“No matter in what country I freelance, finding new clients starts with a coffee”
Tiago Paes Vilas Boas about freelancing through change
The Friendly Freelancer has many readers who – just like you! – are freelancing in a way that works for them. We’ll occasionally send you interviews with people in our freelance community whom we find inspiring.
Tiago Paes Vilas Boas has worked as a graphic designer and art director for the past ten years, launched a social business and has been freelancing since 2014. He helps clients get clarity on what they want to communicate and translates that message visually. He has worked for clients in the US, Europe and South America while living in Brazil – where he grew up – the Netherlands and Belgium. Today he lives and works in Belgium. I caught up with him over the phone to ask how he has dealt with freelancing through change.
Before we start talking about change: would you say that social principles are a common thread in your work?
“In general, I believe that we should try to evolve from designing for people, to designing with people. Recently I came across the Design Justice Network, a community of non-designers, designers and organisations that explores how design sometimes reinforces the status quo and continues oppression. Design Justice Network rethinks design processes so that they centre people who are too often marginalised by design. Their principles inspire me. We can all learn a lot and do better work when leaving behind the position of ‘design experts’ during a design process and maybe becoming aware of our biased ideas and prejudices.”
There is a cliché that freelance graphic designers can work location independently. What is your view on that?
“Whether that is possible depends on your line of work. But I find proximity important: I get so much joy from seeing my work being used, seeing people respond to it. I want to experience being part of the outcome of my designs. When working remotely, as many of us are doing during the lockdown, it is easier to lose touch with the process at some point.
When I had just started working as a designer in Brazil, I enjoyed visiting printing companies, touching the many types of paper, discussing the different options with their employees and getting ideas from them. Nowadays, I feel it is easier to skip such exchange processes. But when you take the physical part out of the design process, it can also reduce your awareness of the people you centre in the design process as well as your inspiration sources. I believe that we should question the data we base our designs on and not lose sight of the importance of first-hand experiences and direct contacts.”
You have worked and lived in three different countries across two continents. What was it like to have to re-establish yourself as a freelancer?
“It was challenging. With every move, I was uprooted from everything that felt secure and known, while at the same time I had to prove myself as a freelancer in a new country. Insecurities started popping up and I’d lose confidence in myself. Undervaluing my abilities was harder to grapple with than losing my professional network. It took time and support from those close to me to regain trust in my capabilities. But having those periods of self-reflection also came with a positive: they helped me gain a broader and clearer perspective of the kind of work I want to do and what my values are. Had I stayed in one place, I probably wouldn’t have given my choices so much thought.”
Did you have to deal with many cultural and practical differences when becoming a freelancer in another country?
“My experience is that the work itself isn’t all that different, but social aspects often are. In Brazil, in comparison to Belgium or the Netherlands, people tend to work more hours, but distribute them differently over the day. In Brazil I was used to working later, but would take longer lunch breaks where I’d disconnect and take a walk.
Perhaps the biggest difference was that in Brazil I couldn’t really afford good health insurance as a freelancer. Here I can – and it is a huge relief. Though a lot can be improved for freelancers in Belgium; we do have more social rights here. The other side of that is that taxes in Belgium are pretty complicated and it has taken me a lot of time to figure out how they work.
As for finding new clients: the way to get work is the same almost everywhere. You have to get to know people, show your work. For me, no matter where I was, finding work generally started with having a coffee with someone. Finding new clients for me is about building a human connection, finding similarities and shared values besides differences in language or nationality and so on.”
You became a dad a year ago. Did that influence how you look at your work?
“Becoming a dad changed everything. I could go on about this topic forever! (laughs) It certainly pushed me to slow down. Before my daughter was born, I planned to start working two days a week. Together my wife Sara and I established ways to better balance our professional and family lives. Working as a freelancer really fits with the way I want to live: it enables me to have more control over how I distribute my hours to get to the desired outcomes. I do feel outside pressure to work full-time; our economic system is built on full-time contracts. But I think it’s important that as parents we can both spend time with our daughter during these formative first years of her life.
I have always found it important to work on projects with a social or environmental component – and having a child is one more reason to prioritise my values. Right now I am looking at starting a project that approaches design from a broader social and environmental perspective. I believe there is plenty to do in this area – if you share these interests and have ideas, let’s meet for a (virtual) coffee!”
Written by Selma Franssen
Know someone who would be perfect for this interview series? Shoot us an email at freelancerthefriendly@gmail.com and explain in 1-2 sentences why they could inspire other freelancers. In keeping with our community-building philosophy and our mission to support each other, we’ve decided you can’t nominate yourself. 🤓
The Friendly Freelancer will return in January 2021. Speak soon! 👋