Name: Russell C. Reich
Title: Creative Director and Writer
Location: New York City, NY
Years as an Independent Contractor: 4

Monster.com: What kind of independent contractor are you?

Russell Reich: Just prior to going freelance, I worked at a corporate communications agency as a producer in the interactive arena. I did that for two years, and when I went freelance, my former employer became my first client, easing the transition into an independent existence.
Now I'm a creative director and writer. I have a company called Creative Headquarters (creativeheadquarters.com). I create digital communications for major corporations. For example, when a major pharmaceutical company comes out with a new drug, it has to train its sales force, who will, in turn, train the doctors about the drug. My job is to create CD-ROMs, Internet sites and other media.
But I don't just do training. My overall specialty is internal, business-to-business communications.

Mc: What pushed you to go out on your own?

RR: The realization that the typical 9-to-5 job was a prison to me. My office was like a cage. The company I worked for had every right to expect that I'd be available during normal business hours, but that didn't fit my style of working. My style is more one of outrageous productivity in three or four hour spurts, after which I need a break. Companies, by nature, are not structured to provide that kind of schedule. I finally came to a realization about myself and what I needed, and that realization led to a major change.

Mc: At what point did you realize that you could actually make a living on your own?

RR: When I first thought of going freelance I read in a start-your-own-business book that you'll spend 50 percent of your time doing the work for which you are being compensated, and the other 50 percent of your time searching for your next project. That immediately struck me as a terrible ratio of productive time to overall time spent working. By my third year as a freelancer, I realized my marketing time was down to virtually zero, and all my business was repeat business and referrals. I've been pretty lucky, and I hope that this pattern continues.

Mc: What's the biggest mistake you've made to date?

RR: This is less a mistake than a warning about potential mistakes that freelancers make. As a businessperson, especially as a freelancer, you feel like you should take on everything that comes your way. But you can see that a project will be a nightmare if you look at it carefully before entering into it.
Learning to say no to clients who have been wrong for me is the most valuable lesson I've learned. Eventually the wrong kinds of clients stop calling you and the right kinds of clients start calling you. I don't know why that is, but I'm glad it happens.

Mc: What was your most memorable solicitation for business?

RR: There was one that was a bit out of the box. It was a response to an RFP (request for proposal) to design an actual museum. I hooked up with an architectural exhibit designer, and over a period of three days we put together a creative proposal and submitted it. Out of 25 other firms that responded, four were given $10,000 in seed money to develop their ideas even further. The eventual winner was the same firm that designed the Holocaust museum in Washington, D.C. We were just a couple of guys, casually responding on a lark, and we came in fifth. We were pretty proud of that, but we would have preferred to win.

Mc: How has working as an independent contractor affected your personal life?

RR: A lot people ask me how I motivate myself to do the work -- but that's not the problem, because my reputation and my income are completely dependent on what I choose to do. In terms of getting started in the morning, it's basically my butt on the line -- if I don't deliver I don't get paid. That also means that it's very difficult to turn the computer off at the end of the day. There's always more that I could be doing. Free time is a matter of exercising the will to say "no" to all the things vying for your attention that are work-related.
There isn't a separation between my work life and the rest of my life -- and I like that. When you work for someone else, that person has a vested interest in getting as much out of you as they can for the money they're paying you. Now my job is more productive and less stressful because I'm the only one pushing myself.

Mc: Do you have any advice for your fellow freelancers?

RR:

• Make sure you hire a good accountant who you trust and like.
• Don't hesitate to set up your office with everything you need before you begin work, so your organization and record keeping become habitual from the start.
• When you set up your home office, make sure that at least one thing that you buy, whether it [is] a cabinet, lamp or desk, is the absolute best you can find. It's a way of creating the expectation in yourself that you are going to succeed.
• Learn to say "no." It's the most powerful word in the freelancer's vocabulary.
• Protect yourself if you work on a project-fee basis. If the project expands beyond the original specifications, make sure the contract covers your time.
• Take people who do what you do well out to lunch. Networking is one thing, but if you give people something first, it becomes more than just "What can you do for me?"
• Realize that you don't need to be the smartest person there is -- you just need to be smarter than most of the people around you, which isn't hard when you realize that in business, there's never a surplus of smart, conscientious people.