Give Me Back My Five Bucks

My boss from my PT job just e-mailed me back and said that the President of the organization has decided to just cancel the brochures altogether this year (which I think is a huge mistake - they are a massive marketing tool!) ... but he said that there will be other design opportunities coming up, since they don't currently have a designer on staff.

That sucks, but at least he knows that I'm now interested and should anything arise, I'm confident he'll contact me so I can at least bid on the job.

My boss at my PT job mentioned to my sister that they might be looking to hire a graphic designer on a contract basis. I fired off an e-mail to him today, telling him that I would love the opportunity to design their brochures for them (they produce anywhere from 4 to 12 brochures a year), and told him that the next time I'm in town, I could bring around my design portfolio to him. My fingers are crossed! This could be an awesome ongoing contract for me. And I'm kind of the obvious candidate for the position, since I've been an employee there for 4 years.

Anyway ... my only problem is that it's difficult for me to get to the island during regular business hours ... so I'd either have to meet him after hours, or take a day off work. I requested June 30th off (nobody will be in the office anyway, since July 1st is Canada Day), so if my boss is willing to see my portfolio and entertain the idea of me being the company designer as well, then I'll just pop over on the ferry in the morning for a quick meeting.

My interview today went really well. The HR woman seemed really positive about all my answers, and I'm pretty certain I'll get called for a second interview. She said that she would pass on her interview notes to the Manager (who would be my boss), and he would then decide whether he wants to contact me for either a phone interview, or fly me out for an in-person. When she asked for my salary expectations, I was honest and said that I would like to stay within the same salary range that I'm in right now, although I would be open to negotiation.

Pluses of the job are that they seem to have a really great corporate work environment, they have offices all around the world, and they like to promote from within. Minuses are that I would have to move to Edmonton (where the only people I know are an ex-BF, a work acquaintance from my co-op term in Northern Alberta, and an ex-field hockey teammate), they don't have any sort of education allowance or reimbursement, and while it's a marketing position, it's working in an industry I know nothing about.

In other work-related news, I have to go to set up a photo shoot tonight for the website I'm designing. I should get a shot list ready, but I think I'm just going to fly by the seat of my pants tonight. If I don't get the shots I want, I'll have to go back Friday evening and do it again. Unfortunately I'm not really set up for photography - while I have a decent camera (considering it's not a digital SLR), I don't even have a tripod to use. Will see what happens.

Also, at practice last night, a teammate who works in the government was thinking of offering me a contract to do a book layout for her department.

Could I possibly make a living off of just my freelance business alone? It's something to think about, because I have been enjoying working in my pajamas all day long this week. :) And I've always wanted to be in business for myself, but didn't think I could pursue it until I got more experience under my belt. It would be a huge career move, and at this point in my life, I don't think it would be the right choice to make. But it's definitely something to consider.

Thanks for all of your input about claiming the freelance income in my EI claim. I wasn't trying to "get away" with anything. My intention wasn't to try and scam the system - I honestly had no idea if I had to claim my freelancing since it isn't a steady source of income.

Now I know that I have to claim it! :)

It's kind of sad that the amount of money I'm bringing in this year with my freelancing won't put me in the black compared to the amount of $$ I spent on my business (mostly that new iMac computer) ... it's better than bringing in ZERO dollars last year, and hopefully I'll see a better result in 2008. Although to be fair, I never really promoted my services this year since I was already working a lot.

I have an interview this morning for a position in Edmonton. This would be an amazing opportunity to work with a pretty huge company on the international scene. It would definitely provide me with a lot of room for growth, and great experience. It's in Edmonton though, so we'll see.

Just a thought ... should I be declaring my freelance income on my EI claim?

I don't know if it makes a difference, but I'll be claiming any money I make through my design business as income when I file my taxes in the spring.

I had a panic attack today as I walked around this place and realized that by the end of next week, it's going to look pretty darn empty. There are so many things I'll need to replace that I never really thought of before. And they aren't really wants either ... most of them are pretty essential. For example, I don't have an ironing board, a kettle, a toaster (or a toaster oven), a knife block, a cutting board ... I have very few pots and pans of my own ... no coffee table, no bookshelves ... not even a rug for the bathroom floor. Most of the stuff I can do without for now. I'm going to have to! But eventually, it'll all have to get replaced.

