Criticism
Dealing effectively with criticism is vital to a successful freelance career. Regardless of how great your work is, it will be criticized. It’s hard not to get attached to something you’ve poured yourself into for hours on end but that attachment can be your worst enemy when someone offers up a less than flattering critique. For me the process goes something like this: I play some music for a client, they don’t think it’s right and let me know in no uncertain terms, I feel deflated. Now here’s where things get interesting. My immediate impulse is to defend my work and make the case for why it is right and the client is just not getting it. In my experience that has never gone well, as ultimately you are under contract by them to create something that fulfills their vision. If it’s not happening for them now, it probably won’t after you’ve made your case for why they should love it. If you are able to talk or even bully them into accepting it you’ll most likely find that when the client has had some time to reflect, they’ll be left with a feeling that they really didn’t get what they wanted. That won’t bode well for you getting a call on the next project. What works for me is to immediately start asking questions. What about it don’t you like? What feels wrong about it? This is the point where you need to detach yourself from the work and join with the client in tearing it down so that your next stab at it will be much closer if not right on the mark. If you can do this you’ll find that rather than being in an adversarial relationship with them you will be in a collaborative one. This act of joining in the criticism of your own work produces growth and takes you to the next level. It stings at first but once you’ve made the leap you’ll find that the next stab you take at it will be much closer if not right on the mark. After taking this approach for awhile, you’ll begin to appreciate those clients that don’t pull punches when it comes to criticism. They’re making you a better artist and that’s always a good thing.

