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freelance models, do you ever get overwhelmed?
Maybe I'm just a baby, or a bad model, or just bad at managing myself. I get tons of emails, etc and sometimes I forget people, or it takes me a while to get back to them. When they call me, sometimes I don't remember what email they are referring to. Sometimes I don't even know how to respond. While I let the "agency" guys handle the agency stuff, I handle my internet stuff. This sounds really bad, I'm not stupid or flaky (although I will admit to a bad memory. in my defense, chemo killed my short term memory). It doesn't help when I receive an email that says "I like your look, call me". Gives me no clue as to what they want (tfp, etc) I am generally not an unorganized person. I do VERY well in school (information systems B.A) and in fact, I am an organizer by nature. But geez, the new emails, etc I have to think about everyday sometimes just gets overwhelming. I HATE to ignore people, so I really try to atleast say thank you. And this is on top of my family life. My question is, to you freelance models who handle all of your business yourself, do you ever feel overwhelmed? ha ha..maybe i should spend less time on these msg boards, lol. May 22 05 02:57 pm Link Hiya Angel ! I DO like your look... and really, call me ! Ya dont have to get back to me right away either...  ~~~ Mikey May 22 05 03:00 pm Link Posted by MikeyBoy: LOL Mikey May 22 05 03:10 pm Link I bought a file cabinet I copy all emails and mark at the top what section they belong in.. 1st tfp or paid 2nd type of shoot 3rd dates (time frame) I have two sections one for TFP and one for Paid work. Paid work is broke down by type of shoot.. Calendar, video, print, promotional, volunteer etc. then each section by month. Every email i have from that company is kept in their file.. most recent on top. TFP sections are broken down to dates.. tfp .. would like to shoot in August for example.. all files are listed by phototag in that section that wanted to shoot in that month. So when I have an opening that matches up with theirs we can set the date and they are moved to the front section that is TFP set dates. lol wow trying to write it out sounds complicated, but it works for me. Really just need to find a system that works well for you. I found trying to thumb back through emails very frustrating. Only emails i keep in my mail are items I paid for so i have the receipts, or mail I haven't responded to. When someone writes me with that "I like your look, call me" line I write back with (pending info received) 1. who are you? 2. What company are you with? 3. What is your address (to look up if they are legit)? 4. What type of shoot were you looking to do? 5. Do you have a website so I can see your work? No info gets no info.. be careful May 22 05 03:20 pm Link It's not just you, Angel! I have experienced the same problem in the past few months. now that I am receiving more offers, photographers with the same first name, etc. it's getting hard to keep everyone seperate and being 100% as timely as I would like to be. Sometimes I will get an e-mail about a project I submitted for a week afterwards, and by that time I have to look through my e-mail to remember who they are! It helps me to check my e-mail several times each day, but still, it's getting treachorous. I'm researching some organization methods to help me keep everything straight and in order, because Lost time is lost money!!! May 22 05 03:24 pm Link Ashley, that is a great idea about the file cabinet! I've been meaning to do that for about a month and haven't taken my rusty dusty into a store yet to get one!!In my case I will need 2, one for my writing and one for my modeling! May 22 05 03:29 pm Link Posted by veester: What kind of writting? I write to sometimes. Are you making any money off of your writings? May 22 05 04:02 pm Link Bless you Ashley for that information. What I have been doing is creating rules in outlook to organize the emails. And when I get a phone call, I always make sure I have pen and paper in hand. Might I add that you are really beautiful! Photographers, I'm sure some of you deal with so many girls each day that sometimes you don't remember us? Right? May 22 05 04:04 pm Link Posted by Angel Tara: I have a hard time remembering my friends so yeah models and other people work related I forget all the time. If I haven't met you are talk to you allot I'm gonna forget who you are untill I'm reminded haha. May 22 05 04:11 pm Link I agree with some of the other posts on here: organization is the key. I use a Franklin/Covey Organizer. Stephen Covey wrote "Seven Habits of Highly Effective People". If someone calls me I note in it my book to call them back on "X" date. If I miss that date or we are playing phone tag I'll foward the task foward in my book. Using the tags or task menu in Outlook is good too. It has an auto reminder. Modeling is like any other business and you just need to use whatever tools you can find to stay on top of things. And don't worry, my memory isn't what it used to be either...LOL May 22 05 04:20 pm Link Hey Angel, At time yes it can be overwhelming to handle all the hits of photographers and possible jobs! But in my email boxes, I have did something what Ashley was talking about, and have a section for each category that I need to