Freelancer Confidential, a Catalyst Café (Highlights & Links)

First of all, a big thank you to our speakers,

• Dennis Fesenmyer, of FezLab
• Linda Ray, a music critic (who scored a rare interview with Dolly Parton) and much more,
• Liz Danforth, a writer and fantasy/gaming artist best known for her Magic the Gathering cards, and 
• Brenda Huettner, tech writer extraordinaire. 

I loved how you helped everyone get an idea of the variety of ways people can approach freelancing.

And an announcement! The Library Idea+Space's FIRST After Hours (Freelancer's Union) meeting is January 14 at 6pm, and the topic is "How to grow your client list." We are the only location in Tucson for their monthly After Hours programs.

Recommended Websites

• Getting started: Becoming a Freelancer: Assessing your Readiness to Be your Own Boss and Tips for Getting Started (SBA.gov)
• Legal stuff: Starting a Freelance Business – How to Take Care of Legal, Tax and Contractual Paperwork (SBA.gov)
• Setting your rates: How to Set and Negotiate your Freelance Business Rates (SBA.gov)
• More on setting your rates: How to Calculate and Negotiate Your Hourly and Project-Based Pricing (SBA.gov)
• Writing well: Communication skills are critical, even for freelancers who aren't writers. For a reliable source on correct punctuation, vocabulary, and more (with a sense of humor, too), go to Grammar Girl. 
• Contracts: Setting Up a Client Contract: Must Know Information for Freelancers (SBA.gov)
• Incorporation? Should You Incorporate Your Freelance or Consulting Business? (SBA.gov)
• Managing Money: 6 Tips for a Fiscally Fit and Successful Freelance Business in 2013 (SBA.gov)
• Taxes: Figuring out your taxes (IRS Small Business and Self-Employed Tax Center)
• Hugh MacLeod's Gaping Void website and blog.
• Advocacy: Freelancer's Union 

Recommended Books

• Entrepreneur's Edge: The Arizona Dept of Commerce has an book called Entrepreneur's Edge that's available in print at the library (658.022 G9404) or online. In particular, their chapter two has links to tons of additional resources for freelancers. The library also has it in Spanish.
• 168 Hours by Linda Vanderkam (658.4093 V284o 2010 at the library). There are 168 hours in a week. Where does your time really go?

Experience (some paraphrased)
"There's no question everything has changed since I started, and lots of the opportunities I had when I started writing about music no longer exist." --Linda Ray

When I was starting out I asked other designers "How did you do that?" and they just wouldn't share. As a result, "I'm painfully transparent," in case it helps others.  --Dennis J. Fesenmyer

How do you set your price points? "It depends." --everyone.

The sign of a busy, successful freelancer is an out-of-date website. It's just the reality -- you don't have enough time.

Don't be afraid to tell someone you're "not the best fit," and refer them to someone who is.

"When times are rough? You just work through it." --Dennis Fesenmyer

Some professional organizations can help a lot -- if you get involved (don't just join) --Brenda Huettner

Quotable Quotes
"Be careful what you get good at." --Linda Ray

"Never stop talking to people about what you do. And ask for referrals" --Brenda Huettner

"Stay agile." --Linda Ray

B.B. King once told Linda Ray "If you're really good people will help you out."

"Live small" --Linda Ray

"Never burn bridges." --Brenda Huettner

Linda Ray: Good LinkedIn Groups for Writers

• Arizona Media Professionals
• Indispensable Freelancers
• LinkedIn for Journalists
• Newspaper Professionals Network
• The Freelance Writers' Connection

Gamestorming highlights

Our networked "Affinity Map"

Thank you, Andrew, for the great Gamestorming introduction yesterday! For those who couldn't come, his notes area available online at his blog: 52 Communiques, including a copy of the handout, information on how gaming aids learning and communication,  and his list of sources.

On the right is part of our "Affinity Map" where we made little avatars of ourselves and mapped how we were similar. Andrew explained that this is a typical icebreaker game, and can be helpful when a workgroup forms of people who don't know each other well.

Our last demo was of a "3-12-3" game where you take 3 minutes to write ideas on cards, break into groups that are dealt 5 cards and take 12 minutes to discuss ideas that the cards inspire. If the mix is wrong a group can ask for a "hit" poker-style and get a replacement card. Finally, each group takes 3 minutes to present their grand ideas. On the left are the notes Andrew took of our reports.

Ideas for downtown, summation of our "3-12-3" game

So what ideas did we come up with? First, here's what idea cards we came up with, grouped by type of approach: [scroll down]

P.S. This is a verbatim transcription of the cards and includes a few political statements. The views of the workshop participants in no way reflects the views of the library.

