Comments on: Happy Birthday Me! (Sort of)

By: Chad Mueller

Chad Mueller — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 21:36:13 +0000

Happy Birthday John,

Congrats on this awesome milestone – good luck, keep it up

By: Rob Hawkes

Rob Hawkes — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 21:27:06 +0000

No DIBI for me. I actually didn’t know what that was until I Googled it! Still unsure if I’ll be at dConstruct this year either, I’m a poor student and have no employer to take me this time.

I’m ready and waiting for when you get round to planning that interview. ;) Likewise, I think 2010 will be the year I get some collaboration on Rawkes if you’re still up for it…

By: oneredsock

oneredsock — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 19:23:46 +0000

Congratulations John! I’ve only recently discovered your site, (it was the posts about the Moo cards that did it) but I enjoy it, and I wish you all the best for the next 12 months, and beyond.

By: John

John — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 12:20:02 +0000

Thanks Rob! We definitely should bump into each other at some point – are you going to DIBI this year? I still want/need/plan on getting you in for that interview on this site too :)

By: Rob Hawkes

Rob Hawkes — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 10:45:38 +0000

I’m glad to see your first year as a freelancer was successful. From personal experience I know how difficult it can be some times, especially with the admin side to things, and that is the exact reason why I packed it in and decided I’ll stick with employment for the while. You can’t beat the freedom of working for yourself though.

I owe you thanks for your part in the new Rawkes. Following you on Twitter and seeing how passionate you are about blogging reminded me how much I enjoy writing about the industry I’m in and ultimately got the Rawkes redesign rolling. I’m still getting to grips with a posting schedule but it’s fun to write again and that’s all that matters.

It was a shame I missed you at dConstruct last year, would’ve been nice to meet you. I’ll bug you for some blogging tips when we finally bump into each other. =p

All the best for the year ahead, I’m looking forward to seeing what happens.

By: John

John — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 17:23:56 +0000

Thanks Toby! I’ll try to keep the biting to a minimum for you ;)

By: David Y

David Y — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 14:48:34 +0000

Congrats on your success, just recently started following your site and it has been an inspiring and motivating experience. Keep up the good work.

By: Toby

Toby — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:53:09 +0000

“I don’t bite…much”, dude no offense but really even a little biting is going to make things a bit weird for me.

Well done on the first year! The blog has definitely become one of my regular reads over that time, keep doing what you’re doing

By: Karinne

Karinne — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 12:49:53 +0000

Your blog is an inspiration to many of us so just keep doing what you do, writing that stuff you write and we’ll sit here and keep on reading ;)

Have a good 2010!

By: John

John — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 10:16:46 +0000

Thank ALL of you for the kind words of encouragement – I really really appreciate it :)

By: John

John — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 10:09:12 +0000

Mate, makes me so happy to hear you say that, cause I used to do the same thing when I was working full time and reading a couple of other blogs. If there’s anything I can ever do to give you a hand when it comes to going-it-alone just give me a buzz :)

By: John

John — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 10:03:23 +0000

Hey Lawrence! Thanks so much for the comment, really appreciate the kind words :)

By: Mark

Mark — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 09:15:48 +0000

Keep up the good work. Your posts have given a lot of inspiration and motivation to get my own projects off the ground!

All the best for the future.

By: Vunky

Vunky — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 08:24:48 +0000

Well Done!, must say that I feel the same about local businesses. I try to only work with clients that actually need to make a living from their website. That keeps more room for conversation and budget.

By: Michael Savage

Michael Savage — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 03:36:03 +0000

Congrats John! I’ll have you know I’ve been following you since you took the plunge lol.

By: Japh

Japh — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 03:29:18 +0000

Brilliant work, John!

It’s been great to read all your blog posts as you go, and chat to you, and even do some work with you during your first year.

Looking forward to lots of exciting things in 2010, mate :)

By: Phil Matthews

Phil Matthews — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 01:22:55 +0000

Congratulations on your first year, John! I think you’ve done a tremendous amount of great work (both with your client projects and the input and advice you provide to the design community). All the best for your second year! :-)

By: Dave "chlorinekid" Turner

Dave "chlorinekid" Turner — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 22:49:30 +0000

thanks for some great articles and inspiration pal. so glad i stumbled across your site 12 months ago.. believe me when i say that when i have a shitty day at work i read your twitter feed and catch up with the blog/site and it reminds me how much i want to do what you’re doing and gets me a bit closer to taking the plunge!

thanks again pal. here’s to another 12 months :)

By: Luke Jones

Luke Jones — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 22:22:43 +0000

Congratulations – blog posts are something I really need to concentrate on.

By: Josh Cagwin

Josh Cagwin — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 21:10:46 +0000

Congrats on you accomplishments so far ! And as always, good stuff.

By: Lawrence

Lawrence — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 20:37:11 +0000

You do stunning work, and deserve everything you’ve earned for yourself in the last year. Keep it up, and I can’t wait to see what you get up to in 2010. Happy Birthday.

Keep us posted.

By: Brian

Brian — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 20:27:25 +0000

Congrats on your blog’s 1 year birthday.

I’ve definitely had quite a few of the “don’t know, won’t trust” type clients. However, I don’t find it to be a local or global issue.

IMO it’s directly related to budget. The clients who have the bigger budgets tend to be more professional and trusting of my expert opinion. Those that are on tight budgets tend to micromanage, play designer, and their project suffers because of it (whether they care to realize it or not).

By: devolved

devolved — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 20:21:22 +0000

Well played mate, you deserve every success as you’ve certainly put in the effort.

On the downside you’ve made me feel bad because *you* put in the effort ;D

By: Rick Nunn

Rick Nunn — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 20:19:39 +0000

Happy birthday dude, keep it up!