Entitled? Maybe. And You Should Be Too.

We don't get many hate comments on the Boring Studios social media accounts.

I guess we have crafted a very stable minded audience (I'm talking about you dear reader 😏). 
 
But ofc, like anyone consistently showing their face online, some haters seep through and find our content from time to time. 
 
This week we got a comment saying we had "an entitled mentality"
 
and honestly... maybe we do? Maybe you should too?
 
...
 
The comment was on a video about how we only give potential clients 30 minutes of our time before billing them for hours. 
 
Why? Because many clients take advantage of creatives and leach all their ideas and then ghost.
 
It's happened to us many many times (maybe 5) before we learnt not to give ANY ideas away during the sales process.
 
We get it.

Landing clients is hard work.
 
But honestly when we stopped giving away all our ideas in our proposals and having 1-2 hour meetings with potential clients, we actually started landing more clients. 
 
Obviously most clients can't do much with your ideas but they will still try a little DIY design or branding job themselves 😂
 
And no one wins in this scenario. 
 
...
 
Let's go back to when we first started Boring Studios.
 
We took EVERY client we could. Red flag, green flag, purple flag - just give us the clients. 
 
After dealing with clients who wouldn't pay on time, clients who were rude, clients who demanded all our ideas during 3 hour meetings, clients who wanted 100 changes without paying extra and clients who demanded cheap work... 
 
We had enough and that's why you see Boring Studios as it is today - to help our creative community understand their worth and not be treated like garbage. 
 
We made a decision about 6 months into our client creative services business to not take shitty clients even if it meant losing money. 
 
Because back then, and now, our sanity and freedom is more important to us than money. 
 
...
 
I think it is important to remember why you started freelancing or why you started a business from time to time.
 
Boring Studios was started because we wanted freedom from listening "the man" and to have our own creative freedom on the work we created. 
 
Taking on abusive clients who want to pay peanuts and copy a brand they found online? 
 
Doesn't sound like freedom to me. 
 
Sounds like my old 9-5. 
 
Saying no to work you don't want to do?
 
That's more like it. 
 
...
 
Now obviously IT IS a privilege to say no to work you don't want to do.

Eden and I had no responsibilities when we started Boring Studios (and even now) - literally just to house and feed ourselves. 
 
I understand this is a situation of privilege.
 
And your situation may look very different.
 
...
 
The crux of this piece is that I want you to understand your worth as a creative. 
 
Your time is still money. 
 
You're allowed to say no to work you don't want to do. 
 
You're allowed to say 30 minutes is enough time to understand each other in a client call. 
 
You're allowed to take a different path to those around you and not be told to "get a real job". 
 
You're allowed to be a bit "entitled" because hey, let me tell you a secret... 🤫
 
You have a cool skillset that most people are jealous of so they tell you "its not worth much".
 
Anyway my fellow creatives... understand your worth. 
 
But also remember if you're just starting out, its also okay to take on some shitty clients... maybe its a rite of passage or something 😂. 

Don't go charging an arm and a leg if its your first client - be sensible with your skill level also 🫶
 
Just don't let anyone take advantage of you, your time or your skillset. 
 
Penelope 
xx