rockpaperink

July 17, 2012

Indie

Last Call!

Author: Steve Gordon, Jr.

After more than a year, brainstorming ideas and lots of word counts my time has run its course and we must now bid 'INDIE' farewell. After giving it a lot of thought, instead of coming up with one last bit of advice for the "INDIE Army" I'd like to simply give a farewell checklist of some things I'd like you to remember.

  • Don't operate from a place of fear. As much as it pains us to think of where the next project is coming from, the panicked scramble only makes us settle for the very crap clients, projects and situations that will surely kill our drive to succeed.
  • Communicate freely. Ask questions, give suggestions, drop a line just to say hello. Having your voice be heard in any form keeps you familiar to whatever community you find yourself a part of. And being familiar is the first step to being noticed. And noticed is good.
  • You do not run a company, but you should operate as a business. There are so many benefits to being independent. Dig deep figure those out. Don't attempt to be what you aren't. Fully embrace what you are; a badass independent.
  • Be humble and admit that you may be your own boss but you aren't the best. Never will be. We operate in a subjective field where opinions will always rule the day. Let the deciding measurable factor be the mastery of your skill-set. Leave the opinions and judgements of "best" to the peanut gallery.
  • It's been said that fortune favors the brave. To test if this is true, make sure to take big leaps of faith. If you land on your feet, does it count as a fall or a jump? (Let that one leave you reeling for a moment)
  • And please remember; let the rest of the world use the term "freelance." We are "independent creatives"—the "INDIES!" Why? Because as my friend Jeff Fisher likes to put it; "This stuff ain't free!"

Continued success to you all! Independently yours, Steve G."INDIE"

{"http:\/\/www.rockpaperink.com\/content\/column.php?id=355":{"comments":{"data":[{"id":"10151062531877220_23248012","from":{"id":"19664118380","category":"Consulting\/business services","name":"Get Garcia"},"message":"Love it! Thanks for the wise words, and happy trails!","can_remove":false,"created_time":"2012-07-17T13:29:41+0000","like_count":1,"user_likes":false,"comments":{"data":[{"id":"10151065008567220","from":{"name":"Steve Gordon","id":"725186426"},"message":"Thank you for giving it a read. And thank you for the well wishes. It's been a pleasure and an honor to have the space to share some thoughts with the \"Indies\" of the industry.","created_time":"2012-07-18T15:52:03+0000"}],"count":1}},{"id":"10151062531877220_23248076","from":{"id":"18597299183","category":"Small business","name":"Jeff Fisher LogoMotives"},"message":"Great advice. Thanks so much for the mention!","can_remove":false,"created_time":"2012-07-17T13:38:29+0000","like_count":1,"user_likes":false}],"paging":{"next":"https:\/\/graph.facebook.com\/10151062531877220\/comments?limit=25&offset=25&__after_id=10151062531877220_23248076"}}}}