Illustrator Mariery Young

Podcast Intro

About this podcast episode…

ILLUSTRATOR & DESIGNER MARIERY YOUNG

Mariery Young, a freelancer from Panama, shares her journey from architecture to illustration and design. 

Starting with a chance Facebook event, Mariery discovered her talent for art. She had pretty firm confirmation she was good at this new offering when her first freelance client was... Nike.

Yep. She just did it.

Mariery discusses how her architecture background helps her manage multiple projects and timelines effectively. She emphasizes the importance of honesty in time management and clear communication with clients, especially in quoting and project planning.

A pivotal moment in her career was participating in the London Illustration Fair, which confirmed illustration as her path and connected her with wholesale buyers. This experience taught her the value of pursuing projects she's passionate about, as it resonates with clients and leads to more fulfilling work.

And if you love what you're doing, you'll keep going when it's tough. Because it will get tough.

Mariery shares insights on balancing work and life, including her decision to live near the beach for a better quality of life. She discusses her approach to social media, preferring to keep her work process private and focusing on one-on-one time with clients. Avoiding the lure of becoming an influencer, whilst making the most of the connections social media can bring.

She stresses the importance of having a community of fellow freelancers for support and understanding. Mariery also talks about the challenges of slowing down, especially after a health setback.

Mariery operates under the studio name "Mezclao," which reflects her mixed heritage and approach to projects. She emphasizes the importance of personal work in attracting clients and discusses how she balances client work with personal projects.

Mariery's work is bright and bold and that shines through in this conversation too. Enjoy!

Read a full transcript & get Links in the tabs.

 
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Transcript

Transcript of the Being Freelance podcast with Steve Folland and freelance illustrator & designer Mariery Young

Steve Folland: As ever, how about we get started hearing how you got started being freelance?

Mariery Young: I'm an architect by background, so I studied architecture. So a natural thing for architecture is that you can work for a company and start going freelancing. So I did the first thing, you know, like you go to a job work in an office. I started working as like a kitchen designer, so for like an Italian brand. And Facebook events were a thing, you know, like they were starting to do the Facebook event things back in the day.

And some random guy sends me a Facebook event, like, Oh, I'm giving free graphic design classes, Photoshop classes, and art classes. I was like, Oh, I got a night's off after work. I'm going to just go give it a go. I'm going to take like a Photoshop class. Cause I was like, Oh, this is going to help me for my job to do better renders.

Cause I only knew how to render and do textures online with my architecture software, AutoCAD, not with. Photoshop! It's like, my teachers never cared about Photoshop, they were so old school, like, I learned how to do architecture by pen and paper, so. I go there, he asks me to draw something, as soon as I draw something, he's like, yeah, I'm not gonna give you Photoshop classes, we're gonna do art classes.

And I was like, okay. So he kickstarted my art career and basically suddenly with every class he can kind of kick the architect out of me and like started hinting that I was better as an artist or a designer. And little by little he got me into the art scene and I started doing what we call like cultural management, talent management for other artists and events because I really liked I really understood, like, the planning side, the logistics side, with, like, the business owner, and being an artist, and I started understanding how freelancing worked, because now I had two jobs.

Like, one during the day, being a designer, and then one during the night, being in the art scene. And, little by little, I started understanding this culture of freelancing and the art scene. And at the same time, my grandmother, she still freelances. So she still works as a freelancer for, for the beauty industry.

So she gives classes. So like, I already understood the jig of it. The day to day thing was like a normal thing. So for me, it wasn't like a, such a big shift when I said like, Oh, by the way, I'm going to freelance. They're like, no, that's fine. It's okay.

Steve Folland: So you were an architect, you were doing kitchens and then find this.

Mariery Young: Facebook class.

Steve Folland: How did you get to the point where you were getting clients or were you selling your art as art at that point.

