F**k stress

  • Started
  • Last post
  • 45 Responses
  • marychain0

    Have a kid....you'll soon learn to appreciate late nights at the office

    I joke ..............sort of

    • hahamoldero
    • There is something oddly true about this. I love my kids but if my train home is delayed it means I don't have to do the...Horp
    • ... supper, bath, bed routine, which is a LOT harder work than sitting on a train farting politely.Horp
    • +1ArchitectofFate
  • Chimp0

    Perhaps try freelancing, this worked for me.

    • ?monospaced
    • Freelancer working for agencies. Less politics in the office, better hours...Chimp
  • bort0

    I smoke weed. Exercise is important too.

  • vaxorcist0

    OK... I read the original poster's comment about being a freelancer....

    My experience was in the past that I was sometimes stressed due to:

    1. insanity in other parts of my life affecting me, like a divorce

    2. accidently over-promising, not managing expectations and basically not confronting miscommunication early only to face a bigger mess later

    3. having some surprises mess up my schedule planning...

    Not sure about you, but a short "difficult" conversation with a client, being very, very honest, and being willing to give up a project you're unable to do on schedule .. these things can save your sanity, even if it may wreck your bank account...

    a larger lesson for me has been to ask the client what their budget is upfront, and try very hard to not be in a position where I "have to take any project"... being able to turn down an anticipated overwhelming project is a godsend for a freelancer...

  • Amicus0

    If you are busy on a constant basis raise your fees. You'll tend to lose a couple more jobs here and there, but make the same money.

    Another solution is to find a younger, but equally talented person to take on some of the work when you are overwhelmed. ie. Move towards becoming an agency head and only working on the jobs that satisfy you most while still making money off everything.

    • +1
      I tried making the switch to being a "consultant" and only doing productions on projects i really dug.
      freakpelican
  • SunSunSun0

    ^ I'd love to be able to do that (the second part) but I'm an illustrator mainly so it's hard to source out the work... I am gonna raise my fees though.

    • note that you'll spend lots more time managing your outsourcing, so no always a cure for too much work.monNom
  • formed0

    Managing expectations is a big part of things. I make my clients acknowledge that what they get is "as is" and "to the best of our abilities" if the time frame is short. This avoids the race to a deadline, then coming back with corrections after their presentation/meeting.

    Hobbies - personally, I embraced photography and love it. I get the creative freedom, the accolades, etc., without anyone else demanding anything. BUT I completely disagree that you shouldn't look for ways to be profitable. I do believe that the best scenario is to be paid to do things you love, so why shouldn't you look for angles to make a few bucks? Doesn't have to be a career, might not pan out (I am not shooting families or seniors, so probably won't be a career changer), but who cares if you are having fun.

    Passion - see above. Keep that alive. Realize that the hard work is also there to enable your uninhibited passion to flow, to give you life, to give you money to buy things (like my new D800 that I can' really justify, certainly not the case full of lenses!), to have fun with your creativity.

    SAVE - if you are making money, save, there will be a rainy day. All about a balanced approach to life, business and living

  • monNom0

    Learn to say no.

    Rule of thumb, if they are:
    - in a hurry
    - disinterested in the project ("I don't know/care, make it up and we'll decide later")
    - looking for a cut-rate.

    They're going to cause you considerable stress.

    • a huge red flag for me is people who need it now, but don't really know what IT is... and want it cheap! you're right....vaxorcist
  • BonSeff0

    stretch your ball sack at regular Intervals, hold in the middle and move outward (avoid hair pulling, that may cause more stress and thus, counter-productive)

  • studderine0

    I had the same issue for a while. I can't say that I did anything special take care of it beside sleep therapy. The work would swirl around in my head to the point that I couldn't sleep; took me a bit to get back on normal schedule. You really have to look at yourself and understand what is causing the problem. For me it was a combination of too much work and allowing the work to pile on. I had a hard time saying no because of my own internal expectations and it literally drove me insane.

  • monNom0

    ^ getting good sleep is a huge one actually, keeping to a bed-time and getting at least 8 hours uninterrupted/unmedicated makes a big difference in keeping stress levels down everywhere in your life. Having a life outside of work and boundaries so you can leave your work 'at the office' and not be thinking about it constantly (so you actually can sleep), is critical.
    Avoid caffeine and alcohol in the evening, as these can do a number on your restfullness.

  • sinjun0
  • trooperbill0

    "Is there a way to deal with long hour days and tight deadlines and still somehow enjoy life?"

    ah that would be better project management, working to live not living to work and better client communication.

  • SunSunSun0

    Guys, thanks for all the supportive tips. All really helpful stuff.

