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A client turned down, in writing, the one chance he had to tell me what "working" meant.
Months later: not "production ready." A phrase nobody in the entire engagement had ever bothered to define.
Refusing to write down a standard is a power move wearing a leanness costume. I've eaten it from clients, from nonprofits, and from the manager who put me on a performance plan for skipping a hot pot.
Same trick, three different rooms. I wrote a bit about it on Red Mage's blog for those interested!
https://blog.redmage.cc/p/move-fast-and-blame-things
blog.redmage.cc
Move Fast and Blame Things
Someone Always Benefits From the Ambiguity
I’d put the definition of working into the contract before the build starts: what a person should be able to do and who signs off. If the client won’t answer those two things, the ambiguity is already part of the deal.
The network for creativity
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Creatives on Contra have earned over $150M and we are just getting started
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Reminder for those getting client inquiries: people asking you to run code on your system before they've given you any money is likely a scam. Get real contact info, get a face to the name, and do your best to vet the client before you start doing anything like installing packages.
@Contra HQ does a really phenomenal job of handling issues once you flag them, if they don't catch them by the time you open your messages. There's a handy 'Report' button. Best to use that and not even let the scammer know you're onto them.
Stay safe, fake clients are everywhere. The only obstacle to you making more money is losing it all to a scam.
Good call on the Report button over calling them out directly, I hadn't thought about tipping off the scammer that way. Did something specific happen recently that made you write this up, or is it more a pattern you keep seeing in inquiries?
How much does it actually cost to be a designer? 👀
I did the math on my yearly essentials:
🎨 Adobe — $172/year
🌐 Internet — $25/month
🤖 Claude — $200/year
☁️ Google Drive — $50/year
🍎 Apple storage — $9.99/month
✨ Contra — $29/month
Typography, mockups and other assets are project-dependent, so I only buy them when needed.
I also use ChatGPT, Figma and Notion without paid subscriptions.
That puts my basic yearly setup at around $843.
And that's before the coffee. ☕️
What does your designer setup cost you?
It’s so crazyyyy
Great motivation! 🙌 Just getting started here and seeing someone reach 10K is honestly inspiring. Hoping this is the beginning of my own journey too.
