“Ethics is knowing the difference between what you have a right to do and what is right to do.”
– Potter Stewart
Standards – Ethics – Mission
As a freelancer, I can make the decisions as to what I will and will not accept. For my clients, past, present and future, I would like to define my set of standards, these being what I work by as well as live by. All business owners should have them and adhere to them, even in the tough times.
- Quality is more important than speed: A solid timeline is important of course. But complex development and/or a stack of work can really cause chaos to an organized list of tasks. I set expectations accordingle, discuss variations and how much time they may eat up. To me, quality means methodology. Do something. Get it functional. Refine it. Get all the checks and balances in place. Design it. Refine it again. Test, test, test.... If I spend 10 hours on a project, it will be done. Speed in technology means shortcuts. Better to spend 10 hours and complete a quality project than try to get it done in 4 hours, then have to go back to fix errors 4 more times.
- Pre-qualify project intention with as much detail as possible (even if it gets a little technical): It is imperative to let a client know what it will take to do something. But they don't want to learn the technical jargon that I deal with. Detailing a project in real world terms, with as little technical terminology as possible is really really important. Sometimes it will take a number of back and forths to get on the same page. But once the understanding is there, everyone involved knows roughtly the time involved, the cost, what can cause delays, and the responsibilites that both I and the client have.
- Direct personal/emotional issues away from the clients: Everyone has bad days. We may be fighting a cold, loss of sleep, or a frustration during the progress of a project. I don't believe in the "don't let it get to you, hold it in" concept. Emotional flares are my problem, not the customer's. If I have to rant about a frustration, it is either away from work like on social media. Or I may lightly vent to a customer about some kind of poorly designed technology I'm dealing with that's holding up a project.