Your time is your inventory.

My chiropractor articulated this concept to me recently. Since then, I’ve used it countless times to explain my industry to others.

As a designer, I don’t have a physical product. Sure, I’ve got a computer, a desk and chair, some speakers, hard drives, office supplies and my iPhone, but none of those things are what I’m selling.

What I’m selling is my time. What you get varies. It may be a logo, business cards, a website or print materials. But how I give that to you is always the same: time. It’s really all I have. Just like my chiropractor, I sell my time as a service. It’s valuable because I possess a specialized talent and a specific skill-set. Many people see my design work as my product, but without time there is no design.

There have been a few jobs I’ve done that I was never paid for. For one reason or another the client decided that my invoice wasn’t warranted and refused to pay. In those cases I stood on my principle and fought for my fees, but at some point had to realize that pursuing payment simply wasn’t worth my time.

If a client will never understand what it means when we say “Our time is our inventory,” our best move is to cut our losses and move on.

But the fact remains: Once you’ve been authorized to spend time on a project and do so, the client has exhausted that quantity of inventory. Imagine ordering and eating a fabulous dinner and then refusing to pay for it. Once the food’s gone, you can’t give it back. If your clients don’t pay you for your work, they’re stealing. See this video if you’d like even more explicit comparisons.

In an ideal world, we will learn identify this type of attitude before we even begin working with a client and avoid the conflict altogether. Because this isn’t always possible, there are other measures you can take to expose the red flag.

Two ways to identify clients who don’t value your time:

1) Require each client to sign a studio contract.

The hesitation to commit to a contract can signal that the client isn’t intending to follow-through with their end of the deal. Bad news. If they’re adverse to giving you their John Hancock because of a particular clause or simply the seriousness of the agreement, don’t work with them.

2) Require 50% payment of estimated total up-front.

Collect this deposit before you begin any work. If they fight you on this, don’t work with them. (There are times we work up an alternative payment plan and that’s fine, too. The key is getting it in writing and getting a signature before any of your time is spent on the work.)

Your time is your inventory. Don’t give it away.