen! Who the hell is Steve Folland? You know how everyone bangs on about how powerful video and audio content can be? Yeah, well Steve helps businesses make it and make the most of it. Find out more at www.stevefolland.com Track him down on Twitter @sfolland or lay a trail of cake and he'll eventually catch you up.

In this week’s episode we’re going to talk about crappy clients — or “clients from hell,” as my guest calls them. ;-) My guest is Bryce Bladon. Bryce is an award-winning writer, creative consultant and strategist, and editor-in-chief of Clients From Hell, a blog that collects anonymously contributed client horror stories from the front lines of the freelancing industry. He also hosts a podcast of the same name. Yes, we’ll vent a little. But we’ll also talk about how you can identify these “problem children” before they unleash hell. More specifically, how to handle these difficult situations with grace and professionalism.

Learn how to put your best foot forward when you decide to start freelancing. This is easily our most common Freelance FAQ.  Do you have a question of your own? Shoot us an email!  Want to support the show? Leave us a review on iTunes! -- Freelance FAQ: How do I start freelancing? KAI The basic answer is ‘find someone who wants to pay you money for a service you provide, then provide that service. The longer answer is: Identify a target market you want to work with (The Positioning Manual by Philip Morgan is a great resource for this) Identify an expensive problem -- “We aren’t getting enough leads!” -- that the target market is experiencing Create a service offering that helps the client resolve the problem (“We aren’t getting enough leads”) and moves them towards their dream outcome (“We’re getting too many leads!”) I started by picking a hobby-skill I had (wordpress development) and finding people who needed WordPress websites. Over time, I identified more valuable problems to focus on and updated my positioning, my target market, my expensive problem, and my service offerings. But to start, create those ‘rolodex moments’ -- have a strong positioning statement (“I’m a THING who helps TARGET MARKET with EXPENSIVE PROBLEM”) and see what referrals and reaction you get. BRYCE What you need to start freelancing All you really need to freelance is: A Good Mentality (e.g. self-confidence, a willingness to try, etc.) Action (e.g. self-discipline, actually doing the work). A skill that can provide value A plan (e.g. self-reflection, meaningful goals, etc.) Selling and positioning your skill so that it appeals to clients -- and building a plan around that -- is the real secret to freelancing successfully. Typically, this is referred to as finding a niche, which is something a freelancer should do as soon as possible. A niche reduces competition and increases specialization. Niche experts can earn more and they’re more attractive to clients with problems their niche experience helps solve. It provides direction and focus. You’ll want to find some sort of niche ASAP. Here are a few questions to ask yourself to help: What industry do you actually use products from or enjoy? What industry hires freelancers with skills like yours? What industry would you enjoy networking in and actually being a part of? Finding those first three good clients is the first barrier to overcome. With those first clients (and future clients), you’ll want to: Find a client’s problem and know how to solve it. Target the correct market Pitch the client by... Address the problem: The client’s issue, objective, needs, goals, etc. Offer a solution: Your strategy, plan, or unique positioning that makes you the answer they’ve been looking for. Fees and timelines: I wouldn’t go too far into this initially, but you’ll want to lay the groundwork for fees and realistic timelines. A client shouldn’t feel blindsided by this stuff down the line. After those first few client interactions, you should reassess your plan before moving forward. Is your skill offering value to clients? Did you enjoy working with these clients? Are there areas to improve? If those first few client interactions went well and you want to do more work with them, pursue referrals, build case studies, and focus on refining your service as much as possible. --  Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RS

You really can work from anywhere — and even on your own terms! Just make sure all your advice doesn't come from a clickbait headline.  Do you have a question of your own? Shoot us an email!  Want to support the show? Leave us a review on iTunes! -- Freelance FAQ: How do you work remotely? You work remotely (and effectively), by having four things: A clear idea of what you should be doing, in terms of outcomes. “Get client outline of marketing project” or “Finish design for Kai” Time clearly blocked off for each project A working environment – be it a cafe, a coffee shop, a co-working space, or an office – where you can do focused work A means of communicating with the client with firmly established boundaries in terms of when you are and are not available When you know the work you need to do, have time blocked off for the work, have a space to do the work in, and have a means of communicating with the client that isn’t a distraction, you’re in the perfect spot to work remotely. In terms of telling clients you work remotely, I’ve never had an issue with this. I’ve been consulting for 5+ years and every single project has been remote. No one has balked. --  Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RS

Dealing with the isolation that comes with freelancing and the magnificent, life-changing power of saying no.  Do you have a question of your own? Shoot us an email!  Want to support the show? Leave us a review on iTunes! -- Freelance FAQ: How do you deal with isolation when working from home? It sucks. It really does. Getting over that hump takes a lot of work -- useful, doable work -- but work. Have an immediate support system of friends you can spend non-work time with Stop work immediately at a designated time (Kai's is 4:30pm) Only start work at a certain time (Kai's is 9:30am) Have 2-4 hobbies you’ve cultivated (I like road biking, hiking, weight lifting, and reading) so you can switch to something non-work if you have energy and it’s the evening Track how you’re feeling. Even just in a journal or a journal app like Day1, track how you’re feeling with the isolation and working from home. Mostly negatives? Mostly positives? If the isolation causes you issues -- it very well may -- then look into coworking spaces or sharing an office with an individual or a team to give you that social interaction. Freelance FAQ: How do you say no? Practice. Realize that you saying no is not a rejection of the client’s idea, but you saying ‘there is a better way to do this.’ Be comfortable with the uncomfortableness of saying no. It gets easier over time. Read ‘non-violent communication, a language of life.’ Realize that if you don’t say no, you’ll be doing a lot of extra work without compensation; you owe it to yourself to say no. And if a client pushes back? Either they have a legitimate reason and information you don’t have (good!) or they’re incorrect and a bad client who you should fire. --  Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RS

