Trust is the single most important element in business and relationships. It is established over periods of time, not something that should be automatically assumed when you have your livelihood at stake. Unfortunately, anyone who has been in the freelance design field has likely been 'hosed' for their time. I know in my 7 years of freelance design work that I have been crushed a few times. Often wondering what I was doing wrong and then it occurred to me; I had forgotten the single most important element.

When I started freelance work, I failed in ways that I would've never imagined. As an artist gets better, that fear of failure shrinks away. Many of the great artists I know do not fear failure. We are tuned to a frequency of creation and we place ourselves in an open state - open and susceptible​. We're vulnerable.

Failure is part of the process

I knew that failure is part of the process when I set out on my own. I had no clue what I was doing, only that I had an insatiable desire to do it. I failed in many ways, but I began to observe my failures closely. My biggest failures were the focus. I began to look for what factors were present in each of these failures, to see if there were any recurring​ factors. Then it really started to become clear. All of my most costly failures had one thing in common: I worked for those who I had assumed trust with - not verified trust with. Well, what happens when we assume? In my experiences, this has been devastating. It was just a handful of people that nearly destroyed my life. All because I allowed them to do it.

Don't Rush! Trust Takes Time & Time Is Money

It is something I cannot stress enough: TRUST WHO YOU WORK WITH. If you cannot affirm that you trust the people you work with - do not work with them. It is a dangerous scenario to place yourself into. Without trust, you cannot confirm your time is being utilized with what truly aligns with your best interests AND whom you are working with. As a design freelancer, that's my job; it is to put the best interest of my client first. Where I made a terrible mistake was working for those who did not reciprocate that level of respect and loyalty.

A little consideration goes a long way

When I work for a company, I won't take work from a competitor even if it pays more. That little extra money is nothing compared to loyalty and trust. The time and effort put forth in order to establish a REAL trust is priceless and no immediate gain can surpass the value of long-term trust. @Jackmiller wrote a beautifully​ detailed piece called, Loyalty In Business = Integrity! Partners or Employees? which offers further support to what I am expressing.

To me personally loyalty to one another in business is the one and only key factor that assures a sound foundation to doing business. @jackmiller

TRUTH¹⁰

{truth to the tenth power!}

Trust and Loyalty

I trust those who I have worked with and come to know as 'someone of their word'. Meaning: they do what they say the will do.

Actions speak louder than words

Loyalty is a ​consideration to me. When you consider me for a project, whether or not we end up working together or not, I recognize that consideration. I recognize it because​ I recognize actions. Someone who has worked with me in the past and inquires for services on another future project - that is a ​consideration. That is loyalty. I reward that sort of consideration and generally find it easier to trust those types of people. Even coffee shops reward loyal customers. It is what will at some point determine whether you retain or lose a customer for many businesses; loyalty & trust.

I have worked with some of my 'whitelisted' members for 5 years or more. That is loyalty and certainly deserving of reward • big shout out to @finnian for being my LONGEST standing whitelist member on Steemit!! Aside from being a great friend, Finnian is one of the most honest & trustworthy individuals that I've had the privilege to work with.

That is something I hope everyone can appreciate. Working with people that you value and trust will always produce greater results.

I'm a full-time stay at home father of two children (2 & 4), husband, local business / small-scale farmer, design freelancer & business consultant and steemit in my "in between all that" time. So needless to say, I'm a busy dude! I value my time with my family and that is why I paused my career and reinvented my life to work around raising two children and keeping a happy wife (happy wife = happy life). Family comes first, then business.

HOW TO GET ON

• Hire me. That requires a basic level of trust for the both of us.

• Work with me and have a successful project. That is the foundation that we will build upon.

• As we get to know each other better, I get better at learning your style, likes, dislikes, expectations, etc. Streamlining our process a little at a time. Over time this becomes more efficient = costing me less time and you less money.

• Once you know me better, you are able to request larger projects. Again, I do not even consider large projects from sources that I have not yet established some form of trust with, especially in a ​circumstance where I am asked to provide work before payment.

• I offer new designs and bonus incentives to my whitelisted users, they are first to get services before I make them available to the public and some that are exclusive to​ whitelist members only.

DISCOUNTS

I offer discounted rates for my most trusted clients and my fellow @steemfreelancers guild members only. I do not entertain negotiations of price with those who I have not established trust with and simply because I do not have the time or energy to risk. I have done it many times in the past and have unequivocal data to prove it ends badly more times than not. That is straightforward and honest. I have trusted clients willing to pay me more than I ask them for; that says it all. It's the reason the "Whitelist" was born.

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