Mariery Young: Well, I was lucky enough because he threw me in it, right? In the art scene. So he was like, oh, you're going to paint live. You're going to do this thing to this event. And then he didn't want to tell me, I just show up to for, for a beer. And then he'll be like, okay, you're doing this now. And I'm like, okay.

So that was kind of like, just getting thrown into things. And then, you know, as a, as a beginner, as an artist, I think every artist on this, like, You're like, should I do this? Should I do murals? Should I do paintings? Should I show in a coffee shop? Like, you have this, like, jack of all trades, beginner. We all been there.

So I think, like, by testing out so many things, I was thrown into this, all this, all contemporary, more classical painter artists backgrounds and stuff. And I found out like in the Panama scene, we're all more than one thing. So we're a lot of all, a lot of us were architects by trade or we're graphic designers by trade.

So there was a lot of like every artist in Panama, most of them, no, no, none of it's just one artist. Like they all have like something, another. They're connected to their passion and those two things together combine their, their art aesthetic, their story. So it was very common to be two things. So I think that helped me navigate that comfortable duality between artist and designer.

And I got there and I started understanding what illustration was. Thanks to like British illustrators and it felt more comfortable illustration. I felt like it was more straightforward. It made more sense with my point of perspective with communication when it came to like design as well. So I really like especially the British illustration scene a lot.

So I was like, okay, They're a little bit quirky, a little bit of fun, a little bit nerdy, you know, it was a more like, oh, I really like, I just did this because I liked it. So I really liked that approach. There was like a very honest. This was like the beginning of Instagram too, so there was like, not this like, stress about trending, and algorithm, and you know, and just being, you know, it was just more like, oh, I just happen to really like this character, so I kind of just kidded with it, and then I kind of stumbled upon people who liked it, so here I am, so that's how I started my understanding how illustration fit the best for me in the art scene.

Steve Folland: Was there a point, like what year would you say that you would have said I'm a freelance illustrator and designer?

Mariery Young: It was my first contract, it was Nike. I got an email from Behance, I was 25, and what happened was that, you know, I get the Behance DM, right? And I was like, this is a joke, of course, you know, like, no, no, no, this can't be true. So I got, so I was like, okay, just reply back to my normal emails. I was like, okay, if they reply back, this is not, this is not, this is not a scam.

So I got an email back, and they wanted to do the Panama store here, their flag store here in Panama for Nike Women. And it was like a more concept of like the local scene, the local boutique. And I was already doing illustration, but I wasn't doing digital illustrations. So I approached her project as a architect.

And they were like, Oh, we want to print in wood. So I was like, Oh, we got to print it once. So that means I have to draw digitally. Cause my brain was like, okay, so if I want to, this is my finished product, what do I need to do to get it done? So they kind of grabbed me from jack of all trades and Nike grabbed me and put me into fitness designer mode.

They were like, they pushed me to understand my aesthetic, what drove me, what got me excited. So that project was almost like my, my whole education into building what I am right now.

Steve Folland: Whoa, so your first client

Mariery Young: As a freelancer.

Steve Folland: was Nike

Mariery Young: Yes.

Steve Folland: and they found you because of sharing your portfolio

Mariery Young: on social media. Yeah. I was working with Nike USA and then they, they haven't even contacted Nike in Panama by then. By the time they were contacting Nike in Panama, they were like, yeah, we actually have been working for like the last six months with a local artist. She's ready. And they're like, what, who?

I was like, Oh yeah.

Steve Folland: Amazing! What an opportunity! Did you know what you were doing, like, in terms of the business side of it? Did you, like, have to learn really quickly?

Mariery Young: Yeah, it was, it was quickly because I already had a team of workers who were doing the installation for me. I already understood the materials. It was the first time they ever printed in wood in Panama or not work. So I found like the provider that had the, I found out like, you know, like I do in architecture, like you want to do this thing.

