Must-ReadEscape from Cubicle Nation: From Corporate Prisoner to Thriving Entrepreneur by Pamela Slim
My poor little moonlighters. Did you really need to read the whole book in order to help you run a thriving freelance business? Couldn’t you just have skipped to this chapter and taken what you needed from it?
Nope. (Even if you’re not a moonlighter or never were, you should read this chapter because it contains useful information for all freelancers.)
Moonlighters, who work full-time jobs in addition to running a business on the side, still need to understand all the vital components of operating a business. From knowing how to market yourself to understanding taxes, you will manage your business just about the same way as a full-time freelancer. The difference is that you’ll hold down a full-time job while you do it!
When it comes to moonlighting, the concept of working a side job runs the gamut. Some pursue a hobby on the side and use it to make extra cash. Others are so miserable in their 9-to-5 jobs that freelancing is the only way to feel fulfilled. Many people are happy in their traditional jobs; they just like having a secondary business. I believe that most creatives, however, would like to turn a side gig into their full-time one.
Moonlighting can be a wonderful way to explore the business possibilities that can come from your natural artistic talent. I was able to moonlight for about two years until I built up my business and could “swim” financially in order to go solo. Your goal may be not to run your own business full-time, so moonlighting may be the perfect way to apply your creative gift. Again, you still have to know the basics of running a business—even if it’s not on a full-time basis!
Some might insist that a side business is not as legitimate as one that’s a full-time deal. Nonsense! Even if they are not available to their clients during regular business hours because they are employed, moonlighters can still operate a solid enterprise.
Must-Read
Escape from Cubicle Nation: From Corporate Prisoner to Thriving Entrepreneur by Pamela Slim
Did you know that one in 17 Americans hold down multiple jobs? According to the U.S. Department of Labor, anywhere from seven to eight million Americans—5 percent of all workers—work more than one gig, according to the Los Angeles Times. You can bet that number grew when the economy tanked a few years ago. In 2011, 543,000 Americans started a business each month, the 2012 Freelance Industry Report states. That same report notes “According to a May 2012 Aberdeen Group report, in the U.S. alone nearly 26 percent of the average organization’s total workforce is considered contingent or contract based, and their numbers continue to grow rapidly” and that “labor law firm Littler Midelson predicts that contingent labor could rise to as much as 30 percent to 50 percent of the entire U.S. workforce over the next few years.”
In fact, if you began freelancing as a result of a layoff—you’re also known as an “accidental freelancer”—you typically earn less than those that planned their self-employment. Even though accidental freelancers may not earn as much as “intentional freelancers,” 51.5 percent of them claim they are happier working solo, according to the report. Still, 55 percent of them report they would likely accept a traditional employment if given the chance. Only 38 percent of traditional freelancers say they would consider kissing their solo careers goodbye.
The report also states that finding clients is the biggest challenge for accidental freelancers, probably because traditional freelancers likely had time to plan their escapes from the corporate grind; accidentals are tossed into it.
There are many reasons to start moonlighting. In the creative arena, it’s predominantly to pursue your passion full- or part-time. In doing do, my hope is that you run a business that financially supports you and fulfills you.
Having a secondary career comes with advantages and disadvantages. A few of the pros include being able to do the following:
→ Try your hand at a creative calling. If you’ve always wanted to be an animator but didn’t want to leave the stability of your 9-to-5 job, a creative side business lets you to put your talents in motion.
→ Enjoy all the perks of a traditional job and live your dream. When you moonlight, you can reap the glory of a regular paycheck, healthcare plan, and other benefits. This gives you the time to develop your business and not worry too much about pulling in a certain amount of money. This is particularly valuable if you have a family to support because it gives you the means to make a gradual shift into self-employment or simply enjoy juggling both jobs.
→ Hand-pick clients. When you do not have to live off your talent, you may be more likely to cherry-pick the clients you want—and deal with a lot less drama than someone who depends on not-so-awesome clients to stay afloat.
→ See if you can build up enough customers to go solo. I would say the biggest advantage to moonlighting is that you may be able to turn it into a full-time career. If you have that dream of “going solo,” moonlighting offers the perfect middle ground to help you do so.
With that, there are some drawbacks associated with moonlighting:
→ Doing business during business hours. Perhaps your traditional job requires you to be there during regular business hours. That can put a huge damper on a client who wants to have a mid-day conference call.
