I have huge new respect for freelancers. The last few weeks have been the most anxious of my life and I thought I was a pretty seasoned corporate middle manager.

I occasionally take freelance jobs, mostly older, computer challenged workers who need help formatting documents to look designed/professional as well as some consulting in my area of expertise. I was recently referred by a former boss. Her friend, the client, didn’t want to talk about payment process and wanted a discounted rate because she saw me as young and inexperienced and a friend of a friend. It was also an uncomfortably delicate situation because this former boss told me the client prefers to write checks in small amounts directly in exchange for the help, instead of invoicing the company because she considers it help from personal friends vs. hiring a contractor, so I was told to price without adjusting for taxes. I know… red flags for DAYS. It was theoretically supposed to be easy - do a couple documents, get a small check.

Well, after racking up weeks of additional work with no notice (I let her know the price each time), adding in consulting services, texting me constantly, I broach the topic of payment because the amount I’m due requires being taxed if paid in lump sum, so I need to understand how she’d like to manage (such as through multiple smaller checks). She adamantly denied ever writing personal checks, pulled a “confused poor sweet old lady who forgot her wallet” act, and ended up telling me to adjust my invoice to account for taxes. I do so gladly, and she freaked out at how high the invoice amount was and fired me from future work. All of this over $5,000 that wouldn’t even come from her own wallet but from a SPAC with plenty of cash! I’ll be shocked if I’m even paid at this point.

I’m in a tax bracket with a 40% obligation, have 10 years of relevant experience, and was responsive to every text and call, always available to her, turned around work quickly and ahead of deadlines. I mean, if she wanted cheap, she could have chosen to work with someone who isn’t a specialized professional based in NYC… Part of me wanted to get snarky and tell her you get what you pay for, but I was just so massively relieved when she told me she couldn’t afford me. I had been trying for weeks to figure out a way to end this sketchy contract that kept snowballing, I dreaded looking at my phone because I was afraid of seeing a text with “new project for us!” - I’ll take not having to deal with it in the end.

I used to scrap and hustle for every dollar I could get, but this experience made me realize my personal time and emotional freedom is infinitely more valuable than this cash. I’ll stick to my day job haha. I guess I’m just here to say, I truly admire you freelancers who fight for your worth every day and deal with these ungrateful, cheap, disorganized and unethical clients. I have new appreciation for how emotionally draining it is to justify your rates to clients who have no idea how much your software/operating expenses are and undervalue your expertise and professional-level customer service. Screw those people who want to pay internship rates for professional quality work yet don’t know the difference between PPTX and PDF. If you made it this far I’m sorry for the rant and thanks for reading… I’m still so irritated.

Tell me your worst client stories!!!