You get, you get like the, the cravings, right? You really want to eat this thing. So you really want to do this thing. So you got to figure out like, where do I get the ingredients? And I found the printer. They had the equipment, but they had never printed in this texture. So I got the samples. I structure every, the whole timeline project and installation.

Like I tackle it like a, like a kitchen cabinet. So I did the whole structure, like a mounting structure, talk to my guys. They're like, don't worry about it. We can pull it off. And since then, I've always been tackling my. My freelancing, my project base is as an architecture project. They gave us a time management class, like in the second year of university.

So that class really drilled me into understanding how to tackle not only one goal, but many goals at the same time. On a time as of like over a year or five years. So I really understand how to do many projects at the same time without freaking out or without being feeling overwhelmed. So. So I would say, yeah, study architecture, a little bit of time management in architecture helps you a lot.

Steve Folland: What would you say is the, you know, the key, I guess, to managing your time? To managing multiple projects? For those of us who haven't got seven years to learn architecture.

Mariery Young: I would say you have to be honest with yourself. You have to be honest. Where do you lose your time? Where do you get distracted or where do you dread the projects? For me, I really care about deliverables, so it takes me a long time to do the quoting. Because sometimes I do tend to say a lot to projects I've never done before.

So every time I'm quoting there's something new I need to like estimate and I need to calculate so it takes me a little bit longer to be like, I have to be generous on those things of like, oh, I've never done this or this stage must be affected by a provider that I have no control of. So I need to be, so quoting, I do spend a lot of time on quoting when something new or something big.

But I'm very honest and clear in communication with the client. And I always tell them, especially with branding as well. It's like, look, once we get the logo and we're filling the logo, everything's going to go fast. It's like once I know we got it and I feel like you're excited about it, especially with brand identity, it's like, goes really fast.

I can, I can, I can just skate through it because I already know what I'm going to do as depending on what option he picks. So it's like, okay, now that we got this out of the way and you feel comfortable, I can just take over and get it all completed really, really easily as well.

Steve Folland: So, Nike's your first client. What came after that? Did you just leave it to chance?

Mariery Young: No, okay. This is, this is, this is a workaholic in my 20s. My twenties, I was very American workaholic. So I was taking two months off in the UK for holiday and I was like, Oh, I'm going to be two months. I cannot do this just holiday for two months. That's too much. Right? So I was like, Oh, there's fairs. Maybe I should do a small fair while I'm there.

Right? I was like, yeah, yeah, I should do a fair. Easy. I'm going to submit to a couple fairs. You know, randomly, just like, hi, just putting like the application like they said online. Got in the London Illustration Fair without even thinking. And then I was like, wait, what did I promise? I was like, okay and then I started doing logistics.

I was like, it would be mad to take everything from Panama to the UK. So I was like, no, I'm not going to worry. I'm just going to go find on Instagram, whoever the other artists print with, and I'm just going to email them and get it all in my hotel. Easy. Before I arrived, I don't know, first time in London, first time like taking the tube. Understanding schedules, charity shops. Charity shops saved me, by the way. Got there, I think they, they misunderstood my email, the guys. The guys thought that I was on holiday in Panama and I was coming back to the UK to work. Now that I was on holiday in the UK coming from Panama and it was my first fair, illustration fair, I didn't know what, how big it was.

I was like, Oh, the barge house. It's supposed to be like a small, like restaurant or open space, right? Not three floors of illustration artists. So it was, got there. Like I introduced myself and they're like, Oh, you're the Jaguar girl. And I was like, the Jaguar, what do you mean? And they were like, Oh, your cover is on the Time Out London, your artwork.

And I was like, Wait, what is this? So I was like, everything that could be, I was naive enough to not know what I was getting myself into. I was like, I made enough, I had enough income at that moment, so I was like, Oh, I can make this investment. I start ordering prints. Yeah. First day, opening night, I was panicking.