→ Managing your time. Obviously, juggling two jobs is hard because you probably have multiple obligations that can include a family. One job is hard enough; no one says working two is easy.
→ Disclosure issues. It is hard for many freelancers to decide if they should tell their bosses about their side business. If it’s in a similar field, the boss may be leery that you may snag their customers. Even if not, a supervisor may be more vigilant if he suspects you may be working on his clock. (If you have an exceptionally boring job with plenty of spare time, it’s tough not to occupy yourself with activities related to your side gig—but that can spell trouble if your boss doesn’t give you the okay first.)
→ Starving your potential. I know a few freelancers that are beyond capable of running a full-time business but don’t because the security of a regular job is so comfortable—and stepping out of that comfort zone is not.
Why have you decided to continue moonlighting instead of pursuing self-employment?
“Benefits and pay, primarily. Having solid insurance coverage makes a big difference when you have a growing family. Paid vacation is also a nice perk. I still enjoy expanding my professional horizons, which is why I even moonlight or freelance at all. For larger projects, I do try to push work to fellow freelancers who work full-time at their chosen career.”
—Dickie Adams, designer, www.dickieadams.com
I’m not sure if it’s a blessing or a curse. That is, some creatives who moonlight either don’t have to be concerned or blatantly don’t care if they are conducting business ethically or even turning a profit. Some are simply moonlighting for the enjoyment of it—not to mention the opportunity for extra cash; really, there is nothing wrong with that. But if you want to turn your side gig into self-employment, you definitely need to be planning for it—not wandering haphazardly.
In writing this book, I interviewed a 20-something who used www.etsy.com to sell her crafts. She claimed her marketing platform was to “basically” get herself “out there” without investing any money in her business. This young woman filled orders for her crafts, but wasn’t working to generate leads or build up a client base. The year before, she wasn’t even sure if she earned a profit. This is an example of someone I would refer to as an aimless freelancer. I think aimless freelancing is more common among moonlighters, but I am sure there are many full-timers that fit the bill. In her case, she’s probably just enjoying a hobby but when she starts earning money off it and providing professional services, it needs to be run like a business.
Is there anything wrong with this type of person? Of course not. She can do whatever she wants. I used her as an example because it is a smart idea to think about the type of moonlighter you want to be. Do you want to have a hobby, or will you make your hobby a business? You’ll have to do a few things like pay taxes, create a Web presence, cultivate relationships with clients, and protect yourself from legal issues. Perhaps you don’t have to work on finding the bacon if you’re not going to rely on the enterprise financially, but otherwise, you’ll need to run a business.
So, are you an aimless freelancer? I doubt it. I like to think that if you picked up this book, you’re not careless at all. In fact, you’re on the right path if you are taking charge of your business.
What type of business planning did you do before starting your full-time creative business?
“When I was moonlighting, I only had business cards and I used a Yahoo account for e-mail. When I decided to become a business, I held focus groups to create a title for the company. Then, I researched and took classes on the various types of companies. Once we had the list of company names narrowed down, I called the state to see which ones were available for an LLC. I obtained my LLC and Employer Identification Number (EIN) and then opened a business checking account with this information. I then transferred my e-mail over to look more professional and put up a small Web site.”
—April Michelle Davis, editor/indexer/proofreader, www.editorialinspirations.com
Aside from the aimless freelancer, there are other types of moonlighters. Some have a side business in the same profession that they hold a full-time job in (as would an art director with a freelance graphic design business), but others feel as if they are living truly double lives because their freelance business is so different from their day job. I like to call them right-side-left-side freelancers, meaning they may work in a technical or left-brain career. On the flip side, their creative business ignites the right side—the creative side—of the brain.
I did that dance when I worked in a 9-to-5 job in the environmental field as a technical writer and would come home to work on sales-y marketing copy at night. The dichotomy of working in a technical field while using my creative talents after-hours was the impetus for me to go freelance. It was nice because I always looked forward to the end of the day when I could go home and get artsy, but I found it frustrating to spend more than eight hours a day doing something that was not nearly as enjoyable.
Lori Riviere, a blogger, stylist, and personal shopper from Miami, is leading that sort of double life—and loving it. Her blog (www.shortcut-stofabulous.com) offers up fashion, beauty, and lifestyle tips and tricks for women. When she’s not busy with her Web site, she’s working full-time as an attorney for one of the largest insurance companies in the country. When she first developed the concept for the blog, she was working at a private law firm, which required 60- to 70-hour workweeks.