Today I met with the guy who wants me to do his website. We went over a bunch of details and it turns out his budget is a lot smaller than I had originally thought ... so it's a good thing the website he wants me to create is a lot less complicated than I had been anticipating. I'll have to write some copy and do the photography, but I think I can work smart and get the project done for around $500-600. It's really more of a favour than anything, but he's a good contact to have, and plus he's a sponsor for the hockey team I work for ... so I'm happy to help him out.

And out of the meeting, his wife (who is also one of my field hockey teammates) asked me to quote her a price to design and maintain a website for an organization she heads up. It'll be an ongoing contract, so that will be a good one to sink my teeth into. I know my price will be the most competitive, since any of the design firms in town would probably cost at least quadruple the price I would.

Not much new to report. Today was my last day at my full time job. I'm still going to log a few hours this week as I help them prep for some upcoming events. They want me to design a few posters and ads for them, and I'm more than willing to help out. I also told my boss that I'm always available for contract work if he needs it.

As for the website contract, I was supposed to send him the link to my online portfolio, but it was being hosted on the ex-BF's server ... and he's since taken it down. I'm going to burn the files to a CD and bring it into him tomorrow, so it should work the same as if he were viewing on the internet. Hopefully that'll be okay.

I applied for a position a few weeks ago at my uncle's company. It's a huge company, but he said he knew the person who's doing the hiring, and will go and talk to her on Monday for me. He's been with the company for over 25 years, so hopefully he'll have some pull. It's a great job, and while it wouldn't pay as much as a few of the positions I have interviews for in Alberta, I'm willing to take the pay cut in order to stay in the city. Fingers are definitely crossed on this one.

My weight-loss plan is going well. While I haven't seen a change in my weight in the past few days, my pants are sure feeling a lot looser. I've been lifting weights, so it's probably just muscle mass I'm gaining. :)

Also I've been bad and haven't been commenting on the many blogs that I read on a daily basis. Starting now, I'm going to be a lot better at leaving comments, I promise.

Well late last month, I had a phone interview with a not-for-profit in Calgary. When I didn't hear from him, I figured I didn't get the position. Not that I minded much, since I don't think I'd be the best person for the job (and I don't think it's the right position for me) ... but I just got a call, and we're going to speak again on Tuesday about the job. The way he spoke, it seems like the job is mine if I want it ... which is surprising, but they've been without a person in this position since August, so I'm sure they're getting pretty antsy to fill it.

So next week, I have 3 phone interviews, all for positions in Alberta.

Also last night at my field hockey game, one of my teammates asked if I would design his company website for him. I don't know how much to charge, and I feel like I should give him a break in price since him and his wife are longtime family friends, and my sister works for him. I was originally thinking of charging $875. I don't think he wants anything too fancy, so for about 35 hrs. of work, that's $25/hr. That's fair, right?

Too many choices. Although I guess having choices is better than having none at all.

A few days ago I blogged about how I was given a design contract - well as it turns out, the Manager who asked me to bid on the job (as the only bidder) didn't realize that his colleague had also asked three other designers to bid on the job as well - so now I have competition!!

I submitted my quote today, and I think it's a fair price. It's hard to price out a job I've never done before, especially because they want a flat rate and I'm used to working hourly. Hopefully the fact that I came recommended by my boss has some pull and puts me above the other candidates, because I really want this contract.

Since deciding to write sponsored posts with PPP, in just 25 days I've made $869.14!!! Of course, that's a bloated number because I got the $700 opp, but still $169.14 isn't shabby either in less than a month! There have been some really dry spells of barely getting $5 opps, but lately it's been pretty darn good and I've been able to snag opps 4 or 5 ranging from $10-15 each.

