How to be a Freelance Product Designer - Jared Erondu

[@pixelandbracket]

Jared is incredibly compelling to listen to!

[@louwaars]

Pixel & Bracket awesome name and logo!

[@SuperMentalMicky]

He speaks very well.

[@leshonorables2718]

@@SuperMentalMicky wait,…,what? Exactly do you mean by ”he speaks well”?

[@omarhussam1362]

@@leshonorables2718 What's wrong about it?

[@naominene6554]

Thank you so much for sharing! I just finished my Product Design Diploma in 2020 and I don't feel ready for the industry at all. I feel like Design school was more stressing about chasing deadlines than anything else. Now I just need to reflect on what I want and where I want to be in Design as well as sharpen my AutoCad skills this year. In South Africa the industry is very much white male dominated so as a young black female I get so inspired to see POC like yourself within this industry prospering. Thank you once again!

[@clementinea22]

Hey Naomi, I will graduate from design school this year and wanted to ask if you would like to connect to talk about our vision. I'm stuck don't knowing where I want to go with this career. Greetings, Tina

[@2702]

Yo, this guy is living my dream.

[@zoltanvz]

Definitely one of the best videos regarding freelance. It gave me new perspective on a few things. Thanks for doing this!

[@FiveFishAudio]

THIS FACT!!! When you're charging hourly, the better you become and the faster you finish the work, the less you make in the long run. One way to counteract this is to compute a surcharge factor for the hourly work. i.e. 1hr x hourly rate x surcharge factor.

[@chandlmr]

I'm not even a freelancer, but this was so insightful!! Thank you for not wasting time with captain obvious advice and sharing specifics on your lessons.

[@shahj1620]

This video has been incredibly helpful for me to manage my time better without feeling overwhelmed. Thank you for the content. Love it!

[@SketchappTV]

Seriously, this is amazing!

[@shutingzeng9773]

Such a wholesome, genuine, caring and self aware design leader. Rare to see in today's tech startup world :)

[@AdrianStefan]

So much value you share here with us man, thank you! I feel like a lot of us contractors or freelancers are like headless chickens, we are moving somewhere but not always on the right path, we do things not the way we should have. Love the grading of your videos.

[@MichaelOye-gf1vt]

This is indeed an awesome video, you gave a very honest and detailed explanation of the freelancing world. its about 6years since this was posted this video and yet everything you said still applies to this very day. Thanks for this video

[@davidbjoern]

Jared is so damn awesome! Thanks for making this series Dan ✨

[@victorbrb]

I don't charge hourly because of all the experience that I got from working in advertising agencies for years by doing things really quickly and accurate and sometimes I got stuck in a problem for hours and other times I solve the problem in a heartbeat. Awesome content :)

[@flolucht344]

Enjoyed every thirteen minutes of the video! Sums up what it takes to be a freelancer in the design industry perfectly!

[@Racheldorenofficial]

He is an extremely intelligent person!

[@PaulDaLouis]

Great tip on researching the company you want to work for! Keep em coming Dan!

[@mariav8806]

Thank you so much, so good to know I'm not the only one with the " Hi, I'm free, so I work and you pay me, right? "

[@jerondu]

👋🏽 Hey, all! Happy to answer any questions on what I said here! For example, I go a bit deeper on calculating freelance rates here: askplaybook.com/how-can-you-calculate-your-freelance-rate/answer/erondu

[@jerondu]

And if you have broader ones, ask the design community here! --> askplaybook.com

[@DanielSerranoRico]

Awesome stuff Jared, since you work in a weekly basis, I was wondering, how do you handle opportunity cost?

[@jerondu]

Opportunity cost in what sense?

[@DanielSerranoRico]

Well, since time is limited, and in case you're in full capacity, what's your criteria to decide if you accept one client instead of another client.

[@jerondu]

Gotcha! So how I evaluate clients. I look for a few things: the team (are these people I want to work with), the vision (is there a clear one? Am I inline with it?), their understanding of design OR willingness to learn (not much point in contributing my expertise if it won't be valued in the end), a clear scope (is this a figure it out as we go kinda thing? Or do they know why they're bringing me in now). Other things factor in of course, like location/compensation/skills required/etc

[@waibosibili8546]

Thanks for the much needed information ❤

[@adventure-cowboy]

Jared, thank you for sharing your story. You're so well spoken, really great soft skills!