I was having like a panic attack because I was seeing all the people I've seen online in my life in front of me. So I was having like a starstruck moment. But I had like two other illustrators who they just started out too, so they were like next to me. So we were kind of like just hanging out and getting to know each other and they're really super friendly and stuff.

And then, you know, Getting the Jason people coming over. Like you have like the first round, that's like the students who go to uni, never had that experience before. Then you have like the moms with the kids and then you got the kids and they're like saying like, Oh, look at this mom, look at this. And I had like animals.

I had like jaguars, like colorful jaguars and stuff. And I had like my crazy self was like, I'm going to make a big jaguar. So when kids see it, they're going to love it. So I'm working, I'm working, I'm walking in the tube with a big Coral Jaguar to say I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Just like just walking into Just I think is you have to be naive enough and bold and make it work That's why I'm I'm really much of like yeah, I just like at the moment.

I'm there. I'm just like I'll figure it out I'll get it done.

Steve Folland: What difference did that fare make? Did it lead to clients or was it just a change in yourself?

Mariery Young: the fair confirm that illustration was the way It felt like my perspective and my sense of humor was understood like right away. So it was really, it was really rewarding as an illustrator to be like connect, like the instant connection. With people who just saw it and they bought it because they liked it So I had that really nice connection of the market and I didn't know but at that moment a lot of Wholesale buyers were there.

So they were they were grabbing my cards. They were grabbing my car So as soon as I got back to panama, they were like, oh we want to license this car So, I stayed with the theme that was like, Jaguar, Kaijus, and horror characters at that moment, because I really love Halloween, so they really like my horror, and I just did that because I really love horror, so I wanted to do it like, with my bold colors and pastels and stuff like that.

So it was like, so I understood that. Like, by picking the things that you're, that you like and that you connect with, actually people can see it. So that's when I started to understand that passion was, the way you show passion to people who have never met you is going through the things that you really connect to.

Steve Folland: Which means that you end up doing work that you love doing going forward.

Mariery Young: Yeah, exactly. Also, I always tell people like, it's better that you pick something that you love, but when it gets hard, you're going to make it through. It's not that you love it, it's going to be happy, happy go lucky, it's just going to get hard, but it's going to be, it's going to pull you through because you still love that thing that you're doing.

So it's worth the effort. It's rewarding because you're like, Oh, I never thought I could pull this off. And I pulled it off. So you have this little, like, proud moment where you get like, you go get a beer and you're like, yes, I did it. Got it. Succeed.

Steve Folland: So what happened after that? How did things evolve?

Mariery Young: I started on her student and then I had to really figure it. I started understanding what I liked. I liked more illustrating packaging, merchandise understanding how prints work. Since I was in Panama and shipping outside Panama is a nightmare. I worked everything that was that the client handled the production side for me.

So every, every contract that fit that logistic, I took it. And I've been work and I really like working with brand identity. So I've been exploring brand identity and I've been sharing like my perspective, adding more like the heritage, my, my Latina roots, my understanding all this concepts. And I've been applying it to projects as well.

So it'd been opportunity over opportunity, just me trying to share my work and. Just shaping it into what the website is actually now, the studio is now like actually understanding after almost 10 years of like, what, where am I? I could say like between my 25 and 30s, I was like, you know, just going for things without knowing.

And then my thirties to 35, I was like, okay, illustration. It is, I'm not doing any architecture. I'm just going to focus on illustration. It's now or never. And then just go. And I understood that digital online global market was the way to go for me.

Steve Folland: So after trying lots of different things, you decide to focus and, and focus also in your style, in, in the, the influence of your work,

Mariery Young: I think it was less the style, because I already had a style that I liked. I really liked those 1960s, 1970s, like, books that, like, kids books that you find on the, on the second hand shops. I bought so many of those. So I really know what I was attracted to visually. I really like how Vectors let me, as an architect, I really enjoy how Vectors let me do the surface.