respond too....Urgent Emails, TFP Shoots, Paid Shoots, Agency Jobs, Contracts, etc! But i have been guilty of forgetting people, and its not like we do it on purpose, but I understand, when your trying to balance work life, model/agency life, freelance life, it can be challenging....but if you set up a system or a reminder alarm on ur phone ir sumthin, than you should be ok! May 22 05 04:21 pm Link Ashley, that is a great system! Promotion gets overwhelming for me. That's my worst area and the most overwhelming for me. May 22 05 04:36 pm Link I have a big binder. Each photographer gets a "file", which is really just a plastic page protector. I have them divided into three sections: have worked with, in town have not worked with, out of town have not worked with. Inside the page protector, I keep correspondence or at least a list with dates and what the email said plus model releases and business cards. I was using cover sheets, but I need to redo them now with spaces for MM numbers! (Cover sheets include: name, studio or pro name, location, address, phone number, OMp number, MM numbers, musecube number, website, MUA artist yes or no, additional notes, paid or TFP, etc.) Then I have a section for agency stuff, one for hair and makeup tips, one for wardrobe ideas that I like, and one with poses. Eventually the second part (hair, makeup, poses, etc) will probably need to get moved into a seperate binder. At least once a week, I sit down and update the binder- or try at least. Lately I've been busy with other things. I use post-it notes on each file to remind me: e 5/5 for example would mean I emailed them on 5/5. If they responded, I take the note off and add the printed response or note it on the log. The files are in alpha order within each section by first name, so I can find who I'm looking for with ease. Then I have a dayrunner for scheduling, phone numbers, etc. I was exactly like you... I'm also pretty organized, at least with this type of stuff, but different systems on different sites plus sheer volume made it really difficult to keep track of who was who. May 22 05 04:56 pm Link Ironic that you posed this. I'm in the process of organizing things for myself too. As a photographer, I have the same problem - tons of models saying they want to work with me. So, I'm trying to figure out a way to break things down logically and stay organized so I can keep on top of things. One of my recent developments was to create a call sheet. It struck me that I never heard about anyone in the modeling world using call sheets. But in the film world, we used them all the time. So, I made a "photography specific" call sheet to give to models and stylists and crew. May 22 05 05:14 pm Link Posted by Eric Muss-Barnes: What's a call sheet? May 22 05 05:21 pm Link Posted by Rafael Alvarez: Posted by Eric Muss-Barnes: What's a call sheet? A call sheet is a sheet of paper that lists a scene, date, location and actors for a movie production. On every film that is ever shot in Hollywood (and on every indy film with people who have a clue) every cast and crew member gets a call sheet every single day to let them know when the next day of shooting will be and who is "on call" for that day. May 22 05 05:35 pm Link Maybe I'm just not popular enough, but I don;t have too much trouble keeping track. I have had a couple things slip through, but not many. I have one folder for modeling email that I'm interested in and have replied to. Once the shoot is done, I delete the email unless it contains something about future compensation that for some reason I don't have in a contract, but that doesn't happen much. If email needs reply, it stays in my inbox giving me dity looks until I answer it (usually within two days). When I haven't heard from a photographer in several weeks, I send them a note asking if they're still interested. If I hear nothing for a month, I assume *they've* forgotten about *me* and delete the correspondence. I have a day planner that I write vital info like time, location and a few things that I've been asked to bring. I also maintain a database with the name, contact info, website address, date we shot, nature of the shoot, compensation I got, refering source etc. etc. for people that I have already worked with. Since I'm not a full-time model, I get to be very picky and turn down a lot, so I never have a huge back log. May 22 05 08:36 pm Link This pertains to models and me a photographer... I run 4 businesses - 42 web sites - and volunteer on the weekends.. the only way to do that type of schedule is to be 100% organized.... well that and have no social life to speak of... But organization is key... be able to get to everyhting you need quickely - answer emails quickely - make phone calls etc... You just have to look at the big picture - if you are serious about what you do you have to be serious... that is key to the models I look for for jobs... I could give classes in organization and handeling business issues - but sadly I am pretty much out of time... May 22 05 08:48 pm Link Posted by Brent Burzycki: wtf? wtf? wtf? 42????? wtf? I need meds just thinking about that May 23 05 01:07 am Link I am the same way. I get so many E-mails and it's hard to remember everyone or remember what they are referring to or remember names. I started writing everything down so I don't forget things. May 23 05 01:25 