How do you specialize with a niche? Why do you specialize with a niche? A third question!? This and more on this episode of the Clients From Hell podcast.  Do you have a question of your own? Shoot us an email!  Want to support the show? Leave us a review on iTunes! -- How do I find my niche? This question was originally submitted for the 'Feedback from the Inferno' segment. However, it's a common question, so we've elevated it to the Freelancer FAQ segment.    I don’t have much experience freelancing and I’m confused how to sell my services – what makes me unique? I’m an illustrator, I started freelancing straight out of university, and I’ve only had a handful of jobs in roughly two years – I think this is because I spent a lot of time not knowing what I wanted to do or even how to do it but I’m starting to find a bit more focus now. I’ve started pushing myself towards children’s illustration with the hopes of getting work in publishing, greetings cards, stationary – maybe even the games industry. My issue is this – I have no idea what my niche is. I used to think narrowing my field was good enough, but I was just listening to your “how to find work as a freelancer” podcast, and you mentioned the need to tell a client why they need you, and why you can do the work in a unique way. The thing is, I don’t know how I can complete the work in a way that another illustrator couldn’t also do. I don’t have an impressive client list under my belt, and I don’t have a particularly unique workflow or style. I simply don’t know what I could say to a client that would make me stand out. - A no-niche freelancer   Everyone feels this way at a certain point – in life and in freelancing. Do not stress about being unsure about your uniqueness quite yet. You may not even have the practical experience necessary to really know yourself and what you’re about. I think it would be worthwhile for you to try and get some practical experience at an agency. It offers on-the-job experience; it can refine your skills, and it can teach you a lot about dealing with clients. It can also tell you a lot about yourself, what you value, and what separates you from the pack. But, if you already have a day job, or if freelancing as an illustrator is your exclusive interest, that’s fine too. The first thing you should focus on is what Neil Gaiman identified as the three reasons someone will work with a freelancer. The best part is, you only need to deliver on two of them: Quality work Delivered promptly Pleasant to work with After you manage two out of three on that, then you can start to hone in on that niche. The more work you do, the more you’ll appreciate what kind of work you enjoy – and what kind you despise. The more work you do, the more you’ll come to appreciate what makes you, as a professional, unique and compelling. It doesn’t just happen. It’s a long, slow, and heavily involved process that can sneak up on you if you’re not paying attention. I’m almost certain that the handful of clients you’ve had has resulted in an informative experience, if not a niche-defining one. There are a few suggestions for finding that specific niche: Reach out to potential clients and ask them questions (e.g. why did you hire that freelancer, how did you find them, what problems were you having, what results did you expect, etc.) Do not try to pitch these clients while you’re researching Time, effort, work, and a whole lot of reflection on your experiences Go to a job board or freelancer site (e.g. upwork, fiverr) and look at what the highest paid freelancers claim as their unique selling proposition (USP) Reach out to successful illustrators and ask them about their journey to where they are now. (e.g. what kind of clients did you end up focusing on? What made your offering compelling? What was the most common client pain point? Etc.) Figure out what you’re good at. Ask your friends; give them an anonymous google doc to fill out if you want a lot of honest answers. I’ll be honest: my niche has changed multiple time over the course of my career. It will almost certainly change again. I learned that I’m a flexible resource that completes work quickly, and I’m excellent at providing creative content. However, I’m not a huge fan of actually “selling” my work, nor did I always feel I had the chops to provide strategic consulting. Having worked with clients of a few shapes, sizes, and industries, I figured I’d aim at smaller agencies that had issues with their copy (I looked at their website, job postings, etc.). A client taught me that most agencies of a certain size don’t have a staff writer (this is a pain point); they make due with somewhat-unreliable freelancers (another pain point) for this work. I reached out directly to the CEO or head of hiring, showcased I did my research, and (POLITELY) brought these issues to their attention. I closed the letter by asking if I could chat with them for five minutes to get some advice regarding their industry. Almost every one said yes. People like being approached as experts, especially if you start by offering a little value first. After taking these meetings, I ask my questions (see that point about researching your clients?). I close the meeting by thanking them for their time, and I state that, if they ever need help creating content, I was hungry for practical experience in the industry, and I’d even charge less than my usual rate. I also addressed those aforementioned pain points (e.g. I can come in a couple of times a week for in-person briefings and on-the-fly edits; I can commit x hours a week, so you’re always guaranteed a reliable resource, etc.) Full disclosure: I don’t actually have a usual rate. I figured out what I wanted to make an hour and said it was half my usual rate. TL;DR: Get experience with as many clients as you can. Reach out to clients and ask after their industry and why they hire freelancers Research successful freelancers in your field The end goal: Figure out the client’s challenges, the solutions others offer, and what defines you as an individual. You don’t need to re-invent the wheel with your offering; you just need to give it your own compelling spin. --  Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RS

