With any new decision leading you into unknown territory, I wanted some solid advice. I want to do this right and I want to pull on other’s experiences as much as I possibly can. In a single income home with a wife and two tots depending on me, it’s important to make smart decisions.

Being the Twitter tool, that I am, I figured I’d poll the masses to see what sort of advice they had. I found much of the advice people had to be very helpful, so I figured you might too.

Advice on Self Employment:

Believe God! Adam Souders

Don’t give up, be versatile, & understand you’re going to work harder at the beginning than you ever have. But it’s SO worth it! Kenny Adams

Work hard, play harder. Kenroy George

Stay organized. It is easy to start out organized, the hard part is staying that way. emoxie

don’t be afraid to charge what you deserve. Don’t think you won’t earn it – you will. Harlan Lewis

Don’t set your rate too low. :)Josh Bryant

Always schedule time in every week to market yourself. The second you stop is also the stop of income. Darren Emory

Be like Dory (Finding Nemo): Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming. Collin Robinson

Get a routine in the hours you work, file storage, the way you do backup, project management and todo-lists. Ole Martin

Treat it like a job. Set hours whether it’s 9 -5 or Midnight – 8 w/ breaks & everything & get ur own workspace w/o distractions Samuel Mateo, Jr.

Try to be consistent with your lunch break and make sure you take your time especially if your’re working from home Jamie Bicknell

Always get up, shower, get dressed, just like you would at a “normal job.” Also, beware taxes – prepare early! Dave Simon

Make a sharp distinction between your “office” and your “home”, if they are the same place. Laurent Bauman

Exercise. And if working from home, a mutual understanding of expectations with the rest of your family. Chris Bowler

Trust your gut- don’t take projects you have a bad feeling about. Stay disciplined about your work schedule. Get outta the house. Jason Reed

Routine and Records. Aaron Mahnke

Always use a contract for everything that you do. John Phillips

Remember to have a quitting time, and make sure you close the door. Vacation. Important for friends and family, very hard to do. Audrey Sargent

Always get 50% up front. Don’t low-ball your rates. Keep overhead low (only buy what you NEED). Always use a contract. Chuck Mallott

Use Billings. Joseph McLaughlin

Log every minute you work, whether for a client or not. Greg Newman

Watch the savings account. Keep that puppy padded. You will never know what may come. Joshua Brewer

1) Make customer service a priority. It’s amazing what a good name can do for your business. 2) Drink lots of water Gedy Rivera

Keep focused and work on a schedule. Fight the distractions. Tom Jenkins

A decent coffee machine and a proper pair of slippers. Tom Law

Be reasonable to your customers and fair to yourself. Oh and just because you’re customers don’t see you still have to change your underwear regularly.Ed DeCoste

It is not about the money…it is about your reputation. Always! Always, do the right thing! James Larson

Remember not to just be Techie. You are at least 3 people now – Marketing, Scheduling, Financials – Receivables. Take a few minutes each day to wear just one of these hats and do it justice. And always remember your commitment to your family. Balance and keep your integrity. The rest will follow, hopefully within your timeframe. Rick Watts

Give yourself a raise! Chris Larson

Go to work @ work time. But be home @ home time. Guard your schedule! Cory Cummings

Have a plan in place to get new clients. Even if you are getting them initially hand over fist…don’t neglect new biz efforts. Suzanne Elfstrom

Don’t have a business partner – Unless you are both willing to work the business equally, using your individual talents. Elizabeth Wilson

Write things down.Thad Haines

Don’t accept every client that comes knocking. Josh King

File all proper paperwork with state and local government. Partial payments up front. Close eyes on monies owed to you. Keep EVERYTHING for tax returns. Christine Kringle

Thanks!

To everyone involved in my employment, thank you for this advice.

So, Komodo Media will be coming out with a design that I love and I hope you will too. I have spent many hours tweaking and perfecting this design in Fireworks till Lord only knows when and how long. Anyhoo, enough about my design, for that is not my purpose today. My purpose is to give you people out there a little help in your design world by giving you a little gift. A gift which I have poured my heart in to designing, and a bonus from my friend and fellow elite designer, Thurston Elfstrom. Props to him for designing the luscious red restrada. For some reason, I have felt like giving away vector art of leaves and plants. So, it is without further ado, that I present you with the Komodo Media Leaf vector art package: