Everything I Know About Freelancing I Learned from WHAM!

There’s something about skinny white men prancing about that just screams “business acumen.” And if there was any band more white or more prancy than WHAM!, I haven’t found it yet.

So here is why everything I’ve learnt about freelancing can be attributed to WHAM!

Wake me up before you go-go

Wake me up before you go-go
Don’t leave me hanging on like a yo-yo
Wake me up before you go-go
I don’t want to miss it when you hit that high

I discovered quite quickly in my freelance career that clients can often leave you hanging or pull you back and forth like a yo-yo.

Thanks to WHAM! I now make sure that clients stay in constant contact and “wake me up” before they go-go.

I’ve also found that staying in regular contact makes for a lot less disappearing clients and whole lot more offers to “take me dancing tonight.”

Careless Whisper

Tonight the music seems so loud
I wish that we could lose this crowd
Maybe it’s better this way
We’d hurt each other with the things we’d want to say

Ahh…ruined client relationships always make me feel like “I’m never gonna dance again, the way I danced with you.”

The best course of action, when things go south with a job, it to call it quits rather than make a scene with a client. A careless whisper in the wrong ear always makes you feel like you “should’ve known better.”

Freedom

Like a prisoner who has his own key
But I can’t escape until you love me
I just go from day to day
Knowing all about the other boys
You take my hand and tell me I’m a fool
To give you all I do

Just say no to spec-love…uh…I mean spec-work.

Love Machine

I’m just a love machine
And I won’t work for nobody but you,
I’m just a love machine,
A huggin’, kissin’ friend.

Clients respect ethical designers that can give them exclusive attention; whether it’s a non-compete clause or just turning down work you think will endanger a relationship with a current client.

Also, huggin’, kissin’ friends are the best kind of friends to have.

I’m Your Man

Baby, I’m your man (don’t you know that?)
Baby, I’m your man
You bet!
If you’re gonna do it, do it right – right?
Do it with me

It’s all about confidence. Proving that you’re the man for the job and then delivering is a sure fire way to keep a client happy – right?

Just be careful about using the phrase “do it with me” in your correspondence.