[@annakidesign-productdesign8010]

Thank you for bringing location into subject, hard to deny!

[@julianTrichardson]

Dann, we need more of these!

[@rumbledowndesigns]

This guy is really smart, and is good at making a point

[@polina1735]

Jared is such an inspiring speaker, thank you so much for sharing!

[@rangerraymusic]

Eloquent delivery. So inspiring.

[@OTHEROUTES_]

Dan, these are really great to watch dude. Can't wait to see the Docu!

[@genesisapril5035]

Thank you for these videos Dann...it's really helping me understand what I want to get myself into.

[@Henzvein]

I'm hoping to start up freelancing and just had no idea where to go but this has shed some light on some important factors. thanks guys!

[@GuliversTravelocity]

Very cool. Makes me excited to graduate and get my first real job.

[@Wyndu777]

Thanks Jared. You just gave me something to think about.

[@petra.rabely]

Wow this is exactly what I've been looking for as I'm following the same path as Jared. Thanks for this!

[@MrEric121212]

This dude is awesome. Fantastic video.

[@anfisign]

That was a voice of all the freelancers. Signing under each word!

[@HashtagCareerGoals]

Great! I recently uploaded a video about Product Design Career exploration and it matches so good with this one!

[@MindLessbyPargatMann]

thanks for this video, seriously a lot of insides for all wannabe freelancer's, thanks Dann

[@lost_sounds_]

A suggestion. I would lower the music volume so I can hear Jared's voice better.

[@benkoldegolf]

These are awesome. I never thought about doing weekly, but you may have just turned me onto it!

[@bitcode_]

love the high quality of it

[@thatboysims3k879]

Loved every second of this video! Hate to sound cliché but it really ignited something in me to pursue what I really want to do, as opposed to being on a shitty 1-dimensional hole

[@alrickrock1828]

This guy mastered public speaking.

[@JoxnieD]

Love it Dann! Keep making them!

[@rkdesign4319]

Super cool interview, thank you for this =)

[@NomadicBloke1]

watching this after 5 years and working as a successful one person business, damn.

[@tonyvalentine3712]

Love this interview. Interesting how I got a Tristian Walker vibe. Very professional.

[@reggieblack4349]

thanks for this insight. It's really helpful as I embark on this journey

[@zerv1979]

Fantastic points he makes. Thanks for the share.

[@t.i.s.r.oofficial7142]

Great video

[@MikeLocke]

This is dope. Great video.

[@tuxu5994]

This is great! Congrats!

[@ugkxninja]

LOVE these videos

[@fabrizio-evans]

great series bro

[@JonathanPath1]

Really inspiring, thanks !

[@mianala]

Thank you

[@Birii23]

Soooo good!

[@AzmyHanifa]

This is great!

[@mikejdeleon]

Fantastic interview 👌

[@danutabereziewicz4672]

Tank you

[@kakauefebe]

I love it!

[@alisonostendorf]

Very good video, thank you.

[@kamilbetowski8930]

Great content

[@buskinglankans]

I have a question though. When you go with the Weekly rate how do you set the price ( say a minimum number). I also charge hourly and feels the same. I want to try weekly but tell me how to go with that. Thanks Dan for shooting this :)

[@ThiagoSantosAirboy]

Thank you!!! That was great!!:)))

[@aidenkashi6110]

Im sorry if you spoke about it, but where do you get freelance clients? Sites like Upwork are getting so competitive and rates are so low for designers

[@kenconcepts]

Awesome video. really helpful. However I need help. a client approached me to design an appliance for maybe a kettle of blender as an example. I read charging per hour is not a good idea but for a day or a project I feel like it is better. so keeping in mind the design process the client comes with a market research and I have to carry on from the target market, mood boards and inspiration with more insight research. concept development sketches with three directions to choose one from to be refine and then freeze the phase 1 in order to start cad modeling, 3d printing, mockups and material testing all the way to the final working prototype. how much would one charge for all these? as a whole project and it is for batch or mass production. design criteria and specs and tolerances will be provided by the engineers or from manufactures.

[@n.ee.h]

Very interesting!

[@hendrickputra3142]

Try into different angle. Overall is awesome!

