The Downsides of Working from Anywhere
Working from anywhere sounds amazing. Who doesn't like the idea of working in the morning, then walking out your hotel room door and down to the beach for the rest of the day?
Okay, that might be a little more glamorous than what you were picturing, but you get the idea. For the artist, the ability to work from anywhere is a godsend. Working from home for the creative type can help ensure they can create when they feel most creative. For theatrical artists, it means being able to take those gigs out of town without worrying about losing your ability to pay your bills.
Using the Internet to side-hustle instead of working a day-job will free you up to take the creative gigs you want, and lead the creative life you desire. It isn't all upside, however.
While you can work from wherever you want, when you take clients and jobs over the Internets, it is highly likely that your clients will be in many different time zones. That can be both a blessing and a curse. This can be a blessing as it lines up with your irregular schedule. It can be a curse if they expect you to meet deadlines on their timeline.
In general, none of your clients will expect you to always be on call. Some of them might. How you choose to deal with those clients is entirely up to you. Personally, I would choose not to and make the most gracious exit from that situation as possible. Part of the joy of this approach is not being at the beck and call of another.
You'll want to be upfront and honest with all of your clients. This is not only good business in general, it is also good practice as it will be important that they understand your schedule. Communication is key in building client relationships, and meeting deadlines is how you will keep those clients happy.
Be upfront that you're an artist. That you're working around other gigs, and you're not always working from the same place. That way if you relocate and suddenly find the Internet situation isn't what you thought it would be, this development doesn't come out of the blue.
This is where it becomes important to be as upfront with your clients as possible. Tell them where you are in the world. Tell them about your schedule and days you might not be able to work on things. Discuss the difference in time zones, just to be sure you're on the same page. The more communication, the more effectively you can avoid these situations before they arise.
It is quite likely that some of your clients will even be happy that you aren’t working traditional office hours. They can then review your work during their hours, before sending work back to you or sending you new projects. This can be a great rhythm to settle into with a client. If you are open and honest with your clients then you can open yourself up to these ideal scenarios.
The bottom line: find situations that work for you, and give them everything you've got. Be open and honest with your expectations, and expect the same from your clients.
This is where it becomes important to be as upfront with your clients as possible. Tell them where you are in the world. Tell them about your schedule and days you might not be able to work on things. Discuss the difference in time zones, just to be sure you're on the same page. The more communication, the more effectively you can avoid these situations before they arise.
It is quite likely that some of your clients will even be happy that you aren’t working traditional office hours. They can then review your work during their hours, before sending work back to you or sending you new projects. This can be a great rhythm to settle into with a client. If you are open and honest with your clients then you can open yourself up to these ideal scenarios.
The bottom line: find situations that work for you, and give them everything you've got. Be open and honest with your expectations, and expect the same from your clients.
Want to learn more about building a side-hustle? Check out my book:
A Life in Art: Building Side-Hustles to Empower Your Life as an Artist
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