• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Nethervoice

  • Home
  • VOICEOVER
    • VO & Demos
    • Faq
    • Clients
    • Testimonials
  • COACH
  • AUTHOR
  • Blog
    • Blog
    • Career
    • Conferences
    • Dutch
    • Freelancing
    • International
    • Money
    • Media
    • Pay-to-Play
    • Personal
    • Promotion
    • Reviews
    • Studio
  • Contact

The Yin and Yang of Freelancing

Blog, Career, Freelancing

IMPOSSIBLE CLIENTS.

We know who you are!

You’re searching for a specialist who can handle almost anything.

Isn’t that a contradiction in terms?

Does your family doctor make a great brain surgeon?

Can a novelist write irresistible advertising copy?

Yet, some clients are looking for a be-all, do-it-all freelancer with young, fresh ideas and years of experience.

Is that too much to ask?

Some psychologists say that the fact that we humans are able to hold two diametrically opposed ideas in our mind at the same time, is a true sign of intelligence. Part of me wants to believe that this is indeed correct. The other part thinks it’s

Read the rest of this story in my new book. Click on the cover to access the website and get a sneak peek. Use the buttons to buy the book.

Making Money In Your PJs cover

Related Posts

  • Act Like A ProAct Like A Pro
  • The Only Certainty You’ll Ever HaveThe Only Certainty You’ll Ever Have
  • Do Less, Make MoreDo Less, Make More
  • Surviving the Gig EconomySurviving the Gig Economy
  • The Turning PointThe Turning Point
  • Calling it QuitsCalling it Quits
  • The one word that saved my freelance careerThe one word that saved my freelance career
  • WHEN NORMAL IS SPECIALWHEN NORMAL IS SPECIAL

Share this:

  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr

Like this:

Like Loading...

Filed Under: Blog, Career, Freelancing Tagged With: Abraham Maslow, act natural, Dutch voice over, four stages of learning, freelance, freelancer, Freelancing, Geena Davis, Johnny Depp, Nethervoice, Paul Strikwerda, pirate, Taoism, voice acting, voice actor, voice-over, voice-over coach, voiceover, Yin and Yang

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Lance DeBock says

    July 15, 2010 at 10:23 pm

    Love the blog Paul! Excellent writing, thank you.

    Loading...
    Reply
    • Paul Strikwerda says

      July 15, 2010 at 11:17 pm

      Thanks Lance. Your website rocks and you’re a former helicopter pilot as well as a certified scuba diver. I don’t think I can top that!!

      Loading...
      Reply
  2. Joe D'Agnese says

    July 16, 2010 at 7:13 am

    Nicely done, as always. You are teaching me every time I stop by.

    Loading...
    Reply
    • Paul Strikwerda says

      July 16, 2010 at 7:29 am

      In that case, I am simply returning the favor, Joe!

      Loading...
      Reply
    • Carl Chapman says

      July 17, 2010 at 8:04 pm

      Another great post…

      Loading...
      Reply
      • Paul Strikwerda says

        July 17, 2010 at 8:57 pm

        Thank you, Carl. Your pictures are truly stunning, by the way. You seem to be just as comfortable on land as in the ocean. Wow!

        Loading...
        Reply
  3. Lance DeBock says

    July 16, 2010 at 11:03 am

    Thanks Paul, That other stuff is easy compared to writing! Someone once told me “Everyone rises to their own level of incompetence” and for me it’s writing. I envy people like yourself that do it effortlessly (is that a word?) Thanks again.

    Loading...
    Reply
    • Paul Strikwerda says

      July 17, 2010 at 9:07 pm

      I believe that everyone rises to their individual level of unconscious competence. Most of us are not aware of it. That’s why it’s called “unconscious” or -as others call it- “sub-conscious”. Thank you for your compliments on my writing. English is my second language and one day, I hope it will flow just as naturally as my Dutch.

      Loading...
      Reply
  4. Dan Lenard says

    July 16, 2010 at 11:01 pm

    You and I are connected Paul.

    You think like me (Brilliant!)

    I’ve been using the Maslow analogy for years when I teach.

    Excellent words of advice. But people have to become at least consciously competent at all that to try to at least compete, and focused enough to become unconsciously competent to succeed!

    But as I say, if it isn’t fun, why do it?

    :-3)

    Loading...
    Reply
  5. Paul Strikwerda says

    July 17, 2010 at 9:01 pm

    My teachers Julie Silverthorn and John Overdurf taught me that the quality of our life greatly depends on the number of things we’re unconsciously competent at. Consciously and unconsciously, I completely agree.

    Loading...
    Reply
  6. Mike Coon says

    July 18, 2010 at 8:18 am

    Dear Paul:
    Thank you for sharing these words of advice, encouragement and wisdom! I just subscribed directly to your blog. I think it’s one of the most useful blogs out there! No fluff or overt self-promotion. You are a generous professional!
    I’m still having “fun” as an independant voice actor…looking to expand my horizons (and my client base!)
    Thanks again,
    Mike

    Loading...
    Reply
  7. Paul Strikwerda says

    July 18, 2010 at 8:44 am

    Thanks Mike! When I read what some of your clients have said about you, it seems that you’ve been putting some of my suggestions into practice, long before I wrote this blog.

    Here’s what Ryan Lynd, EVP Technology and Services at Quickshow had to say about Mike Coon:

    “Mike has been our primary male voice talent for a little over a year now. He provides quality voice recordings, quickly and at a fair price. Before Mike we were using a handful of male talents for our customers’ shows, but because of Mike’s versatility and responsiveness, we have been able to use him solely for all projects requiring a male voice. Mike’s talents have lent a professional touch to our presentations that always impresses our customers, and frankly, makes us look good!”

    That says it all, doesn’t it? Here’s the formula:

    1. Have a unique voice (Mike’s voice is described as both rich and bright in character)
    2. Be fair in your pricing
    3. Be versatile
    4. Deliver on time
    5. Be responsive to the needs of your client
    6. Offer exceptional value

    And… when your clients look good, YOU look good!

    Loading...
    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Blog Stats

  • 938,054 hits

Categories

Archives

Disclosure

In this blog I may discuss/review products or books that I believe are relevant to my readers. As a service to them, I often provide links to those products or publications.Instead of having a tip jar, Nethervoice is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. In other words, as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

  • HOME
  • VOICEOVER
  • COACH
  • AUTHOR
  • BLOG
  • CONTACT

Privacy Policy

©2024 Nethervoice // Voice Over Site by Voice Actor Websites
Website Hosting by UpperLevel Hosting

  • Home
  • VOICEOVER
    • VO & Demos
    • Faq
    • Clients
    • Testimonials
  • COACH
  • AUTHOR
  • Blog
    • Blog
    • Career
    • Conferences
    • Dutch
    • Freelancing
    • International
    • Money
    • Media
    • Pay-to-Play
    • Personal
    • Promotion
    • Reviews
    • Studio
  • Contact
%d