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I was made redundant at the end of September along with what seems like half the company... at the moment I'm not in panic mode as I'm being proactive in starting my own thing and joining sites for freelance etc. There seems to be quite a bit out there for what I do (graphic design) but being in my old job has kinda made me a bit more specialised in a certain area, and there's not loads of what I do out there right now... I did walk away with a nice payout as I'd been there so long, but I feel bad for some of my old colleagues that prolly got fuck all for their troubles.
I haven't read through all the pages so I'm not sure whats been said... for me it's good to stay positive and don't worry if you get knocked back for a job, it's happened to me already after a month of trying and at least I got a second interview... things are sent to test us, we need to rise above the shit and say fuck it
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I can't speak to your particular field, but from personal experience, there is a lot more creative work starting to crop up.
If you're open to freelancing for a bit, now is a great time (I think). The unpredictable situation in general means businesses are looking for flexible options. I'd get your website bang up to date and start messaging anyone that might give you work (even if they aren't advertising) and reach out to old contacts if you have them. I wouldn't worry about being too specialised, you'll probably be able to adjust to more broad tasks pretty quickly.
It's proper shit not having any work, but after three years of freelancing you start to realise that nothing lasts forever, and just keeping the faith as much as possible will usually win out.
At the start of this year I had had a dreadful 2019 with very little work - owed my partner a couple thousand and no signs of any work incoming, looking back I realise I was pretty depressed. In February I took a freelance gig as a copywriter (something I'd never really 'done' officially but did have experience of), and now I've been working that same gig for most of this year. I feel incredibly lucky, especially considering how this year has panned out. The freelance gig actually came from someone I'd showed my folio to six years ago, so it shows you really do have to 'trust in the process'.
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After nearly 17 years in the same job, freelance is the way forward for me at the moment... folio is up and running which was great to work on as I’ve always had an old school A2 portfolio that I dragged to an interview when I had one. Good thing for me is that I’ve got way more contacts now than I had years ago, so they’ve all got my new cv and know that I’m up for work... I’ve been working on some logos for a local company that hopefully might lead to more work and I’ve started working on some T shirt designs that I’ll look into getting printed.
Glad you’ve got yourself sorted out @tb and you’re right, keeping a bit of faith is something that you need to do.
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You are requested to provide feedback for tehh performance evaluation for SuchAndSuch Colleague
I'm a contractor, not an employee.
Get fucked.
Unless you are paying me extra for this service, of course.
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I am currently going through an accreditation process for my tiny firm.
As is these days always the case, I have to submit a raft of policy documents to demonstrate my undivided commitment to sustainability, my position on modern slavery (against), my refusal to launder money and my total support for whistleblowing.
I go through a lot of accreditation processes, so most of this is cut and paste. However, the latest thing I have been asked to provide is a Business Continuity Plan. There are templates available on the Web, but most of them look a bit over the top for a micro-business. Has anyone got a simple one I could just paraphrase?
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I doubt they read them with any scrutiny, if at all.
Sad, but true.
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Yo SEISS 4, where you at? Had a ton of work in December (basically all the work I've had since March) and nothing substantive is paid yet (and the best bit is covid-paranoid talent walked off with a £1k mic because they refused to believe it could be safe to use again...) Drowning a bit.
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I’ve spent a lot of my spare time doing personal work for my portfolio, I hardly got to use Illustrator in my last job, so I’ve been using it every day. My first T -shirt is released via Everpress Friday... I’ll include a link when the campaign starts... if that’s allowed on here n all that ;)
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This thread is good, might be a good place to post the link;
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https://www.lfgss.com/conversations/304019/
Maybe worth a look too
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Where are you based? Hackney have this grant for people who were not forced to close but suffered a drop in work due to the most recent lockdown.
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About
Freelance /self employed panic thread
Posted by
@Chalfie
It’s tough to explain to people as well. I’ve missed my big profitable months through summer, so although I’ve had SEISS payments, and work might pick up a little bit between now and the end of January, I’m still behind as such.
Also, I generally don’t have much expendable income, which is fine by me, but it’s just really not that sustainable. Especially as income is based off my last 3 tax returns, so income is lower than normal before they reduce it to 70 or 80%.
I know this is the same for people on furlough, but at least they get their current salary, rather than their average for the last 3 years.
I shouldn’t complain, as I’m aware many people have it way worse off, or have an employment arrangement that isn’t covered by SEISS or furlough at all. Even my family hadn’t realised that all my income had basically disappeared overnight as the industry I work in is basically closed down until 2021.