How to get a client to pay you, how to get a testimonial from a client, and what to do when your work is stolen by another freelancer. Do you have a question of your own? Shoot us an email!  Want to support the show? Leave us a review on iTunes! -- Freelance FAQ: How do I ensure a client pays my invoice? Always start with a deposit -- typically 50%. This guarantees your time and services. Before sending over the final project, ensure you collect the remaining 50% first. (You don’t need to do this exact split, but collecting 50-100% upfront is the most straightforward way to ensure timely payment and a quality client) Use a contract, and in it, stipulate that the intellectual property is yours and usage is illegal until payment in full is received. Clarify your payment schedule and refund policy in the same contract Attaching payment to milestones is an excellent practice for larger projects If a client is curious why you don’t offer refunds, clarify the time investment and that you have to turn down other work to complete this project. Make it as easy as possible for the client to pay (e.g. Paypal, Stripe, Bonsai). Automate reminders for the client to pay. Until the client signs the contract and pays your deposit, do NOT start work. This stage is where you spend your time understanding, evaluating, and explaining things to the client. Once they pay, you should take a more active role. As always, don’t give them any legitimate reasons not to pay you. Communicate, be on time, and produce quality work. Clients who have issues paying at the start are likely to have issues paying you at the end of a project. Trust your gut in these instances. As you get more experience, learn what to charge for, and what to offer as a free bonus. Friendly emails and phone calls will cover you the vast majority of the time. The more direct the communication method, the harder it is to ignore.   Freelance FAQ: How do you get testimonials from clients? Ask for one after a successful client engagement. Reach out to past clients a few weeks or months down the line; see how the project is doing. While you have their ear, ask for a testimonial. Make it as easy as possible for clients to give you a testimonial. Make your request short and to the point. Offer some light direction Follow up if you don’t hear back within a week. If a client reveals they’re dissatisfied with your work and they won’t give you a testimonial, don’t treat this as a loss. Follow up; ask about the issues they experienced with you and what you can do to improve.   Feedback from the Inferno: What do I do about another freelancer who stole my work? (This segment originally premiered over at The Freelancers Union.) I know you’ve addressed clients stealing work before, but I’m in a slightly different situation. Another photographer – one who I’ve never met – has one my pieces in his portfolio and he’s claiming himself as the creator. What should I do? Do I have any recourse, or should I just let it go? – A picture-perfect freelancer   No need to take the Elsa philosophy; there are three things you can do. Start by writing a polite request for them to take down your work. After that, you can file a DMCA takedown. Here’s a basic breakdown from the NPPA on how to do that. All you need to do is find the ISP hosting your image and draft your takedown notice. Finally, you can hire a lawyer to send them a cease a desist. I wouldn’t recommend this one; it’s not going to be worth your time and effort, and attorneys – in addition to being expensive – tend to take cases like this one in very specific circumstances, e.g. if you’ve registered your photo before the infringement. One thing you should not do is go straight to shaming the perpetrator online; take the high road before you consider the low one. It’s important to stick up for yourself and take necessary steps to protect your work, but it’s unlikely that this will in any way cost you work or somehow tarnish your reputation. Starting an online mob, however, has the potential to do both these things, so tread carefully. --  Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RS

Bryce helps you decide whether your work is good before discussing the numerous skills a freelancer needs to succeed.  Do you have a question of your own? Shoot us an email!  Want to support the show? Leave us a review on iTunes! -- Freelance FAQ: How do I know if I'm doing good work?   Freelancing can leave you feeling isolated; soliciting feedback and getting outside of your bubble is crucial. Join online groups related to your craft. Offer (solicited) criticisms. Request criticism Solicit feedback from past clients Ask after more than the work itself (e.g. how communicative was I? What would the client prefer I do differently?) You can do this with non-clients do, but if you do it with friends, offer them anonymity (e.g. a google document or a typeform) Regularly produce work related to your craft. Regularly try to improve your craft. Stay up-to-date in your field Sign up for newsletters Follow influencers    Freelance FAQ: How do you deal with being a jack of all trades?   Your focus should remain on your field or primary skill, but to succeed as a freelancer, you need to learn about business, marketing, and quite a few fields that overlap with your own. The two best pieces of advice for needing to work outside of your specific skill set is this: Keep it as simple as possible Don’t invest the time and anxiety until you’re ready to address the issue My advice for the two skillsets every freelancer needs are below: Marketing: Reaching out to potential clients and building steady work should be your foremost concern Business and Finances: Calculate your minimal hourly rate and never dip below it. If you have a lot of work, charge your next client more. Keep doing this until you get push back. One of your first investments into your business should be invoicing or contract software. Bonsai is a great place to start. Finally, if you have some affinity for it, educate yourself on fields that overlap with yours as soon as possible. This elevates the value of your primary skill while increasing your overall value. E.g. Design + Copywriting / Coding E.g. Writing + Design / Coding / Marketing E.g. Development + Writing / Design / Front end or back end You don’t need fancy tools or expensive courses to succeed, but you do need to invest the time. Specifically, you need to invest it wisely. Focus on skills that promise the biggest, most immediate returns, and work the rest out from there. --  Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RS

