This article is part of a partnership blog series with North East Cultural Freelancers.
You can read our first part here and our second part here.
This week's question is as topical as it is (probably) uncomfortable...
Q - Should we put our hourly and day rates up with the cost of living increase?
A - To sustain our careers without depleting ourselves - we absolutely have to!
Do you price up your time by the hour or by the day?
Perhaps you've developed a side line in courses or products alongside your artist practise or salaried job in the cultural sector?
Looking at the model of the freelance day rate for visual artists here (which you could choose to relate to most arts sector jobs) below, we probably know instantly where we 'pitch' ourselves based on experience?
Guidance on Fees and Rates for Visual Artists
Source - AN
View the full article here - https://static.a-n.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Guidance_on_fees_and_day_rates_for_visual_artists_2022.pdf
I've had some BRILLIANT conversations recently with creatives, artists and freelancers who are wondering about how to continue to grow their 'company of one' and afford their increasing bills.
I find these conversations are difficult as a collective but easier as a one to one. Do you connect ?
Perhaps that's because we have an innate fear we will price ourselves out of the market or that someone will always be able to offer to do the work for cheaper? Perhaps the difficulty comes from our self worth or our historical "money stories"?
Perhaps it's because we are just uncomfortable talking about our worth when it comes to what we charge, our background costs and why.
Our challenge provocation back to the sector at this difficult and overwhelming time is to make new decisions based on the reality of the world we find ourselves in.
Have you done a budget for yourself for the next year?
Are you putting your prices up this April or thinking of ways to diversify your income in other ways? Could you think about what would feel good and fair? Would it be in line with the cost of living increase of 7%?
To both survive and thrive working towards creating from a place of "abundance" in oppose to scarcity, we all absolutely have to think about our prices and the diversification of our income.
More sources -
Consultation on the reform to retail price indexes
Sign up for The Big Culture Northumberland Co-working Event where the topics will be 'diversification of income' and 'profile raising' on 22nd June here.
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