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Portrait of a Freelancer: Felix-Antoine Huard

Portrait of a Freelancer: Felix-Antoine Huard

<p><strong>Portrait of a freelancer - </strong>Meet inspiring people who chose to make a living out of independent work. Through a very human perspective, discover their story, and the uniqueness of their lifestyle &amp; challenges</p> <p><img alt="fa-cercle" class="aligncenter size-full" src="https://blogmanagement.momenteo.com/Content/blog-img/fa-cercle-768x768.png" width="313" height="313"/></p> <p><strong>Who are you?</strong><br> I’m a young copywriter and marketer from Shawinigan, Canada. I assist entrepreneurs, freelancers and artists in the development of their skills and small businesses.</p> <p><strong>How did you get into freelancing?</strong><br> I’ve always wanted to be my own boss, as cliché as it sounds. Still, I had to meet the requirements of my parents and attended&nbsp;University for 4 years to study marketing, communication and management. Recently, I obtained my M.B.A. and decided that I would not send any resumes.</p> <p>By pursuing my education, I’ve learned so many things that could benefit others who didn’t have the chance or guts to go to University. So, instead of knocking at a thousand doors looking for a job, I’ve spread the word about my trade and skills and created my own job.</p> <p><strong>What is the hardest part about freelancing?</strong><br> Before taking the leap, I thought that the hardest part of freelancing would be to work alone most of the time, to find new clients and to get paid by them. I had it all wrong. The hardest part is to handle everything related to accounting and billing. Getting paid in the end was never a problem for me, but&nbsp;managing a cashflow is always a hassle.</p> <p><strong>Tell us about your daily routine.</strong><br> While drinking my morning espresso, I make a list of all the tasks I should complete during the day and prioritize them. Before getting breakfast, I settle on the first task. Once it’s done or significant progress is made, I check my emails and social medias while filling my empty stomach. Then I either work on a client project or write blog posts. When my brain is boiling, I relax by reading fantasy books or by slaying aliens on my old PS3.</p> <p><strong>Do you have any freelancing horror story?</strong><br> Not exactly an horror story,&nbsp;but there was&nbsp;a client who couldn’t understand that I was not his employee. He kept telling what I should do&nbsp;to keep the job, like he owned me or something. In the end, I politely put him back in his place. Not exactly an horror story, huh.</p> <p><strong>Where do you habitually work?</strong><br> I’m paying extra rent for an additional room that I transformed into a comfortable office. For the sake of diversity, I sometimes end up working at the kitchen table or sitting on the couch. In my opinion, it’s really important to have a workplace where you can let your paperwork and all your stuff for the night.</p> <p><strong>How many projects do you handle concurrently?</strong><br> I always try to keep the focus on one major project at the time. Still, I actually handle 1 client project, 2 startups and 4 personal projects.</p> <p><strong>What is your favorite aspect of the freelancing life?</strong><br> I feel that I genuinely help people. When you’re part of a big business, it is very easy to feel like your output is diluted. Shaking the hand of a happy client&nbsp;after a contract makes me feel like a superhero.</p> <p><strong>What are the online tools that you couldn’t live without?</strong><br> Social medias help me connect with people. WordPress makes it easy for me to create and promote content. Google Drive gives me the flexibility to access my documents from anywhere,anytime and Slack allows me to work with teammates more efficiently.</p> <p><strong>How did you get your first client?</strong><br> Someone on Facebook wanted to launch a new business but had no idea how to write a business plan. I didn’t know either at the time, but I offered him my services anyway. It’s ridiculous, but I was paid 96 $ CND for 10 hours of job… that I spent on a fancy dinner right after cashing in the check.</p> <p><strong>Can you show us a bit of what you do?</strong><br> My blog : <a href="http://www.felixantoinehuard.com">www.felixantoinehuard.com</a><br> A travel blog founded with my girlfriend : <a href="http://www.monsieurmadamemonde.com">www.monsieurmadamemonde.com</a><br> An IT tailored solutions consulting agency I founded with friends : <a href="http://www.rumandcode.io">www.rumandcode.io</a></p> <p><strong>Last thing, what would you recommend to aspiring freelancers?</strong><br> Do it. Now.</p> <p>Stop wondering if it’s for you, if you have the rights skills, etc.&nbsp;You’ll never know until you try. Gretzky said : « You miss a 100 % of the shots you don’t take. » Word.</p> <p>Happy billing</p>
Philip Barclay

I like building cool products and marketing them.

Philip Barclay CMO@Momenteo