A freelancer wonders what to do after his best client's best friend refuses to pay his invoice; Bryce offers advice for charging clients.  Do you have a question of your own? Shoot us an email!  Want to support the show? Leave us a review on iTunes! -- Freelance FAQ: How should I charge my client? The basic answer is, “if you want to earn X this year, you need to be making Y for every hour you work.” My rule of thumb: Take what you want to earn in a year and drop the zeroes. If you want to earn $45,000 this year, you need to be earning, at least, $45 for every hour you spend on your business. The logic behind this rule of thumb: There are about 2,000 billable hours in a year (40 hours a week x 50 weeks in a year – we’re losing two weeks for holidays). You cut those billable hours in half, because at least 25% of your time will go into business upkeep, and the other 25% will go into taxes, insurance, and retirement (which adds up to 50% of your time – half). Thus, take what you want to earn in a year (e.g. $60,000) and divide it by the 1000 billable hours (e.g. $60/hour). Remember, these are ballpark estimates, not fine-tuned figures. Besides hourly, there are numerous ways to charge a client: Daily Can begin charging for value (not time) and you get to focus on one thing at a time You can’t be flexible with your day; this billing rate doesn’t work with every situation Weekly More flexibility to charge for value and not time; it is very results orientated. Weekly rates are more applicable to consultants and results-based work; the time investment for some weeks can wildly exceed a typical 40-hour workweek Monthly A monthly rate offers regular income that bolsters a long-term relationship with clients It’s similar to being a full-time employee, with the pros and cons associated with that. Typically, you’ll have to charge more than a full-timer would and it can be difficult to communicate to a client why that is. Per deliverable This style of billing is directly tied to a product or result; your rate and time commitment are completely irrelevant. Scope changes and negotiation are commonplace Per project Your billing purely by value; there’s less need for oversight and micromanagement regarding your day-to-day activities However, there’s an immense amount of planning involved; if you miss something, you eat the cost. You should know your hourly rate even if you do not intend to charge by the hour. Your hourly rate informs all other forms of billing, typically as a bare minimum you need to be making. Experience will teach you how you like to work, and how you like to work will influence the ideal way for you to bill your clients. Despite weekly billing having a higher potential income attached to it, monthly billing works better for my clients and me.   Feedback from the Inferno: My best client's best friend stiffed me – now what? (This segment originally premiered over at The Freelancers Union.) My biggest client referred his best friend to me. That friend stiffed me on my invoice. What can I do without ruining the 15+ year relationship I have with my client? In a nutshell, my best and biggest client referred me to his close friend for some IT work. It came as an emergency. I did my best, and I got my client’s friend up and running again. Over two visits, the friend accumulated $1600 worth of time within a few days. Both of his checks bounced. His business went bankrupt, and he claimed creditors to be relieved from, but I wasn’t one of them. I got his word he would pay me and that he appreciated the work I did for him. Time went by. Nothing happened. I asked my client about his situation and from what I saw, my client was also one of the people his friend borrowed from. I’m unsure if he was someone he was relieved from. When I asked my client if I should pursue it, he said I should drop it that I would probably never get the money back. That $1600 isn’t chump change. With the economy like it is, I could sure use it. I don’t want to alienate my client, but it burns my ass that his friend got off, especially since he’s rich and lives in an exclusive neighborhood, nice cars, has another business which is flourishing, etc. Additional context: the freelancer who wrote in has been in IT since 1994, and he started his business in 2004. There are no contracts involved in most of his work, as most of his clients have long and personal relationships with him – often spanning over a decade. – A freelancer with a burnt butt   Honestly, it seems like you've already reached the conclusion on this: it's frustrating, but that money is likely gone. A lot of time has passed, and there was no contract in place. It's certainly possible there's a route you can take to regain that lost $1,600, but I don't see a way that's worth that amount of money – almost all of them will cost you in much more damaging ways. I respect the crap out of the style of work you offer – close relationships, time-honed offerings, constant support – but it's a style where a contract-free experience should only be offered to proven and qualified clients. As you stated (this was in a separate email), it's the newer clients that take advantage of your stalwart offering. I'd suggest taking a look at how you qualify these new clients and if there's a way to offer an expedited contract or down payment. Here's how I deal with this: I have a simply-worded and short contract template that I use for clients I'm unsure about. I fill in the blanks with the client, and that ensures we're both on the same page regarding it (e.g. what results do they expect? what services do they need? who's my main contact? who's in charge of payment?). My first meeting or two with the client is spent gaining an understanding of their issue, offering my solution, and engaging them for the work. My third meeting is a 5-45-minute engagement where we fill in those contract blanks and ensure we understand each other. I'm protected, my client is protected, and we’re both clear what I'll be doing with them. Plus, that contract-creating experience is my built-in client-qualification system. I also suggest you check out the Freelance Isn’t Free act. I think you’ll be interested in supporting it. Otherwise, I wish you the best with your future clients. I know a principled business (with such a remarkable pedigree) will do just fine in the long run, so my final piece of advice is this: don't sweat the crappy experiences. They seem to be few and far in-between. --  Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RS