“I knew that as long as I was working for this firm, I would never be able to make my dreams to have a creative outlet outside of the law a reality,” recalls Riviere. “I was working crazy hours…and I was miserable.” In order to pursue her aspirations to be both a blogger and stylist, she needed a different full-time job as an attorney that would give her more flexibility. Riviere secured a full-time job as a lawyer that required less time, and then began to develop her Web site.
It took more than a year to get everything rolling because she had to do much more than get a domain name and start writing. Riviere’s secured advertisers for her blog, fostered partnerships to offer her readers discounts, and built up a solid reputation in the fashion and lifestyle blogging arena. While she’s been at it, she’s also picked up fashion styling clients in the Miami area, which mostly comes from word-of-mouth and referrals.
“I started taking my friends out shopping to build their wardrobes. They kept telling me that I should do this for a living,” she recalls. “So I spent $20 on business cards and gave them to my friends.” That’s how she built up clientele for her creative business.
Though she’s still dispensing legal advice, Riviere is enjoying her “double life” as a legalista and fashionista, though she admits balancing both is not always easy.
One thing that helps her is having a very supportive boss. “He often brags about my double life when we run into people in the legal community,” she notes. Even though she’s dying to find out about the latest designer handbag and shoe deals—and even more eager to pass them on to her growing readership base of approximately 3,000 monthly visitors—Riviere keeps busy with court appearance and depositions by day.
She says it can be difficult to schedule time to interview people for her blog, make television and radio appearances, and coordinate appointments with clients for styling and personal shopping. “The other day, I ended up doing a radio interview from my office at my day job while finishing up a motion that had to be filed with the court,” explains Riviere.
Currently, she is working with a local network television station to develop content for a morning talk show. “It is hard to find time for public relations with a fulltime job, the blog, styling, and life!” she says.
Riviere would love for her creative business to be a full-time thing, but says she is fine if that never happens. “I am trying to let everything evolve organically and never push myself too hard because I don’t want to take the fun away from it,” she notes.
She says she wants to make time for her personal life in addition to her full-time job and creative gig. “If I am going to enjoy my life and earn a comfortable living, I have to accept that everything is not going to happen overnight,” says Riviere.
At the time this book was published, Riviere was happy to report that she is no longer at her law job and now manages the blog and is a freelance fashion consultant. While her transition didn’t happen overnight, she did wind up shifting into life as a full-time freelancer. (But I kept her story in because it’s just that inspiring!)”
I was offered a contract gig that could go full-time. It seems like a good opportunity, but I don’t want my freelance clients to suffer. How can I keep the balance?
“First thing to do is to explain to your freelance clients you are no longer available to work during normal working hours. This might not work with every client or type of profession, but it is important they know so they have time to adjust to the situation. Many projects I’ve done tend to have a range of deadlines from immediate to a few weeks. So some projects are possible to work on during your off hours and/or on the weekend, while others are not doable.”
—Tim Goldman, illustrator/designer, www.timgoldman.com
Not everyone wants their creative business to become a full-time thing. In fact, several successful businesses hatch by people that work full-time jobs and run their enterprise on the side with no intention for that to change.
Sarah Griffin hopes to continue working full-time as a chemist and have a flourishing creative business on the side; she doesn’t plan on quitting her traditional job. She started the Web site www.secretsivenevertold.com and wound up writing a book, Secrets I Never Told, as a way to keep the right side of her brain active and give people a way to communicate their pent-up secrets anonymously.
The 20-something Kansas resident says most of her work is done before or after business hours, so it usually doesn’t interfere with her work. “Every day I wake up around 5 a.m. to update the Web site and check e-mail before I leave for work,” says Griffin. “Often I’ll have interviews during normal business hours, and in that case I’ll take an hour or two of paid time off and go back to work after the interview.”
At first, all the work put a huge dent in her social life, but as time has gone on, she is learning to manage it better. “Owning your own business means that there is constantly something to do and always something to improve on,” notes Griffin. That is the kind of attitude that I think separates successful freelancers from those that are not so effective.