am Link Posted by Angel Tara: OMG, if I didn't read your name beside this post, I would have sworn that I posted it when I was exhausted and just didn't remember! I swear, this is completely what I have been going through also! I feel so bad when I forget to call or e-mail someone, and then they feel that I am just unreliable, which I'm not! And then I will travel somewhere for a week or two, and then I get even more behind! One thing that helps me is 3-ring binders. I do something similar to what another model said. I write at the top little notes like "TFP, paid assignment, or photographer that I have to pay" and then where they are located, what type of shots they want to focus on, etc. Then I sort them all in alphabetical order by e-mail address. I actually have 4 binders full!!! It has always been a big help in the past, but for some reason (summer, perhaps?)I have been getting 40-100 e-mails a DAY!!! Talk about overload! (not that I'm complaining!!!) Well, hope this helped a little bit! Good luck! May 23 05 01:54 am Link Posted by Brent Burzycki: looks like you have plenty of time to post on modelmayhem, so lucky us! May 23 05 02:16 am Link Posted by Rafael Alvarez: Hey, Rafael. Sorry it took me so long to get back here, it's been a loong day! lol. Anyway, I write poetry and short tories, and am about to begin work on a novel. My first compliation of poetry is being published and should be available to buy before the summer is out! So hopefully, I WILL be making some money off the writing! May 23 05 02:29 am Link I sort of have the same problem but probably not on as wide of scale as you guys since I am just starting out. I have recieved alot of emails from differnet photg wanting to shoot and wanting to help me get started, the way I found to organize this is 1. I always check my email around 5-10 times a day 2. I have a couple different email accounts for different things,with sub folders liek any modeling info I get in my hotmail I forward to my yahoo and place it in the right folder, after a couple of days I check all folders to make sure that i haven't past any dates and I have contacted the ones I needed to. 3. I print out all emails for to have a hard copy just in case of any technical problems and put them into document protectors in a folder that says modeling stuff which is broke down by info or work than what type of work by date. I am a gs employee so you know I work alot, I am a volunteer youth coach, and I am a cheerleader, so it pays to be organized, I don't really have the time not ot be....... May 23 05 03:30 am Link Posted by Eric Muss-Barnes: I started doing something similar. In my orgainizer, I write down the name of the photographer and other people who will be present (MUA/Stylist extra models), location, type of shoot, suggested wardrobe and any props. I also write dates on a wall calendar with names and times. At the top of my sheet, I also have a phone number(s) where people involved with shoot can be reached. I don't call it a call sheet, but a check list. May 23 05 10:33 am Link Posted by Pinky: Posted by Eric Muss-Barnes: I started doing something similar. In my orgainizer, I write down the name of the photographer and other people who will be present (MUA/Stylist extra models), location, type of shoot, suggested wardrobe and any props. I also write dates on a wall calendar with names and times. At the top of my sheet, I also have a phone number(s) where people involved with shoot can be reached. I don't call it a call sheet, but a check list. That is very cool and your checklist is a great way to be organized. May 23 05 10:40 am Link I know alot of internet models who get overwhelmed with emails, which is sometimes why they have online managers, so they could have them deal with the emails. Some models don't get back to me until months later. Some models don't even get to see the email I send them, which is why I send multiple. May 23 05 01:01 pm Link Buy a day-planner... May 23 05 01:02 pm Link First of all, these people emailing you with "I like your look, call me" MUST not have any business ethics. #2, Most of the people in the business probably know that if they want you, everyone else is wanting you too. So they are either very patient OR in a professional manner express how they really really REALLY want you for a shoot. You can tell in an email who is serious and who isn't by the tone of the email and the details they are giving you. Good thing is, they ARE sending you email and not calling and wasting your time. In fact i would not even return emails of people who dont' get straight to the point and include details. May 23 05 08:03 pm Link I keep everything posted and categorized on my computer and the net... so if my comp goes down... im shit out of luck!! =\ but i do have a bad memory as well... Just the other day, a man called me, and I had to literally ask him.. 