What to ask a prospective client and advice for a freelancer caught in a client's love triangle.  Do you have a question of your own? Shoot us an email!  Want to support the show? Leave us a review on iTunes! -- Freelance FAQ: What questions should I ask a client? When you first meet a client, you need to: Determine if the prospect is a good fit Diagnose their problem Decide if this will be a mutually beneficial relationship Don’t overwhelm your prospect with 1,001 questions in the initial email, but do ask them sooner than later. From there, you need to determine: Budget: Can the client afford your services? Authority: Does this person have the authority to make buying decisions? Need: Does the client have a genuine need for your services? Timeline: Does the timeline work for you and your client? I always try to figure out the negative consequences of not having a solution and the positive implications of having a solution to frame all future conversations. Regardless, here are some general questions to ask a prospect or client: For what reasons are you looking to hire a new freelancer now? What triggered your decision to hire a freelancer? What’s made this so urgent or important? What experiences, good and bad, have you had with other freelancers? What do you want to be different this time around? What results do you expect to see from the work we do together? What are your company’s goals? What’s your most important priority? What’s your most urgent priority? If they’re not the same, ask: What will it take to focus on the most important priority? How can the urgent priority get downgraded? What’s your company’s biggest marketing challenge? What’s keeping you from overcoming or meeting that challenge? What internal resources do you have to apply to this challenge? How well are your competitors doing? What are your competitors doing that you’re not and wish you were? What do you want to be the best at? What do you want your company or department to be renowned for? What are you willing to stake your reputation on? What’s the average lifetime value of a customer? What’s your customer acquisition cost? What’s your current marketing return on investment? What’s your process for choosing a consultant or agency? Have you used this process before? What worked or didn’t work? What will you do to get a different result? Who’s involved in making the decision? Who signs the contract? If you don’t hire a freelancer or consultant, how will you meet this challenge? What will you do? How will you know we’ve been successful? If we don’t address this issue, what will it cost your company? If we deliver on agreed upon goals, what’s that worth to your company? What problems do you see down the road that could obstruct or constrain our working together? What makes you lose sleep at night? Or what do you need so you can sleep at night? You may have field-specific questions that you find your regularly asking clients. Based on those repeat findings, you should create an onboarding questionnaire that you go through with clients when they first engage you.   Feedback from the Inferno: How do I deal with my client’s controlling boyfriend? (This segment originally premiered over at The Freelancers Union.) My client’s boyfriend insists on attending all of our meetings, business or otherwise. For context, I’m a male, and my client is a female. We know each other from school, but we recently reconnected when she found out I started freelancing, and she wanted me to build her budding businesses’ website. My client has insisted that this isn’t a big deal – the boyfriend should be treated as another source of feedback – but the dynamic makes me uncomfortable. I told her that she doesn’t have to worry about me trying anything, but she says that’s not really the issue. She insists that the boyfriend has “her best interests” in mind and just not to worry about it because she “really wants to work with me on this.” What should I do? – A third-wheel freelancer   I had to email this submitter back to glean a bit of additional context. To summarize: the client and her boyfriend have both cheated on one another, and the boyfriend is not there for his business expertise; the client and the submitter hooked up once “while drunk at school”; by school, the submitter means he and his client attended university together. One thing that immediately set off warning signs for me is that you’re having meetings with this client that fall under the umbrella of “otherwise.” Working with friends is something that I probably wouldn’t recommend. Working with a former hookup is something I would almost always discourage. Working with a serial cheater (that you have a history with!) while she’s in a troubled relationship (with a controlling boyfriend!) sounds like the motive the detective will give when he finds your dead body. Point being: none of this sounds like a good idea. Even if you weren’t involved with this client on the pretense of this being a client-freelancer relationship – and I’m not convinced you wouldn’t be, as you failed to mention you had sex with this client in the past in your initial email – I would still encourage you to get as far away as possible. It sounds like this client needs to separate their personal and professional life. And I think the same could be said about you. --  Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RS

A boss from hell claims ownership of a would-be freelancer's free time; Bryce offers advice for transitioning from a traditional full-time job to self-employment.  This episode... How do I go from the nine-to-five to freelancing? What should I do about a boss who won't let me have a side gig? Do you have a question of your own? Shoot us an email!  Want to support the show? Leave us a review on iTunes! -- Freelance FAQ: How do I transition from the 9 to 5 to freelancing? Before you make the full-time freelancing plunge... Know your finances Have 3-6 months of savings before you commit Start moonlighting Freedom to learn and experiment. When you do start freelancing… Communicate with clients (but don’t create unnecessary work for them) Meet deadlines Always give your best work (if you can) Research how freelance taxes work in your state Look into insurance options Create a schedule, system or process for work. Occasionally re-evaluate what is and isn’t working. In particular, look for time investments that aren’t showing any returns Always evaluate your work/life balance Evaluate your income to expenses   Feedback from the Inferno: My boss won't let me have a sidegig -- what should I do? (This segment originally premiered over at The Freelancers Union.) I moonlight as a freelancer and I know my boss will have a problem with it if he ever finds out. What should I do? I have done freelance writing here and there for almost 10 years. I enjoy doing it, and I want to really get serious about it. Here's my problem: I work full-time as an administrative assistant at a law firm, and my boss is not at all supportive of me doing anything that he thinks might take me away from my job. And let's be honest, he has a point - I do intend to leave when I've got my freelancing off the ground. For now, I need the money, and it's not a terrible gig, but it isn't where my heart is. I already have one client that I got by word of mouth, and I know I need to advertise my services to gain more clients – which is scary enough, as I am an introvert – but I'm scared to put myself out there lest my boss discovers what I'm up to and uses it against me. I would love just to be honest with him, as I have with my office manager, but past experiences have already taught me that's not an option; as examples, he fired another assistant partly because that assistant divulged that he was going to night school to become an EMT; he also was wary of me getting my CAP-OM certification until I described how it would benefit HIM. I already dropped hints a long time ago that I really wanted to pursue writing, but that was dismissed and never referenced again. Many others within the firm have ventures outside of the office, including my boss and all of the partners. But for them, the firm is an anchor. For me, it is a stepping stone. My question is twofold: is there a way for me to advertise myself stealthily so that I can get clients without my current boss finding out? Or, in the event I just say screw it and put myself out there, how can I prepare to deal with the fallout? I appreciate any help you can give - I am reaching out to you because I have heard you say to start freelancing part-time before jumping in with both feet, and I figured maybe you'd have some insight into a situation like mine. I'm tired of holding back and missing out on clients and money because I'm afraid a simple Google search will cost me my job before I'm ready to leave. – A moonlighter on a mission   First of all, this is easily one of the best-written emails I've ever received. You clearly have the chops to make it on your own as a freelance writer. Second, your boss is an absolute douche. With that out of the way… Finding Work There are tons of ways to market yourself without actually exposing yourself. In nearly a decade of freelancing, roughly 80% of my work came from clients I never actually met. Word of mouth, job boards, local meetups – they’re all great ways to find work when you’re first starting out. For your first few jobs, simply letting the world know (via twitter, facebook, etc.) you’re available for work is a great way to secure some warm leads. However, that last bit of advice tickles your main issue… On being googled I almost always suggest a freelancer use their name as their business, and I think this should still be the case for you. I understand the fear of Googling – and it's a valid concern – but the idea of this boss owning your name online is utterly ridiculous. Plus, your freelance site doesn't need to be salesy or revealing. Giselle's illustration website is a great example of this. To address this potential name issue, maybe you can focus on your first or last name to start. Remember, most of your potential clients will be directed to your website through you; very few clients will find you by googling "freelance writer" or whatever. Preparing to go full-time (AKA dealing with the fallout) Simply put, I recommend 3-6 months of savings for ALL your living expenses is set aside before you make the full-time freelancing leap. I also recommend at least three positive client experiences before you make the plunge. Ideally, some of these clients will offer recurring work. Other resources Here are two articles I always recommend for this stuff: How to Start Freelancing Without Quitting Your Job An Experienced Freelancer’s Guide to Finding Clients Also, if you ever want to use my Start Freelancing course to get a boost, I included a 75% off coupon in that link. --  Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