By keeping her full-time job and the stability it offers, it takes some of the burden off Griffin to excel quickly at her secondary profession. That said, it doesn’t mean she works any less on it or that it is any less successful than a full-time creative business. Moonlighting is what you put into it, and, as Griffin has learned, it takes time to settle in no matter what type of creative business you have.
She recently secured a few television and radio spots to promote her business and draws profits from her book sales—all while mixing things up in a lab by day.
How have you mentally overcome frustration with your in-flux status between holding down a full-time job and freelancing?
“Many designers take great pride in coming home to a night shift of personal or outside projects; I’ve always hated the extra workload. Both the daytime gigs (working on-site in a multi-week temporary job) and the after-hours work (my own clients and a variety of smaller, independent projects) have been unpredictable. Arrange your personal time so that you can dedicate more time to work. Cancel your dinner plans, push the laundry to next week, and accept that you won’t be going to the gym. Remember finals week in college? It’s basically that. The good news is that it’s temporary. If you’re continually running yourself ragged doing outside work, something has to give. Perhaps you finally have enough work to go full-time freelance.”
—Prescott Perez-Fox, art director/graphic designer, www.strshp.com
For some people, having a side business is the ultimate goal, but what if you want more? Say you’ve been freelancing for a few months or years, and you would rather pursue your freelance business. How do you get there? It’s not as easy as “Dive in! The water’s great!” There are practical things to consider, such as meeting your financial obligations without a guaranteed paycheck. The whole “plunge” into full-time freelancing concept can feel more like a polar bear plunge instead of a scuba dive.
Before oregon-based illustrative designer Von Glitschka (www.vonglitschka.com) started his successful career, he worked in the communications arena. Glitschka moonlighted since he got out of school, but the thought of making a full-time business out of his freelance status was hard; he had a wife and two children to support. “What held me back was just fear of the unknown,” confesses Glitschka.
When he was fired from his job as an art director and he couldn’t find another position, his wife told him to start the creative business he had always dreamed of. Glitschka experienced the typical trial-and-error years, but eventually got his footing and is now making a gratifying living off his talents.
Angela Ferraro-Fanning (www.1331design.com) from New Jersey took a different route to attain her goal of managing her own graphic design business. She’d always been in the design industry, but her full-time job as an art director at the time wouldn’t allow her to work part-time for her own clients. So she quit cold turkey, took a part-time gig at a candy store, and pursued her freelance endeavor.
“I wanted something mindless where I could show up for work and leave it there when my shift was done,” recalls Ferraro-Fanning, who has been self-employed since 2005. “Every day, I woke up early and started my day with my own business no later than 7 a.m. I worked until noon and then headed to the candy store until 5 p.m.,” she says. Although some of her coworkers were high school students, and some of her customers were also clients, the humbling experience helped her get her business off the ground. Within just two months of starting work at the candy store, she was able to take her business full-time and sustain it.
This is a pretty neat approach if you want to take the plunge because it enables you to make money while giving your creative side a rest. Then you are raring to go and work on your business when your shift is over, much like I was when I moonlighted. The financial safety net, regardless of whether it comes from a well-paying professional role or a minimum wage job, can make all the difference as you transition from a moonlighter into a business owner.
When did you know it was right to go solo?
“I don’t think you ever know for sure the time is right. I was scared to make the jump, but it was convenient timing and I had been very busy with freelance work. My husband and I determined how much I would need to make to be able to freelance full time and not get a part-time job, and I have hit that minimum ever since.”
—April Michelle Davis, editor/indexer/proofreader, www.editorialinspirations.com
My plunge, described in Chapter 1, was less of a dive and more like wading. I was very practical about transitioning into a full-time free-lance role and took my time doing so, primarily motivated by a fear of being penniless.
So was Grace Smith (www.postscript5.co.uk), a Web designer based in Ireland, who moonlighted for about six months while she worked in a local print shop. For her, juggling both acts became a huge challenge, so moving to a full-time format was the next logical step. She had a roster of clients and plenty of work, which helped her segue into life as a full-time freelancer. “It reaches a stage where freelancing full-time is the natural progression,” she notes. A lot of fellow full-time free-lancers I hear from have found that when they got too busy and were working 70- and 80-hour weeks—and sustaining that momentum over time—they knew it was time to seriously consider shifting to a full-time self-employment role.