    I'm just going to be careful in the future about saying yes to stuff when they don't have exact dates and leave plenty of room around it.

    Everything came in at once at the end of the year when I've been waiting around for months for them to get their shit together.

    • I hope you de-stress a bit! Take it easy and switch off after work and have a pint!Chimp
    • cheers dude!SunSunSun
  • Horp0

    ^ That there was the defining motif of self employment for me and it drove me very close to insanity through the sheer consistency of it...

    I would get an enquiry about a job in August. A book cover. It would go nowhere. I would get an enquiry in September. A record Sleeve. It would go nowehere. I would get an enquiry in October. An ad illustration. It would go nowhere. I would get an enquiry in December. A magazine illustration. It would go nowehere.

    With nothing coming in, I'd eventually decide to take a day off, and I'd arrange something. Maybe a day out with my family. We'd all be ready and excited. That evening, without fucking fail, every single fucking time. I'd get an email from the publisher. Its going ahead. Its needed by Thursday. An email from the record label. Sleeve art going ahead. needed Thursday. An email from ad agency. Artwork going ahead. needed Thursday. An email from the magazine. Illo needed, deadline Thursday.

    These emails would all be in caps. All headlined URGENT, and would all claim the deadline was Thursday. Honestly, it tested my sanity that it could always happen like that but it always did and it nearly drove my whole family to the nut house. Every time, without fail.

    That wasn't the end of the insane coincidences though, because somehow I'd work like a dog to meet all the Thursday deadlines, and then on the Friday, I'd get a load of revision through due to the rushed nature of doing it, and they'd all say 'Need these revisions by Monday morning 9am'.

    There would always be up to a month's additional amednments time mysteriously available after the urgent deadline.

    Told a LOT of people to fuck off over those years. Got poor, but it felt good.

    • This seems to be a big problem in the industry. I just wonder what the best way to deal with it is.Chimp
    • I used to become convinced they were all conspiring against me, it was so uncanny, it was the only rational explanation.Horp
    • This is EXACTLY what I'm dealing with constantly!SunSunSun
    • Its not your fault. Don't let it drive you mad. Learn to say no. They always have more time, always. Make them use it.Horp
  • elahon0

    • I know where I'd like to be positioned.Horp
    • That looks like where I wanna be.SunSunSun
    • That looks difficult to do.CygnusZero4
    • This is easy to appreciate and her legs form a V for victory which eases stress.CyBrainX
  • maquito0

    I run & cook.

  • formed0

    To the deadlines and extensions....that's just human nature. Everyone wants things done tomorrow, most don't have anything but some vague idea in mind when they make deadlines.

    My standard line for short deadlines is:

    #1 when will the final/approved information be available?
    #2 is this a hard deadline (you'd be surprised at how many "deadlines" are just something someone would "like", but have no really meaning...which usually means the scenario above - race to Thursday, the on Th get a notes for revisions that must be due by Monday, like taht is some great break for you to have a few more days and a weekend to work on it!)
    #3 - short deadlines limit communication time and feedback - what you get at the end you must accept "as is"
    #4 - changes past the deadline constitute additional fees (unless otherwise specified - we'll do something less detailed for a deadline, then finish after, BUT it must be clear)
    #5 - Get paid up to 90% (depending on the size/budget, small I just go 50/50, larger 30/30/30/10) before delivery the final (start with 50% down, etc.). That way, if they are too much of a pain you don't have to stress about the money and know that you both can walk way and you'll still be ok. This is HUGE.

    Don't burn bridges - unlike some above, I never, ever, tell someone off. I'll add fees if think there's a pain in the ass coming or headaches. Overall, it all averages out. There are good clients and bad clients. Money is money, business is business. Some of the most difficult clients recommended me to others and brought in tons of money, etc., etc. Business is business.

    If you want your own business, figure out a balance everything. Find people that offer the talent you want so you can manage them (I used to think I would not like giving up the "doing", but I like the creative direction much more, and you make much more money with significantly less stress).

  • cannonball19780

    Care less. Remember that it's all just a big game. Like all games there are more important things to do, and people will throw tantrums when you don't want to play anymore. You aren't the only person with the skills, and they aren't the only one with money.

  • 74LEO0

    Do you freelance, work for a company?
    Depends on type of co. you work for. got a gym at work? Do yoga, meditation gym tred mill etc. The fastest way to remain calm stress free is to exacerbate the body, strengthen the heart, also if you want to stay in the GD business eat right, don't drink too much, smoke too much etc and don't forget what matters most to you outside your career.

    Save your moneys and design a t shirt on cafepress.