'who IS this??" cause i seriously didn't have a clue. =\ I think we all do it sometimes. Youre definately not the only one. May 23 05 08:15 pm Link Posted by Angel Tara: Angel, May 23 05 09:19 pm Link Posted by Eric Muss-Barnes: Actually we use them quite often more so that my people know where the hell I am and I am supposed to be. It has also come in handy when dealing with my ex wife and her groundless accusations to the police. See I was here with this model at this time shooting this... no way I could have been 4 counties away when she claims I was. =o) May 26 05 03:28 pm Link Yes, it's a major pain in the ass. About a month ago, I created a Wordpad document with people who wanted to shoot with me including their name, email, phone number, link to their work and a comment about their work. I organized it with all 50 states in alphebetical order followed by people in Canada and other countries. It makes my life so much easier. When I book a shoot, I put the the time, location and name of the person I'll be working with along with a little note as to what type of stuff we will be shooting. May 26 05 08:05 pm Link First and foremost I have a live in slave, that is extremely helpful. My tools of organization though are as follows: I use gmail which holds 2gb of email. I can send huge emails with pictures through them as well. I use gmail in conjunction with Thunderbird email client which allows me to filter incomming mail by Keywords into a variety of folders. I also use http://calendar.yahoo.com. If my computer dies all my info is easily accessed online. Good thing we have more than one computer in the house. May 27 05 04:34 am Link OK...so it's not just me going crazy. Girl! I so can relate with you. I have such a hard time prioritizing. I mean, you just never know which shoot is going to work out. I have so many shoots "In the works". I have a really hard time getting the shoots actually set up. I don't want anyone to think I'm stalling or don't want to shoot. But when money is limited...and wardrobe...and makeup...and hair. I don't have the money to pay these outstanding photogs to get great pics. And it's SO hard to get everything organized for a TFP/TFCD shoot. I'm not sure if its just me, or if everyone else has a problem with this stuff. I don't know how all these other models do it. Especially with traveling. I see all these models going all over the place. Unless it's actually a covered expense, which seems to be rare. The furthest I have been able to get myself is like Columbus, OH and Grand Rapids, MI. And Detroit is just not enough. Sorry Motown! I love Detroit and I'll always have a home here. But man I gotta get out of MI! I've never really left here besides OH and Syracuse, NY. So I definitely understand where you are coming from. I did the "Online Manager" thing, total waste of time. I got nothing from it and I think it just discouraged me even more. Anways, you're amazing and I hope we get to cross paths someday, I'd love to meet you! You are a total inspiration. xoxoxo LadyLamia May 27 05 08:35 am Link Geez, I knew someone else had to be feeling the same way as I do!!!! Jun 05 05 01:46 pm Link OMG, the first month of modeling I thought I was going to shoot myself in the head. I was so incredibly overwhelmed. Sure, you get TONS of e-mails from people who want to "work with you" or "boost your portfolio" or "give you incredible images". You have to learn to be selective. You need to get down a pattern. You need to be ORGANIZED. It's hard to get used to. Trust me...for 6 months straight I traveled once a week to a different state. I would book shoots for 3 days straight. Up to as many as 5-6 shoots. All the traveling and remembering really wears you out...emotionally, spiritually, mentally, physically. But I learned and now I know how to manage myself and how to book shoots properly. Once you get a system down, you'll be just fine. Stick in there. I always wanted a manger because I was too overwhelmed, but I managed to do just fine. Jun 05 05 01:50 pm Link Gee overwhelmed... all I have time to say is YES! *L* Jun 07 05 02:43 am Link ok, while we're on this subject, I would like to throw in a twist. What does the model do when she request tfp from a photographer that never contacted her prior. I have had quite a few of these but the dam thing is I don't see a response. Or I will follow up later just to check and maybe half will reply back with a sorry and give me their # but then they don't return their phone calls. I feel I should just write them off regardless if they call me or show up at my door steps. Jun 07 05 06:38 am Link Just a few weeks ago I joined Model Mayhem and have been getting an overwhelming response. I've also just recently joined omp a pretty big response there. It just feels daunting at times to get more new email and having to keep them all together and with the dates I already have planned to shoot. The other day I was going to my cousin's graduation party with 5 other gabbing adults, while I was in a car that had the windows down and the adults talking I got a phone call from a photographer. I could barely hear what he was saying, then let alone I could barely remember him without a computer in my face. I felt so bad having to let him go, but I knew that the conversation would've ended up fruitless due to my lack to remember and the chaos that was going on. I'm very happy that I am getting a response so I can quit my ranting, because it's really over nothing lol.. Ashley had some very good advice on how to organize contacts and such. I've been trying to get all my things together, it just is at times, very overwhelming. Congratulations to all the models and photogs out there working it and getting it done!! We're all very beautiful people that have something to show the world. Keep it up everyone! Jun 07 05 08:38 am Link |
