Don Your Yeti Sweater or “Don’t Worry; the Money Will Come.”

All of the dogs are sleeping, my deadlines are quietly gnawing away on the bones I’ve thrown them, and I have at least two and a half hours before Kim comes home.  Quick! How fast can I blog?

I’m trying to decide whether to recap the last few months for you guys or to give you a little “here and now.”

Well…I guess I’ll start by saying my biggest fear when I left ALC was that my financial runway would end before I could lift off with regular cash flow.  When I left, I had a ton of vacation saved up.  The way I figured it, the payout would keep me alive for about 3 months.  I had less than a quarter to get up and running.
Just in case, I paid big bills ahead—like my car insurance and credit card—so I wouldn’t have to worry about them for a while.  I started reigning in the spending and there were natural savings in places like gas for my car (good time to work from home).

Between that and the fact that jobs of different types started coming in right away, I’ve felt surprisingly stable and secure throughout, despite the lack of a steady paycheck.

Until now.

I’ve been working a lot and getting paid on time for the most part and all of that, but it just so happens that I’m waiting on several big payments and a couple of little ones all at once.  A forgotten invoice here, a check-signer’s vacation time there, a bank error over yonder, plus a few random big expenditures and voila!  I’m starting to sweat a little.

I’m not broke…you don’t have to come over with casseroles or hand-me-down sweaters or concerned looks (well, unless it’s a really good vegetarian casserole…or paella…or the Farmer’s Market Vegetarian Sushi Rolls from Ocean & Vine).

Nah, I don’t need charity dinners yet…I’m just ebbing right now.  Lots of things “in the mail.”  Soon, that ebb will flow.

I’ll tell you, though—it gives me a new appreciation for the little guys out here.  When I worked at ALC, we had a regular system for Accounts Payable, just like anywhere else.  Occasionally, there’d be a hiccup, and something wouldn’t get paid on time.  I always felt bad about that…but now I feel REALLY bad.  If you are a contractor I have ever paid late, please accept my sincerest apology…do you like casserole?  May I offer you a hand-knit tunic?

 

When I Googled "hand knit tunic," this came up. Though it is not a tunic, it is perfect. May I offer you a Yeti sweater?

And to all those big guys out there—remember that a missed pay period might not be a big deal to you, but to us small outfits, it basically means rent goes unpaid and food for our babies’ tummies goes uneaten.  And then everyone cries.  Okay, okay, I’m being a little dramatic.  Let’s be more practical: the electricity for your jobs goes unconnected.

I’m not complaining.  And really—I don’t hate the big guys.  Not at all.  I’m grateful for the work…and I do have a working cushion I keep for precisely this reason.  I just didn’t think I’d have to dip into it so soon.  This is also the reason I always like to have at least two or three jobs on deck as I’m working.  My goal is to always be:

• working on a current project
• waiting on a check—or even better, multiple checks
• lining up a replacement gig for the current project

That system has been working pretty well for me so far.  I recommend it.  And if you have a big dude named Hans that can run your collections department, you might look into that, too.  All I have is 3 Chihuahuas and a Pit bull who thinks she’s one.

At least I’m busy with writing…and isn’t like practically the rule to be poor if you’re a writer?  So maybe I’m not “coasting on fumes,” but rather—“fully immersing myself in the experience.”  Wow, I’m so committed!

In all seriousness, I’m just a skosh over 5 months into this little experiment, and I’m making it work (a nose above water still counts as “not drowning”).  Another key to this has been having multiple things going on.  When the photography biz is slow, consulting is busy…and vice versa.  And writing?  Well, writing’s always busy.

Kim and I have figured out a really great system so we can write this book together without killing each other.  We have our first major deadline coming up, and we’re in good shape.  Our editor is awesomely supportive and smart and all that…and we’re just chipping away.  It’s intense—no question—but it’s exactly what I wanted.  Plus, I have a few smaller monthly writing gigs that keep me tip-tapping away.

So I guess this entry turned into a little bit of both.  Sure, I want to document my experience to feed my own nostalgia addiction, but I also hope to give tips and tricks…maybe a little cheerleading…to those of you out there who are itching for more…

Those who are starting to wonder or wish for something different…

Those out there who are trying to figure out if it’s even possible…

Those who want to do the same thing…

If I’ve learned nothing from this experience is that you must BELIEVE—whatever that means to you.

For me, right now, that means believing my money will come and my 3 tier system will keep working…as long as I do.