This week, Bryce answers common (and not so common) questions about freelancing.  Do you have a question of your own? Shoot us an email!  Want to support the show? Leave us a review on iTunes! -- Freelance FAQ: Where do I find my first clients? Start with people you know. Announce via social, email, etc. that you’re starting to freelance Reach out to individuals you know that may have need of your services Feel free to reach out for work, but also ask to pick their brain e.g. does your business hire freelancers? What do they look for? Etc. Reach out to nearby businesses, especially if you have a positive relationship or a connection to someone higher up Local or nearby businesses have the benefit of face-to-face connection. You can succeed with an entirely remote client list, but when you’re just starting out, the flexibility of a local connection should not be underestimated. Attend networking events Reach out to hiring managers, creative directors, etc. Feel free to reach out for work, but also ask to pick their brain e.g. does your business hire freelancers? What do they look for? Etc. Sign up for job boards and apply for jobs that you feel capable of tackling. Job boards require a lot of experience and thoughtful positioning to be regular and profitable sources of work. However, when you’re just starting out, they’re an excellent source of low-commitment experience. Try to find a unique position point. For example, there are very few freelancers boasting about their webinar experience -- there were all of six on a job board with over 100,000 freelancers on it. The more specific the job board is to your skillset (as a designer or developer), the better. Pitch publications   An excellent source of portfolio pieces and income   Join online groups related to your craft or services. Market yourself in directories. Reach out to job listings for full or part-time work related to your service and see if there’s a way you can help until they hire their permanent fix. I’ve actually had clients close job listings after working with me and then putting me on retainer. Work for free Set boundaries and expectations Work for a testimonial, referral, and quality portfolio piece Ensure you want to do more work of this type Ensure you’re getting something of value out of this engagement; otherwise, you’re wasting your time.   Feedback from the Inferno: Where do I find my first clients? (This segment originally premiered over at The Freelancers Union.) I have a client that insists I do all my work at his office. He insists on this arrangement because he doesn’t really “trust web people.” He admits part of this is just not “getting it” – if I’m there, I can explain things, and he knows I’m honestly billing him for the time. I really don’t like working at his office: it’s inconvenient to travel to and from there, I have to bring some of my equipment, and my client likes to breathe over my shoulder while I work. The worst part about this over-my-shoulder work is that he’ll sometimes start to give me a massage. I’m not the only one he does this to, but it’s both literally and metaphorically uncomfortable. How do I tell him to stop doing this without ruining the relationship? – A real hands-on freelancer   The subject line of this email was “my clint likes to touch me - I do not.” At first, I thought that was a lot of unsolicited information about a submitter’s uncomfortable relationship with a man named Clint, but boy did that stop being funny once I realized that was a spelling error. I was unbelievably relieved to discover you’re both male and that this touching is seemingly non-sexual. It’s still 100% not okay that the client is doing this, but this dynamic could be far, far worse. From what you wrote to me, it sounds like you have an out-of-touch-with-the-times client – both technologically and socially. And it sounds like you could do a better job of pushing back and making sure the working arrangement works for you. Schedule a one-on-one meeting with your client to discuss how you work together. Decide beforehand where you draw the line. I suggest not working in that office altogether, but you can compromise on him simply respecting your personal space. Do your research and prepare for this meeting. You should try and anticipate your client’s potential concerns, and you should have your reasons on standby. For example, address why this client doesn’t trust “web people.” By now, you should have established a working relationship, so some trust should be there. If it’s simply a matter of hours, offer to use time-tracking software. If it’s due to a lack of understanding, ask if there’s a contact at the company who would better understand your deliverables – work that is mutually understood is much more likely to meet the client's goals effectively. Whatever happens, don’t back down from where ever you drew the line. If all you’re going to push back on is the touching – and I encourage you to have more ambition than that – speak to how it makes you feel and try not to accuse or embarrass the client. Do this one on one, and be straightforward; it’s not okay that he was in your personal space, but it sounds like no one ever tried to course correct him, and he’s ignorant about how inappropriate it is. If you still don’t want to rock the boat, invest in Mad Max-style shoulder pads. Jokes aside, if you feel genuinely uncomfortable or physically threatened, cut things off with this client. A big part of freelancing is doing your work, your way – and it seems like this arrangement doesn’t empower you on a personal or professional level. And try to work on sticking up for yourself! It sounds like a lot of your complaints about this situation came from you rolling over whenever your client requests something. --  Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RS

From qualifying clients to education as a lead conversion technique, Bryce Bladon and Kai Davis discuss how they turn prospects into high-paying clients. --  Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

Steve Gordon, author of Unstoppable Referrals,  joins Bryce Bladon to discuss how to get client referrals. They cover: Why referrals are so important Obstacles that impede referrals Reverse prospecting > Check out Steve's FREE referral course --  Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RS

Bryce Bladon and Kai Davis share their plans, their predictions, and their advice for the upcoming year.  --  Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

