Buffistas

It's a real burden being right so often.

Mal ,'Bushwhacked'

Buffista Business Talk: I wanted simple, I wanted in-and-out, I wanted easy money.

A virtual watercooler where Buffistas in business can talk, share, exchange, bemoan, exult and assorted other power verbs associated with all areas of running/starting up a business. For existing or potential Buffista business owners of all types. Spamming is NOT ON. A list of our Buffista owned businesses is on our links page.

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amych - Dec 05, 2011 1:25:06 pm PST #757 of 1416

Now let us crush something soft and watch it fountain blood. That is a girlish thing to want to do, yes?

I'm sorry if the bristle seemed out of proportion or at all directed at you -- but it is genuine, and there for a reason. "Hobby" is a very common way of undermining just the kind of businesses that I (in particular) and a lot of others who hang in this thread do: freelancers get it constantly, but so do many other one- or two-person businesses, even more so if you work online or out of a home office rather than a fixed place like a shop. It goes right along with "when are you going to get a real job" and "so this is a little thing you do on the side?" and "but your spouse must be making good money, right?" and a hundred others like it.

So, yeah, making sensible legal precautions is a part of any business. But "hobby" is kind of a third rail.

Strix - Dec 05, 2011 1:27:45 pm PST #758 of 1416

A dress should be tight enough to show you're a woman but loose enough to flee from zombies. — Ginger

Yeah, what ND said. And I'm not bristling at you, ita !, but at the writer.

It's just...mine's not a hobby, and I would love to have money laying around for legal fees, really, and it's a sensible thing to build into a budget -- but it's just SO not feasible right now. And isn't for SO many small business owners. Most, I'd reckon, especially young, new businesses.

Strix - Dec 05, 2011 1:28:35 pm PST #759 of 1416

A dress should be tight enough to show you're a woman but loose enough to flee from zombies. — Ginger

...and x-post with amych!

amych - Dec 05, 2011 1:33:05 pm PST #760 of 1416

Now let us crush something soft and watch it fountain blood. That is a girlish thing to want to do, yes?

Freelancer Twin powers ACTIVATE!

Form Of... AN OUTSTANDING INVOICE!!

Strix - Dec 05, 2011 1:36:01 pm PST #761 of 1416

A dress should be tight enough to show you're a woman but loose enough to flee from zombies. — Ginger

Heh.

I don't have any outstanding, yet. I've just got some stuff lined up that won't come in for a while.

I HAVE had a client who didn't pay me for 3 weeks. It was a $40 payment. I was like, UM -- PAY ME. Due date means due date; I gotta eat, you!

NoiseDesign - Dec 05, 2011 1:37:53 pm PST #762 of 1416

Our wings are not tired

There are always the occasional people that are deadbeats on payments. Honestly for most of them unless it is a very large amount I'd spend more in legal fees to get the money that to just write off the loss.

§ ita § - Dec 05, 2011 1:53:16 pm PST #763 of 1416

Well not canonically, no, but this is transformative fiction.

So is it good advice or not? I get that there's hot button language, but it seems to me to be a couple steps behind accountant on the taking precautions list.

Amy - Dec 05, 2011 1:54:41 pm PST #764 of 1416

Because books.

I HAVE had a client who didn't pay me for 3 weeks.

Whenever I freelance, I assume someone has 30 days to pay. That used to be standard, and I always wanted to build in time *without* the money than expecting it right away.

javachik - Dec 05, 2011 2:06:44 pm PST #765 of 1416

Our wings are not tired.

ita !, considering the guy giving the advice is a lawyer, he isn't exactly a disinterested adviser. I always consider the biases of any source when it comes to recommendations, business or otherwise.

Strix - Dec 05, 2011 2:14:19 pm PST #766 of 1416

A dress should be tight enough to show you're a woman but loose enough to flee from zombies. — Ginger

This was one of my first "I don't know you at all" clients. It was a $40, I'd stated clearly in emails payment upon completion, the contract stated payment upon completion, and she had been a PITA and wanted me to do multiple revisions when it was stated clearly that 1 revision was included in the $40 (that's my general per/hourly for the kind of write-up she needed then.)

I didn't get acknowledgement she'd received the deliverable; emailed to make sure. No response for a week; sent query about her getting the copy and sent invoice reminder. Nothing. One more week; reminder. Nothing. 3rd week; reminder and cut and paste of contract wording.

Got paid that day. Never a word from her again.

Revised my contracts to get a 50% down payment before I start work now.

And yeah, I work with clients on due dates, and most all my clients have been crazy-prompt, since I use PayPal for most jobs. BUT. She taught me a lesson.

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