Even though you get super-busy, how do you know when you can hurdle from moonlighter to business owner? You may be swamped with work but still unable financially to “go freelance.” It takes time for those who are rooted in practicality—or fear! Still, others that quit their jobs cold turkey and launched their businesses have also been quite successful. It really depends on the person.
Even though I do not have children to support, I was very anxious when I thought about going solo because I had rent and bills to pay. Being self-employed would mean paying for my own health insurance as well—how frightening! Through time, as I cultivated more credibility and more projects came in, I saw that the business was becoming sustainable. That was, I figured, the best possible place to be when I took the plunge. All I had to do was get out of my own way, look fear square in its face, and go for it.
How do you approach your boss at either a temporary or permanent full-time job about your freelance work?
“As long as you’re not competing with your employer, it’s usually a non-issue. But if your side gig is steadily becoming your main focus, you should be open with your boss. Tell him or her how much you love working there, but that you also love working on the side gig. Much like a new parent asking to leave ‘early’ at 5:00 p.m., you’re making the visible efforts to be balanced and not to neglect either role. A reasonable boss will understand. If anything, he’ll see that the new creative energy benefits the organization when you’re back in the next day.”
—Prescott Perez-Fox, art director/graphic designer, www.strshp.com
Smith went through a similar experience. She built up three months’ worth of her salary prior to starting as a full-time freelancer. “Having this security would mean I could focus purely on client work, growing connections and networking, without the initial pressure of creating an income from the first month,” recalls Smith.
Some people believe that a few months’ worth of savings will do it, but I contend that proving your business is stable is a more reliable method. To test the waters, see if you really like being a contractor first. Obviously if you are married, your decision affects others, so you’ll want to discuss the matter with your family as well.
In Smith’s case, it wasn’t just about money. What really helped her leap was having confidence in her abilities. This stemmed from working in the art and design field for many years before launching her solo biz. She knew she had talent and that, with her drive, she could turn her natural gifts into profits. “Being able to express your thoughts and ideas is half the battle; having confidence in what you are saying is the other half,” she says.
Putting thought into the plunging process was important for Smith, who does not think anyone is ever 100-percent ready to become a full-time freelancer. You can have a decent nest egg saved up and all the clients in the world, but until you see that you can keep the cash—and the clients—coming in, it may be hard to feel comfortable leaving a cushy full-time job…even one you can’t stand. This is precisely why moonlighting works so well: You can demonstrate to yourself through time that the business is functioning well, which makes it much easier to surge to the next level.
“The key is to know ahead of time what being ready means,” says Smith, noting that being ready means different things to everyone. “That way, when the moment comes, you can take the emotion out of it and make a decision based on facts.”
Freelancing full-time was a natural evolution for Ed Gandia (www.edgandia.com), a copywriter from Georgia who also co-founded International Freelancer’s Day (www.internationalfreelancersday.com). He worked in sales and account management, and then moonlighted for more than two years before launching his copywriting business about seven years ago. He decided to leverage his sales background into copywriting, and credits classes at the American Writers & Artists Institute (AWAI) to help him learn the art of copywriting. “I’m wired to make my own decisions,” he says of its innate ability to run his own business.
A majority of solo-pros who start a creative business—whether as moonlighters or full-timers—cite wanting to be their own boss as a major reason to launch their venture. I don’t think anyone likes having a boss, but some people have a higher tolerance for working under someone else. Even if you have a wonderful superior, you still may not like being under the supervision of others in general. When I worked for other companies, I enjoyed enhancing my capabilities but I wanted to have more of a say in things.
April Michelle Davis (www.editorialinspirations.com), a freelance editor, indexer, and proofreader from Virginia, never intended to be her own boss. She toyed with the idea of starting her own business but says she moonlighted for six years because she was too afraid to jump into full-time freelancing. In that time, she didn’t just wait for customers to come in—she worked her butt off to create a Web site and build a name for herself before she saw that she had a solid and regenerating clientele base. When she knew that she had the ability to create new opportunities for herself on an ongoing basis, she felt more comfortable shifting into life as a solo-pro.
Upon graduating with her master’s degree in publishing, she and her husband were in the midst of relocating. Together, they decided she could quit her job and freelance full-time as long as she brought in a certain amount of money, taking on a part-time job if she needed it. She has been blissfully busy ever since, and never needed to take another job.