Bryce Bladon and Kai Davis discuss the past year, covering: Lessons learned Lessons we refused to learn Best moments Worst moments A fifth thing! --  Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

Overlap between good romantic relationships and good client relationships exists.  Bryce Bladon and Kai Davis discuss the trials and tribulations of dating as a freelancer and how Kai's love life informs his business life (hint: check out our episode on being a failure ;) ). > Kai's Free Outreach Course > Ask Kai anything!   Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

You're going to fail,and that's okay. Bryce Bladon and Kai Davis discuss the impact of failure on their careers, the anxieties and fears tied to freelancing, and why you need to sacrifice comfort to grow yourself and your business.  > Kai's Free Outreach Course > Ask Kai anything!   Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

Freelancing allows you to make your career work for you -- and that means finding your own definition of success.  Bryce Bladon and Kai Davis discuss the question of success: when they found it, how they define it, and what it will look like in the future. > Kai's Free Outreach Course > Ask Kai anything!   Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

Have you ever had to slap a restraining order on a client?  In this special bonus episode, Laura Pennington joins Bryce Bladon to give her opinion on Upwork, a site she's made thousands of dollars on. Laura shares her worst experience on the job board (spoiler: it involves a restraining order), her advice for freelancers who want to use Upwork, and her secrets for succeeding as a freelancer. > Six Figure Writing Secrets (Twitter and Facebook)   Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon

Bryce Bladon and Kai Davis discuss when someone actually 'becomes' a freelancer, why so many freelancers feel like imposters, and how they realized freelancing was for them. > Kai's Free Outreach Course > Double Your Audience > Ask Kai anything!   Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

We continue to explore the exciting tools that make freelancing easier than ever.  Sam Madden, the founder of PocketSuite, joins Bryce Bladon to discuss how business software is being democratized. They discuss Sam's experiences and how they lead to the creation of PocketSuite, a phone app that takes the hassle out of the business side of freelancing.  > Learn how PocketSuite works > Learn more about PocketSuite in The Wall Street Journal, Inc., and TechCrunch     Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

Bryce Bladon and Kai Davis discuss why 'freelancing freedom' and six-figure promises dominate the discussion on freelancing -- and why we need to do something about it.  > Kai's Free Outreach Course > Double Your Audience > Ask Kai anything!   Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

A freelancer's first time is always special and often hellish.   Kai Davis joins Bryce Bladon to discuss how they got their start as freelancers, who their first three clients were, and how it informed their careers.  > Kai's Free Outreach Course > Double Your Audience > Ask Kai anything!   Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

A malicious client, a maligned job board, and a freelancer caught in the middle. "Why you should never use Upwork, ever" recently blew up the internet. Bryce sits down to speak with the article's author, Shadi Al'lababidi, about his personal client from hell, Upwork's response, and how his outlook has changed as a result of the experience.    Episode Summary In this episode, Bryce and Shadi discuss: Shadi's personal client from hell How his client from hell tried to ruin his career How Upwork responded The ongoing challenges of freelance marketplaces Where freelancing is going in the future > Why you should never use Upwork, ever (Part 1) > The post, post Upwork debacle (Part 2) > The state of freelancing: a guide to 2017 (Part 3)   Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

Illustrator Jennifer Fryer once again joins Bryce on the Clients From Hell podcast. This time, they discuss the many, many problems that occur when a freelancer agrees to work for free.      Episode Summary In this episode, Bryce and Jennifer discuss: The exposure myth  The good client myth The idea that working for free is selfish If and when you should work for free When you should definitely NOT work for free   > Bryce's previous episode with Jennifer, Freelancing as a Student. > Jennifer's Website and Instagram > A previous episode on this issue, Should You Ever Work For Free? with Brennan Dunn   Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

Complaints against UpWork continue to pile up, but the issues plaguing most freelance job boards are universal. Lauren Holliday joins Bryce to discuss Freelanship.com and how she approached building a better freelance marketplace.   Episode Summary In this episode, Bryce and Lauren discuss: Why you should never use Upwork, ever. The issues that plague most job boards How the freelancer-client relationship is hurt by these issues How Lauren strived to build a better job board How you can find work without a job board Handy links: > Freelanship > Hack the Job Hunt > Why you should never use Upwork, ever by Shadi Al'lababidi (Part 2) (Part 3) > 10 reasons I created my own marketplace by Lauren Holliday > You Must Learn How to Write a Damn Good Email by Lauren Holliday     Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

Pete Ross, the Creative Director at CO-OP Advertising, discusses why his agency decided to found Freelancers Unite -- an awards gala intended to recognize freelancer contributions.  > Freelancer's Unite > Video: Freelancing isn't a dirty word   Episode Summary In this episode, Bryce and Pete discuss: What is Freelancers Unite The philosophy driving FU How some agencies incorporate freelancers into their strategy Why some agencies are coy about working with freelancers   Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

As the founder of the best (free) invoicing and contract service for freelancers, Matt Brown is worth listening to. Sharing his and his partner's freelancing experiences, Matt discusses the issues freelancers face and how Bonsai tries to address them. The best part: he made all these lessons and tools available to you. > Bonsai > The Freelance Rate Explorer > The Freelance Stack: A guide to the best freelance tools   Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

Bryce opens up about how Clients From Hell grew to be such a successful blog, and how you can succeed with your own blog.  Note that the webinar this episode is based on offers much more information on this topic.  > Be a Blogger: The 90-minute webinar   Episode Summary   In this episode, Bryce discusses: The stats and figures that define Clients From Hell's Success The benefits of having a blog 3 steps to starting a blog What you need to succeed with a blog Questions you need to ask yourself  What platform is best for your blog How often you should publish content The importance of patience How a blog can make you money The components of a quality blog post How to promote posts and grow your blog  Extra resources: > Be a blogger: Notes from the webinar > Blog post checklist > Blog strategy cheatsheet > Business blogging: a primer > How to find your keywords   Questions? Episode ideas? Talk to Clients From Hell or Bryce Bladon on Twitter. Or shoot us an email!  Clients From Hell on iTunes | Soundcloud Subscribe on iTunes | Android | RSS

