Quick I have a job that I'm not ready for!

by Michelle Heffner on Wed Apr 28, 2010 11:44 am

No, wait.

I don't take money from anyone until I know that I can handle the job.

I don't make promises I can't fulfill.

I'm not entitled to information just because I ask for it.

So I'm good.

~Michelle

by Shannon Fennell on Wed Apr 28, 2010 12:04 pm

Yup, you are!!

by Magic on Wed Apr 28, 2010 12:53 pm

Hmmmm-you went there.

by **SuzySparkles** on Wed Apr 28, 2010 2:23 pm

unnecessary.

by Michelle Heffner on Wed Apr 28, 2010 2:48 pm

SuzySparkles wrote:unnecessary.

Suzy,

I'm not so sure about that.

Let's have a civil conversation about this.

1. It is very common in creative, freelancing areas (face painting and makeup artistry come to mind) to have people jump in and get their feet wet.

2. Said new people who get in deep w/o doing research then come to forums asking for free advice.

Let's keep our replies short and we can avoid any lengthy monologues.

~Michelle

by EerinArts on Wed Apr 28, 2010 3:00 pm

I think its quite normal to ask for information and advice when you are just starting. I do not understand what all the fuss is about Smile

If there is anyone that dislikes giving advice and info, he/she can simply choose not to answer.
Maybe I misunderstood the topic.

by Michelle Heffner on Wed Apr 28, 2010 3:06 pm

EerinArts wrote:I think its quite normal to ask for information and advice when you are just starting. I do not see what the fuss is about

Not so much a fuss over asking for advice.

More of a fuss over marketing yourself as a face painter for hire when you are not ready.

Saying "Oh sure, I can do that!" to paying customers.
Then going online and saying "Oh shoot! How do I do that?!"

~Michelle

by **SuzySparkles** on Wed Apr 28, 2010 3:07 pm

I understand your point

I have had many gigs that I have accepted without having the faces ready, that I have had to research and practice before going to the party. I never go without having all of the faces practiced, photographed and printed on a display for the kids to select from. So I will accept it, research it and then go...

My first and trusted method is google. I will search for design ideas and practice those. If that doesn't help then I come here. The chocolate fest for example... While I paid a booth fee to be part of that festival and could easily just use my boring old designs I thought it would be fun to throw a few chocolate ideas in... I cannot come up with any on my own... AT ALL!! I am completely stuck in the mud when it comes to chocolate for some weird reason since I probably bleed it from eating it so much!! lol

So, I asked for help and someone suggested i make a little contest out of it, which sounded like tons of fun to me and I even offered $35 worth of prizes just as a little extra incentive. Just because I want to figure out some chocolate designs that are fun and again... not necessary.

I don't even know what I would have done had I gotten an actual chocolate gig where all chocolate designs were required!

I guess I just don't think it is bad to ask for help when you are creatively stuck.

by Michelle Heffner on Wed Apr 28, 2010 3:13 pm

SuzySparkles wrote:I understand your point

I have had many gigs that I have accepted without having the faces ready, that I have had to research and practice before going to the party. I never go without having all of the faces practiced, photographed and printed on a display for the kids to select from. So I will accept it, research it and then go...

...

I guess I just don't think it is bad to ask for help when you are creatively stuck.

And what I'm saying is that New painters can't get in over their heads and ask for a bailout.

Not that Suzy shouldn't ask for help Smile

Are you still going to send me my palette? Razz

by PatB on Wed Apr 28, 2010 3:16 pm

It must be nice to never get in over you head and not have to ask for advice, new or otherwise.

by Michelle Heffner on Wed Apr 28, 2010 3:24 pm

PatB wrote:It must be nice to never get in over you head and not have to ask for advice, new or otherwise.

Do you hire yourself out as a plumber and then rush right over to the plumber forum and ask for handouts on how to plumb?

If you hire yourself out as a face painter but have no idea what you are going to do once you get the job, then I am talking about you.

If you are asking for bits of advice about how to improve your work, then I am not talking about you.

~Michelle

by Michelle Heffner on Wed Apr 28, 2010 3:27 pm

PatB wrote:It must be nice to never get in over you head and not have to ask for advice, new or otherwise.

And also, if I can't handle a job then I man up and tell the person inquiring that I can't do it.

~Michelle

by **SuzySparkles** on Wed Apr 28, 2010 3:29 pm

And what I'm saying is that New painters can't get in over their heads and ask for a bailout.

Not that Suzy shouldn't ask for help Smile

Are you still going to send me my palette? Razz

[/quote]

Your original post didn't say new painters so I thought you were talking about me Sad

Of course I will still send you your palette!! lol (I am shipping it tomorrow)

Okay back on topic... We were all new at one point and I think it would be okay to ask for help. I did lots of free gigs before I started charging though... That way if I did a bad job I didn't feel too bad about it Smile

by EerinArts on Wed Apr 28, 2010 3:32 pm

Michelle Heffner wrote:
EerinArts wrote:I think its quite normal to ask for information and advice when you are just starting. I do not see what the fuss is about

Not so much a fuss over asking for advice.

More of a fuss over marketing yourself as a face painter for hire when you are not ready.

Saying "Oh sure, I can do that!" to paying customers.
Then going online and saying "Oh shoot! How do I do that?!"

~Michelle

Ah ok, I understand.
I started by marketing myself but with the message that I was doing portfolio work, and people that would hire me get a discount because I was just starting.
It worked ok. In this way they knew that I would not be completely sure about how well I would do the job, and gave their consent in me doing it for them anyway (is that a sentence? Smile

sorry) And still I would get paid a little bit and get to do portfolio work. I grew into 'being ready' by doing this, and then started doing it in the normal way.

by modernmagik on Wed Apr 28, 2010 3:40 pm

I think the point she is trying to make is that people should not put it out there that they are a professional face painter or glitter tat artist, etc. and accept a paying gig just because they think it looks easy and say, "hey, I can do that" then realize that they have never face painted or done tats before and don't really even know what to do. So, they then go to forums, etc. and say hey, I have a job coming up and need to find out how to do this. What paint (glitter, stencils, brushes, etc.) do I need to buy? Oh, and can you tell me how to use all that stuff??? Oh, and if you could send me your photos to use and could do a step-by-step or a video, that would be great too.

This is not about people who are learning their skills or trying to improve, or even just need specific ideas for a themed event. It is about someone selling a service that they don't already provide, then trying to get people who have put in the dedication to learn these things already to bail them out of the jam they got themselves into.

Is that right, Michelle?

Quick I have a job that I'm not ready for!

Quick I have a job that I'm not ready for!

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