SHAKING THE TREE ... #1
Three useful links and a story about getting ripped off by a client.
Hey there … thanks for stopping by (again).
This is all new to me.
You know, the whole getting up and out there and being in front of an audience.
I’m doing my best not to suck at this so bear with me while I iron out some of the kinks, OK?
First up …
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Someone to follow on LinkedIn right now.
A useful online resource that won’t cost you a dime …
A book you might find helpful.
An article about getting ripped off by a client.
Someone to follow on LinkedIn right now.
The one and only Mari Smith, aka, The Facebook Queen. I first learned about Mari via Glazer Kennedy back in 2010, and she’s awesome! What Mari doesn’t know about Facebook isn’t worth knowing, and, on top of that, she’s super nice and über approachable and super cool. Find Mari on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marismith/
A useful online resource that won’t cost you a dime …
Introducing Tinywow … a mini tool chest chock full of useful business tools that will save you time, effort, and stress. Need to remove a background from an image? Tinywow has got you covered. Need to split, edit, or merge a PDF? Tinywow can do that too. And a lot more. And all for free. learn more here: https://tinywow.com/
A book you might find helpful
Steven Pressfield's book, The War of Art, is a guide for creative individuals seeking to overcome the obstacles that prevent them from fulfilling their potential. Pressfield describes the Resistance, the internal force that keeps us from pursuing our passions and achieving our goals, and offers practical advice on how to defeat it. This concise and inspiring book is a must-read for anyone looking to break through creative blocks and achieve their full potential. Find it from Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/War-Art-Through-Creative-Battles/dp/1936891026/
ARTICLE:
What Getting Ripped Off By a Client Teaches You About Business
This article details what happens and what you can do when a client bails on you and doesn’t pay their bill.
For privacy and legal reasons, while the names, dates, and places outlined below have been changed, the outline is based on actual events.
Here’s the TL;DR version:
In mid-2015, Albert learned a valuable lesson about blindly trusting his friends.
After losing his job as a writer and editor, Albert began networking for new opportunities.
Nate and Jim, two self-proclaimed entrepreneurs and writers, asked for Albert's help with business publishing and marketing a book and website. Initially flattered, Albert agreed to meet them, ignoring the warning of his neighbor Jane about their reputation for ripping people off.
During their meeting, Nate and Jim were all charm and flattery, presenting Albert with a copy of their new book and discussing their invitation to co-author a chapter with a famous author.
They even offered Albert a job as an editor for their contribution to the new book, which would involve 3 to 5 hours of work at $65 per hour.
Although Jane's warning was still ringing in his mind, Albert agreed and left the meeting feeling excited about the possibilities.
When Albert began editing their manuscript, he noticed the writing was choppy and the narrative lacked logical flow.
Alarmed, he picked up the book they gave him and found that it had the same issues. Realizing that Nate and Jim were not skilled writers, Albert regretted ignoring Jane's warning and worried that he had been ripped off.
After submitting his invoice and getting the brush off from Nate, who said the rate was too high, despite having agreed verbally to Albert’s price, Albert realized that a verbal contract isn’t worth the paper it’s written on.
Albert made the mistake of trusting his friends without doing his due diligence, and ended up working for unskilled writers who had a bad reputation for ripping people off.
The lesson here is simple: get paid up front when you can (or, get paid at least half up front), and ALWAYS work with a signed contract in hand.
Thanks for reading.
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Next time on Shaking the Tree … three more links and an article you might find interesting.