Must-Read
Grow Your Handmade Business: How to Envision, Develop, and Sustain a Successful Creative Business by Kari Chapin
Part of running a legitimate and successful business has to do with money, as you have read throughout the book. Even if you are moonlighting and you don’t ever want to turn your side biz into a full-time career, finances come into play. For many, it is what dictates whether or not they can leave their traditional job to pursue life as a full-time solo-pro.
Another financial aspect of moonlighting includes taxes. That’s right, even if you have a traditional job, you still have to pay taxes on what you earn from your side business. Just as you would if you were self-employed, talk to an accountant to cover specifics on setting up your business, establishing money management practices, and filing taxes as a moonlighter.
Not only do you have to manage your money; incorporating good legal business practices is just as important as is it to market your business and develop client relationships. To have a solid business, you want to make sure you play by professional standards.
What are some of the differences when paying taxes as a moonlighter as opposed to a full-time solo professional?
“There is no real difference in your responsibility for paying taxes or in your ability to take deductions. Any income you earn as a freelancer—an unincorporated entity—will be subject to self-employment tax, no matter the hours worked. Where it will make a difference, however, is in how you plan to pay the additional taxes from your moonlighting. Moonlighting implies you have another, perhaps full-time, gig as an employee. If that is the case you can adjust your W-2 or employee withholdings to cover the moonlighting liability or you can pay estimated taxes in addition to your normal withholdings. The IRS does not care which pocket you pay the taxes from—it is all part of your individual tax liability.”
—Richard Streitfeld, accountant, www.peaceloveandbusinessplanning.com
Regardless of the type of business you want or have, it’s important to be practical and professional. Blending your creative talents and business know-how is your best recipe for success. Remember that it’s okay to feel things out as you go. It is good to test the waters and try approaches that will work for you. So long as you play by a few rules, your business is uniquely yours to manage. Hopefully this book is a resource you can count on as you go.
That’s the beauty in owning a book chock full of business advice for creative professionals; now you have all the tools you need to flourish.
Sweet Success
Back-and-Forth Freelancing
Jane Hodges (www.janehodges.net) bounced back and forth between staff writing positions and freelance roles over the past 20 years. Even when she worked on staff at publications such as Ad Age, she always moonlighted on the side.
“I always had an idea that I wanted to be a freelance writer, ever since I was a kid. I’d save my allowance, ride to the drug store, and load up on magazines,” recalls Hodges, who currently resides in Seattle. Hodges thought she would need to be on a magazine’s staff until she was in her mid-30s to break into freelance writing on a full-time basis, but had the opportunity to start freelancing full-time when she left a traditional full-time role at the age of 29. (Hodges did return to a traditional full-time job in 2002 when she relocated from New York to Seattle, but left that job in 2004 and has been a full-time solo-pro ever since.)
Hodges has written articles on a freelance basis for The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, AOL HousingWatch, Fortune, Entrepreneur.com, and Newsday, just to name a few. She says that she has always had one or more steady paying gigs, which she says are almost like permanent part-time jobs. “I feel like, with the kind of economy we have, everything is, ultimately, a ‘gig’—even a full-time job,” says Hodges, who recently published another book.
Beginner Mishap
A Pressing Matter
One of the things many freelancers strive to do is drum up business for themselves—and a great way to do that is to secure coverage in the media. Is all press good press, though?
Lori Riviere knows firsthand that a media mention isn’t always a plus. The Miami-based fashion blogger and stylist is always open to getting coverage in order to promote her Web site, www.shortcutstofabulous.com.
She got the opportunity to have an interview with a CNN reporter, and claims the journalist said she was going to be featuring Riviere’s blog as a part of a story on middle-class Americans dining out less to save money for luxury goods. Ideally, that would be good—especially if her Web site wound up getting more traffic from the article.
However, Riviere says she was misled. She claims the article did not focus on the topic she was originally told about, and she says her quotes were pulled out of context. “Not only did she [the CNN reporter] not feature my blog, she mischaracterized my statements and made me sound awful for a story whose headline was ‘Rich Americans Flock to Fast Food,’” she explains. “The story did not fit in with the brand image I am trying to create for myself and Shortcuts to Fabulous.”
Although the Web site wasn’t included in the story, the piece still affected her. She worked a day job as a lawyer at the time, and said several colleagues teased her about the article. “It was a rather humiliating lesson that I shouldn’t have had to learn…but I am glad I learned it early,” she admits.