Continued from last post…
Now of course, I’m at uni studying for Special Effects. I intend to undertake a few freelance jobs at some point in the future, and I agree with philosophies stated here so far, such as:
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[li]If a company asks you to do some work for them and gets shirty and/or tries to dodge paying you some of the money up front, walk away.[/li][li]The phrase “The customer is always right” has some limits. If it impacts on your ability to complete the contract on time, make them aware of this and let them know that they will be taking full responsibility if they insist on the changes.[/li][li]If they’re not prepared to offer you a contract after you’ve asked for them to formalise an arrangement, be wary (personally, I’d walk away here as well).[/li][li]If the contract or work looks to be lengthy (a long term project where you are unable to work anywhere else for the duration and you are unable to claim any state benefits because “You are employed”), insist that they maintain some form of regular payment to you as part of the job. If they refuse, walk away. If they agree, get it in writing so you have something to take to court in case things get sticky.[/li][li]Excuses are no good. If a company half-way through a job suddenly tells you that “Well, you see, it might not be possible to pay you anything” etc etc (or even at the completion of a job), let them walk away, stop working, delete EVERYTHING you have so far worked on, tell them you are leaving, and walk away.[/li][li]fancy talks is a load of claptrap. “Well, this isn’t a paid job, but it’ll look good on your demo reel”, or “You don’t get paid but it’s the experience you need, isn’t it?” should be responded to with “Good day to you sir”, or “Get the hell out of my office now!” (assuming you have an office of course 
) [/li][/ul] Here are a few of my own… These are more applicable for the brave, people who work at this as an income generating hobby, those whose living doesn’t depend on getting “one more project” (those of you who are living a hand to mouth existence just through 3D graphics and computer art should consider either getting additional work to supplement your income and making this a hobby, or perhaps re-evaluating your career options - it sounds harsh, but if you have the necessary skill, you should be in a position to command fees that give you a comfortable way of life, assuming you don’t lead a lifestyle of champagne and limo’s), and those of you who don’t mind potentially losing one project in favour of maintaining your self-respect.
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[li]If this is a living for you, then this next one might seem a little harsh and you might be reluctant to even consider the idea, but… If anyone working with you at a project, be they of little understanding, moderate understanding, or whatever, tries to do something that gets in your way (touching your expensive display with a marker pen, looking over your shoulder, messing with your equipment after you’ve told them not to, making unrealistic demands in such a manner designed to make them feel superior etc etc) then give them a friendly warning the first time (“Could you please not do that” would suffice). If they get shirty, that’s a sure fire sign that there’s trouble in store. If they do it again, be a little more insistent. If they continue to do so, warn them that you’ll be taking appropriate action (“I’ll charge you for damage to my equipment” of they mess with your stuff, manhandle your display, or “I simply must complete this work and you really aren’t helping by doing that” if they’re looking over your shoulder).[/li][li]This one might also be questionable to some folks… Make sure that any contract drawn up includes clauses that protect you, the person that’s putting the energy into the project. Depending on the terms used, something along the lines of “You will be able to exercise the right to fair treatment (this will need to have words covering every possible unfairness you can think of) without fear of losing your contract”. Such a statement, correctly worded, should safeguard you in the eyes of the law if they try to hamstring you later. It also allows you to exercise the last bullet point a little more. [/li][/ul] One important note… Someone once said to me after having a conversation about this kind of thing “No wonder you don’t have a job like this”… Which is indicative of the mentality of some people that you should suck up to people and let them walk all over you. The reality is that, while you might remain in employment with a firm, eventually it will destroy your morale and you’ll end up leaving the industry altogether. You might also be concerned with the possibility that, through word of mouth, if you upset some people by not “sucking up to them”, so to speak, they’ll spread the word that you’re not very good to work with, damaging your chances of getting work elsewhere. You have to weigh up this possibility with the certainty that no-one should have to put up with the kinds of abuses that have been alleged to happen at certain nameless corporations (96 hour working weeks, week in, week out, and the story of someone who lost his vacation pay after being told he wasn’t allowed to take time off because “We’re simply too busy”). Also, it’s not necessarily the case that, just because you shouldn’t put up with any nonsense, doesn’t necessarily follow that it automatically entitles you to a foul mouth and a bad attitude (which people often assume that this advice would encourage - not true).
Anyway, there are others, I’m sure… I can’t think of them right now, but the golden rules are that you should be treated as a valuable part of their production, and not as a minor, replaceable cog in a machine (after all, they’ve got deadlines to meet and they can’t waste time calling someone else in with different working methods to carry on with your work, it would result in a badly executed end result), and also that respect has to be earned on both sides… So while no-one should be expected to put up with stuffiness from you as a designer, you shouldn’t be expected to put up with stuffiness from them as directors, managers, clients etc.
After all, I’m pretty sure that you should expect a level of fair treatment here at CGTalk (and on other forums), in both directions… You should expect no different in the workplace. Ensure you’re protected and don’t be afraid to defend your position.
Sorry for the long post(s)… Hopefully it all makes sense