I have another blog hosted at another site that got approved for PPP yesterday. I've been writing in that blog since 2004, and it used to be my main blog until I started this one up. Anyway, I figure I can basically double the amount of money I'm earning through PPP now that I've got 2 qualified blogs going ... or I can just spread out the opps so that I'm not cluttering up either blog too much. At least now there are options, and all this money is going to really help me fund my condo down payment.

I can't wait until Google updates their PR. Then I will be eligible for higher paying opps. According to iWeb Tool, this blog is predicted to have a PR of 4. Whether that happens is another story.

Speaking of money, I was just offered a contract with the University in my city to continue creating their quarterly brochure. My boss at my current job referred me to them, since he knows I run a design business on the side. Since their graphic designer just quit, they are offering a contract for 1 brochure, and then will decide after that whether they want to keep me on. Money wasn't discussed, but he will be e-mailing me over the contract rates to look over. I don't even know if this gig pays a flat fee, or if I have to bill them hourly ... I guess I'll find out soon enough!

I just got an e-mail back from the guy who was looking for someone to do contract work for him, and he said he thinks we'd work really well together, and wants to start handing work over to me within the next month or so. Sweet! I don't anticipate a lot of work being given to me in the beginning ... but at $25/hr, even a few hours a week is going to mean a good chunk of money coming in.

He said the work is going to be on an on-going basis, so I'm thinking that part-time ushering job is probably going to get axed from my future plans. I'd have to work over 3 hrs. at that ushering job to bring in the same amount I'd make in just an hour of contract work.

Hoorah! I'm really excited to start, and that means my side business is officially going to take off and become a reality. Every penny I earn from this contract work will go straight towards my condo down payment fund.

I have been speaking with someone who might hire me to do some contract work on an on-going basis. It will pay $25/hr, and I'd basically be creating book layouts in Adobe InDesign for offset printing, or digital print-on-demand. The pay isn't that great as far as contract work goes, but a few of my friends work full-time for a publishing company doing book layouts, and they only make $12-14/hr. Plus, I'm just getting started. Fingers crossed that I get the job!

Last night, I made Texas chicken pizza for dinner. There's just something about rolling out my own pizza crust that is just so satisfying. I'd much rather spend the time to make my own pizza than get one delivered. It's not only healthier when I make it at home, but it's also a lot cheaper.

Today, the BF is going fly fishing while I'm here at work. Hopefully he'll land a nice fish for us to eat for dinner. We used go to every lake imaginable to fly fish last summer, but I still haven't bought my fishing license for the year, and I'm not sure if I'm going to. Both the fresh water and salt water licenses aren't that expensive, and I have all my own gear, but it's the gas that's the killer. We love going exploring into the logging roads, and reaching remote fishing/camping locations ... but after we buy food, and spend the money on gas, it can get pretty expensive. I'll leave the fishing to the BF if it means it'll save me a few hundred dollars in gas this summer.

Apart from my full-time and part-time jobs, I also run my own graphic design business on the side. I have spent the last 6 months building my online portfolio, networking with potential clients, and creating an "image" for myself. I'm not a high end designer, and I never want to make it my full-time career, but I did get professionally trained in it, and it's a good way to make some extra money.

Websites aren't exactly my strongest skill, because there is so much technical knowledge that I just don't have. I'm much stronger in the design and layout aspect of graphic design. I want to specialize in brochures, pamphlets, advertisements, logos, etc.

That being said, I've been talking with a real estate agent for the past month about building her a website. After she went and got quotes from the big graphic design companies in town, she decided to go with me. Mostly because I'm cheaper than everyone else, but also because I came highly recommended by a friend who graduated in the same year as me.

This is all very exciting for me! I quoted her $2,000 for the base website (I know, I could have charged way more ... but I'm just starting out, and she knows I'm not as advanced as some of the big design companies). I think when it's all said and done, it'll cost her around $3,000. I will also be maintaining the site after it is complete for $60/hr. (1/2 hr. minimum time blocks) ... and if she needs any photographs taken of the properties, I'll also be charging $60/hr.

If I could just get two contracts like this a year, that's an extra $6,000 of income I can bring in! :)