It’s a pretty hackneyed thing to write about how you’ve not written a blog post in ages, but I’m going to do it anyway.
I’ve been busy. Not the kind of busy where you’re contentedly working through a list of things, but the kind of busy where you white-knuckle it from one deadline to the next looking like Gloria Swanson in a version of Sunset Boulevard set on a rollercoaster with broken brakes.
I’m not saying this to show off (although as a freelancer, being this busy is generally viewed as a positive thing), but because it’s a good opportunity to talk about the Love Sexy Money formula.
My friend Hannah, a talented graphic designer and artist, told me about this when she was going through an insanely busy period and trying to work out what work to say ‘no’ to.
The ‘Love Sexy Money’ rule of accepting work goes something like this:
- if it’s work you’re going to love, even if the pay is shit and it’s not particularly high-profile, then take it,
- if it’s work that’s Jessica Rabbit-sexy because it will get your name in places that other beers don’t reach but the pay is shit and the work isn’t that crash-hot either, then take it,
- if it’s as glamorous as a compost bin, as high-profile as a cockroach’s underparts but the money is great, then take it.
- if the work fulfills none of these criteria, then say no.
It’s a useful formula to think through if you find yourself offered work that just doesn’t quite feel right. And bear in mind that your standards can fluctuate so work that might not look quite as appealing one day can look pretty darn hot the next when you need to replace all four tyres on your car.
Of course, everyone has a limit and you can’t say ‘yes’ to everything, because otherwise you find it a little difficult to get to the essential things, like ensuring you and your family have clean underpants to wear, and your response to just about every enquiry from your loved ones is:
Bianca Nogrady 