SPECIAL EVENTS

• Treasure Hunt
• Sponsor a scavenger hunt, visit businesses to gather items
• Street Fairs nearby
• Free entertainment (city pays artists to perform at businesses)
• Organize [and film???] flashmobs at businesses
• Large-scale moveable feasts
• "Light the Night" avenue walk
• Have a contest to come up with a song about the construction -- winner plays the song at different businesses
• Music on the street
• Orchestrated viewing "shows" of heavy machinery
• Streetcar "caroling" expedition (like bar crawl but not)
• Weekly street parties
• Food events on the street
• Provide street block party environment for merchants to showcase their businesses
• Street performances
• Entertainers on the street corners
• Encourage group events by making more holidays, ie: Star Wars Day, Talk Like a Pirate Day
• Make navigating the construction a game
• Hold an "un"-street fair with the artisans on the sidewalk
• Expo (tent city)
• Holiday shopping in June
• Make shopping downtown into a game, ie earn tokens that can be traded later for prizes
• Sidewalk-n-Dust Festival
• Meet and greet the construction vehicles
• Sponsor community work projects where artists donate art or make tiles or signage
• Create a game where people have to visit businesses and win prizes
• Talk to Warner at City Recess about using crisis to demo the software
• Tours of the construction
• 2nd Saturday-style event when RTA is finished

PERSONAL ACTION

• Organize your friends and shop together
• When you (yourself) have a choice about where to go, choose downtown
• Provide job help as temporary workers

PUBLICITY AND AWARENESS

• Marketing outreach "Go downtown"
• Publicize the "MOOB"ers widely
• Highlight a business of the week
• Marketing of affected businesses and advise [that] they're still open
• Free maps of how to get around construction
• Business-specific signage on streets

HUMOR ALWAYS HELPS

• Free dust masks
• Ziplines connecting the rooftops
• Free parking, free rent, free candy

FINANCIAL RELIEF

• No taxes during construction
• Sales tax holiday
• Exempt them from charging/paying city tax
• No-interest loans only to be repaid when RTA opens
• Grant money to assist businesses with operational costs
• Tax credits
• Grants or other outside assistance to help sustain 
• [Supplier] discount card for [business] expenses
• Relocation assistance x2 (away then back)
• Write grants to help businesses make it through the slow time while the streets are closed
• Produce funding to subsidize biz during construction
• Give merchants free rent during construction
• Hire them to cater other events

INFRASTRUCTURE (might have longer lasting effect)

• More connections between businesses in coordinating visibility and offers
• Organize help for redesigning merchant websites and improving their SEO
• Help them renovate their sites during construction
• Create alternative venues for biz. Partnerships? Expansions?
• Teach businesses about nontraditional publicity methods like social media
• Encouragement to try catering (and get away from the street)
• [For the restaurants] subsidized mobile kitchens

RETAIL INCENTIVES FOR SHOPPERS

• Loyalty card
• Sales every weekend
• RTA could give gift cards out to community for affected shops (people would get a $5 gift card but spend more)
• Random customers selected for giveaways
• Have lots of sales
• Week-long sales events - one biz each week
• If you spend a certain amount of $ during RTA construction those translate into credits you can use later or post-construction
• Subsidies to those using those businesses (restaurant coupons, etc.)

THE "UGLY" FACTOR

• Yarn-bomb the chainlink, especially on Congress
• Decorate the chainlink

THE PARKING/TRANSPORTATION/SIGNAGE PROBLEM

• Free parking downtown during construction
• Lots of info on parking in ALL media
• Start a shuttle to Congress/4th from a big parking lot to other parts of town
• Pre-purchased rider cards at discount, funnel some % to affected businesses
• Shuttles to bring people up from far away parking
• Provide free parking everywhere
• Provide transportation to get there and back
• Make passageways across closed areas so it is easier to cross streets
• Make public transportation free to downtown destinations
• Create more access to public parking
• Better pathways for walking/running/biking
• Bus people in so they don't have to find parking
• Create signs to identify business from a main traffic area
• Work-around travel options
• Passageways across closed areas
• Free parking in downtown Tucson 1 weekday a week
• Create alternative access & parking
• Use empty lots for free parking
• Bike rickshaw "street line" to transport people
• Rider incentives to frequent affected businesses
• Parking validation

SYSTEMIC

• A new city council
• Work after midnight until morning
• Sell [personalized] bricks
• No modern streetcar
• Construction work doubles on weekends to hurry progress
• Work in smaller sections so large pieces of roads aren't closed
• Do the construction in phases
• Work days, nights and weekends and use larger crews to shorten construction time