[@hugoantunesartwithblender]

Amazing

[@CzechFlash]

Hey Dann, I really like it, its inspiring! Keep up the awesome work!

[@bgimusic]

great intel

[@mrunbekannt299]

This content is great! But I would improve the background music.. In my opinion the sound should be more positive, so it fit better to the important and good words from Jared :)

[@geronimocramos]

Does anyone know how one might figure out their weekly pricing as a freelancer?

[@Str4ng3F0lk]

TFW I'm from Wisconsin

[@CookWithKiran]

He reminds me of Will Smith

[@markusbluebird3229]

Nice computer chair what is that

[@dincredible2933]

🔥🔥🔥

[@medetuser1052]

Jared, do you have github, stackoverflow dribbble? Does those help at getting hired?

[@jerondu]

I have a Github and Dribbble (/erondu on both). I've never done a project that's come through any of those services, but I know that Dribbble has been helpful for others for find projects or jobs (lots of recruiters reaching out through it now)

[@doctoryoung9513]

#awesome

[@alexmares4072]

How can I find that chair?

[@jerondu]

It's the Embody Chair by Herman Miller

[@hibiscusflower5911]

Whats onboard flow?

[@louwaars]

Zoe D it's kind of a sales funnel but then for getting people integrated

[@fabricepohlmann302]

Hey Dann, which camera do you use for the interviews :)?

[@DarshanGajara]

Fabrice Pöhlmann Dann has all the camera and edit details in the description.

[@fabricepohlmann302]

Thanks bro! Sorry I´m lazy haha xD

[@Jez1963UK]

Great video, loved the interview and what was said, but the title ? Not very accurate. Still thumbed up :)

[@louwaars]

Does this guy have a channel?!

[@jerondu]

I do! kzbin.info

[@DarshanGajara]

Great insights Jared. Though I was hoping for you to talk something about your side-hustles as well. For instance, High Resolution.

[@jerondu]

Thanks! What do you want to know about them?

[@DarshanGajara]

Jared Erondu About how it all begun, what motivated you to start, how did the collaboration with Bobby happened and how being a freelancer allowed you to do that.

[@jerondu]

Gotcha! Bobby and I noticed a painful trend when interviewing designers for teams we built in the past: some didn't really know what value they were supposed to provide to a business beyond "making it look good." This, in turn, led to the companies they worked for believing design was just surface level. It created a cyclical pattern. The designer doesn't know the value > can't communicate/show it business > business doesn't get the value > undervalues it. We wanted to break the cycle by creating a series focused on design leaders who were once ICs (individual contributors) and who had a proven track record of knowing the value of design, being able to communicate it to a business, and getting that business to buy-in. Our hope was that through 25 examples of this, we could help equip the entire design community with the tools and terminologies to change the perception of design in their orgs (and for business people to see what they were missing out on). Being a freelancer provided me the flexibility to spend hours on hours researching and travel to 6 cities for filming without having to take sick days :)

[@DarshanGajara]

Jared Erondu You guys certainly did a great job.

[@momchilyordanov8190]

Honestly, I don't even know what a Product Designer does :)

[@mykytapysarevskyi5622]

Just love it soooo much! Thank you for all series from freelance.tv

[@danutabereziewicz4672]

ThinkPad you

[@skrobonja32]

I didn't know that Will Smith used to be a freelancer 🙂

[@garrettdavis7386]

Yo seriously what kind of office chair is that?

[@jerondu]

Hahaha, it's the Embody Chair by Herman Miller

[@anthoneypier3404]

being a freelancer means you get the desk underneath the stairs.

[@gunnerandersen4634]

you look alike will smith dude, somewhat

[@1deplatt]

Why not charge on a project basis? Weekly suffers the same pitfalls as hourly, no?

[@joshualyness4790]

David Platt ahah he talked about it in the video, but what you’re saying makes sense. Charging weekly is better though, in case the project runs over.

[@bohemiantoast5004]

Why does this feel like a promotional video. What are you guys selling

[@cianbyrne4146]

Anyone else feel he sounds just like Elon musk when he talks like the exact same way

[@samegemba1741]

go naija go

[@ladylove5632]

:P he's cute

[@ruinloui1742]

Hello everyone i am 34 I work for a private product sketch company I have done wonderful designs for great companies. Send me an email for and ideas. Thank you guys