I just made tuna fish and couscous
Yummy. I just took a can of tuna and mixed in cream cheese and black pepper. In the same pan, I added whole wheat couscous and cooked a fantastic lunch/dinner thing.
This, of course, is not news worth sharing. But I stopped for lunch/dinner in the middle of editing a white paper. The dilemma: am I on the clock for the client while I take a 20-minute break to cook and eat?
As a freelance copywriter, I’ve decided that hourly work is the way to go. It’s tough to estimate how long a project will take unless you’ve done it for the same client at least a couple of times before. But in hourly work, what’s an acceptable break? A trip to the bathroom? A dash across the street for a coffee? A banana-and-peanut butter tortilla (my favorite afternoon snack)?
I’ve come up with some rules for when to clock out and when to keep charging. If I take a “think around the block” to combat writer’s block on a project, I stay on the clock because I’m usually thinking aloud as I walk (this, of course, makes me look nuts, but I’m not proud). A dash to the bathroom is on the clock, but I punch out for a full-fledged meal, even if it takes a very brief amount of time (I frequently eat standing up, often out of the pan). Generally a quick trip across the street for a coffee is on the clock unless I chat too much with the baristas. If I stop a second to check email, I keep charging, but if I write a blog post, I’m definitely off the clock.
I know that if I was working in someone’s office, I would charge my hourly rate even if I ran to the kitchen and talked a few minutes at the water cooler. But here at home, anything under 7 or so minutes is on the clock.
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Claire on 26 May 2008 at 3:34 pm #
Charging by the hour is definitely the way to go. I figure my work the same way I would at a regular job. Plus, I think it’s imperative to factor in “think time” for the type of work we do. People (clients) forget about that and think that we can just sit down and write the most brilliantly crafted web copy without any hesitation or prework. Ya, I don’t think so. At least not *this* writer (meaning me).
steph on 26 May 2008 at 3:43 pm #
I was just having this conversation yesterday! I’ve decided that going to the bathroom and quick breaks like getting a snack or letting my dog out are acceptable. Lunch is not billed. I agree with your terms; yesterday I said any break over ten minutes is not billed.
Beth on 26 May 2008 at 3:54 pm #
Claire, sometimes I “think” with a piece of paper and a pen so I create something tangible that demonstrates that I was actually working because even I sometimes have trouble thinking that thinking time is billable. The problem is confounded by the fact that I’m almost always thinking about one project or another. I’ll get a brainflash right before I go to bed that will make the next day’s work much easier, but I don’t charge the client for random thought time. I’d probably be able to eat steak instead of tuna if I did.
Steph, your timing sounds perfect. I definitely don’t step off the clock if I run into the kitchen for an apple. Now if I go to the coffee shop to savor a cupcake, that’s a different matter. I can’t charge for drooling time, right?
steph on 26 May 2008 at 4:59 pm #
Mmmm, cupcakes! No, if you eat them like I do, which is to say, taking several long minutes, you can’t charge!
steph on 26 May 2008 at 5:01 pm #
I should write: if you eat them the way I do, which is to say taking several long minutes, you can’t charge.
There, without the errors.