In this episode, I talk to Bryce Bladon from ClientsfromHell.net all about his book writing process and how he was able to write a book in just 4 weeks. Show notes: https://paulminors.com/42 Bryce is a master freelancer and if you're interested in learning more about how to work with and earn more from your clients, check out his book, Hell to Pay. Use the code, PRODUCTIVEPAUL to get 60% off the book (normally $38). This is the largest discount Bryce has ever offered on the book, so please consider supporting his work. Bryce is also offering 50% off his online course, The Start Freelancing Course. The course contains a complete guide to starting with freelancing, this course offers everything a first-time freelancer needs to succeed in their new career. 1. Who is Bryce Bladon and what do you do? (2:39) 2. How is your time currently divided between your different projects (consulting, blogging, podcasting, writing etc…)? (3:36) 3. What are you favourite “client from hell” stories? (6:55) 4. What are some common mistakes freelancers make when working with clients? (14:30) 5. To date, you've written 5 books, one of them took just 4 weeks… when it comes to writing (for a blog or book), what does your process look like? (17:43) 6. When writing, what is your time best spent on? i.e. what are the 20% of tasks that result in 80% of the value/benefits of the book? (24:50) 7. What are some tactical things people can do when starting on creative projects? (29:10) 8. Talk to me about productivity porn. What are some of the things people do to make themselves feel productive but not achieve anything? (38:23) 9. What tools or apps do you use in your productivity workflow? (42:30) 10. What are your most common book recommendations? (47:05) 11. What is something you've read recently that's really stuck in your head? (51:54) If you want to be more productive, start my free email course, the 7-Day Productivity Plan. Receive actionable, easy to follow advice via one email a day for 7 days: PaulMinors.com/7days If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the podcast. I'd also love it if you could leave me a review. Doing this will help more people discover the show so they to can get more done and get more out of life. Intro/Outro Music: "Synthia" by Scott & Brendo --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/paulminors/message

Today I am talking with Bryce Bladon. He is the curator of “clients from hell”. Today we talk about everything from qualifying new clients to setting expectations. He runs a website whose sole purpose is to showcase crazy clients. We both feel that sometimes we can do things a bit differently to help avoid having clients from hell. So the theme of this show is to have fewer clients from hell.

Bryce Bladon (@BryceBladon) is a freelance writer and editor of the popular blog Clients From Hell. Bryce has been editing and curating the site for years, and has overseen dramatic growth both in blog readership and in creating outside partnerships, products, and offerings.  In our conversation, we discuss the origins of Clients From Hell, how a blog can become a viable business, and how all of us who provide services can avoid clients from hell to have a better working life. Bryce has recent authored the second book from Clients From Hell, Hell To Pay, concerning the ever-popular topic of getting paid for freelance work and avoiding money-related drama.  Hell To Pay, the new book from Clients From Hell Listeners of The Busy Creator can save 50% by using code "BusyCreator" when purchasing from this link.  

02:40 - Bryce Bladon Introduction Twitter Blog Hell To Pay: Everything a Freelancer Needs to Know About Earning Good Money 03:07 - Clients From Hell 04:27 - Favorite Stories 08:16 - Client Patterns and Red Flags 18:50 - Qualifying Clients Expectations Project Communication 26:26 - Billing and Estimates Value-based Pricing The Freelancers' Show Episode #04: Fixed Bids vs Hourly Work Getting Started 55:35 - Scope 57:43 - Firing a Client From Hell Picks Being on time (Philip) Instant Pot IP-DUO60 7-in-1 Programmable Pressure Cooker (Philip) Dropshare (Philip) Mike Monteiro: Keynote from Interaction Design Association (Jonathan) 27b/6 (Jonathan) Pat Flynn: How to Write a Book - The Secret to a Super Fast First Draft - SPI TV Ep. 1 (Chuck) Freelance Remote Conf (Chuck) Ruby Remote Conf (Chuck) iOS Remote Conf (Chuck) David McRaney: Anchoring Effect (Bryce) Dan Ariely: Are we in control of our own decisions? (Bryce) Soylent (Bryce)

02:40 - Bryce Bladon Introduction Twitter Blog Hell To Pay: Everything a Freelancer Needs to Know About Earning Good Money 03:07 - Clients From Hell 04:27 - Favorite Stories 08:16 - Client Patterns and Red Flags 18:50 - Qualifying Clients Expectations Project Communication 26:26 - Billing and Estimates Value-based Pricing The Freelancers' Show Episode #04: Fixed Bids vs Hourly Work Getting Started 55:35 - Scope 57:43 - Firing a Client From Hell Picks Being on time (Philip) Instant Pot IP-DUO60 7-in-1 Programmable Pressure Cooker (Philip) Dropshare (Philip) Mike Monteiro: Keynote from Interaction Design Association (Jonathan) 27b/6 (Jonathan) Pat Flynn: How to Write a Book - The Secret to a Super Fast First Draft - SPI TV Ep. 1 (Chuck) Freelance Remote Conf (Chuck) Ruby Remote Conf (Chuck) iOS Remote Conf (Chuck) David McRaney: Anchoring Effect (Bryce) Dan Ariely: Are we in control of our own decisions? (Bryce) Soylent (Bryce)