And like the text, like the possibilities that I could take the final product. It was more what kind of projects got me excited about which projects I really cared about. And I noticed that when I pick projects that I was very connected to, my client was happy. I was happy. They did better. So I kept going for those.

And you start learning you start learning like the little cues like do they really understand my work culturally? Do we have a shot culturally when it comes to working? Maybe that's not gonna work out. So it was very It's go good go bad, you know You gotta test around and being and editing yourself of being like, oh, I really didn't like this process Why I didn't like it that it took too long, dude.

I feel that it was Too overwhelming. Maybe I cannot do this. Maybe the service is not good for me So you have to be honest with yourself and feel what makes you comfortable what makes you feel works for you because as a freelancer you have that freedom of Editing yourself and being honest of what stages do you like or you don't prefer?

Like if you don't like admin work maybe you have to make more income and hire somebody to help you do that part or maybe you just have to Learn how to do it and figure out a way that works better for you. So it's I feel like that's the most important thing about being in the business. It's like understanding what are your limits and where you're willing to work on and what you're not willing to, to negotiate.

Steve Folland: Do you actually take time to strategically look at those things?

Mariery Young: Oh yeah. You have to, you do have to evaluate yourself every, I will say, depending on the things I work, many things at times. So sometimes I'm evaluating where I'm like, what audience am I reaching? I'm sometimes evaluating maybe the, my marketing strategy. Like I took a time with my website because I had a fully, before I had a fully custom website, beautiful website, but my problem was I couldn't update my portfolio fast enough because I had, I'm not a coder, I'm not a developer.

So I was like coding. illustrating, business. So I decided to move my website to Squarespace because it was so much easier for me to have control and editing the work. So that was a decision that it took me, it took a toll because I had to stop my website for three, three months to organize my five year portfolio and be really honest with myself and be like, okay, which projects do I really want to do moving forward?

What projects to actually. And like it show people who have never met me, what can I do? So it was always looking back of like, how do you present yourself? How do you communicate yourself? How do you really want to do in the next five years? Where do you want to go for? And where are you at, at that moment in the industry too?

Steve Folland: And do you also treat that strategic look with how you are balancing like work and life, like how you're working?

Mariery Young: Well, I live by the beach. My beach is like six minutes of walking into my house. So I do, I live outside the city because of that. So I do made a choice before the pandemic that I can go for a swim between an email, come back and forth and walk because I wanted to be more connected to nature, just like my work. The reason why I stay in freelancing was exactly that.

I did, when I started my, my professional career, I did office work. And it was too exhausting. And as a creative, I know that other periods will feel the same. It's that our work habits are different. So I really like, once I get work in designing, I want to be comfortable. I want to have my, I want to be able to cook my food so I can be working better and not stress.

So I really want to have that home studio feel because I love cooking and cooking is part of not being stressed. So when I'm stressed, I'm cooking more elaborate dishes. Every single time I get more complicated to de stress and I cannot do that in an office. you have to have that, what works better.

And I feel that is something that with the pandemic, seeing like remote jobs, like a lot of people understood back the value of like not taking traffic every single day, back and forth, you know, being able to balance. normal errands like going to the grocery shop paying the bills and stuff like that with your task and being more productive so it's it's editing what works better for you

Steve Folland: Yeah. And now you're by the beach. Wow.

Mariery Young: yeah that's what i said from tropical panama it is tropical

Steve Folland: So how would you say your clients have found you or find you today? Like, is it through putting out your work on social media, all of those different portfolio type sites, or has it changed?

Mariery Young: it's been till this day through social media a few directories that pop up from other creative screen directories of other freelancing services i am trying to cope and understand the new algorithm because i feel like it's The algorithm is pushing everyone to be a TV personality, but just one type of TV personality, right?

So it's a little bit for me. It's I, I like to work in privacy just with my client. I don't like to be like, Oh, let's put on, like, I feel like sometimes like. Trying to put a show of the process while figuring it out. I feel like it cuts the process. I just really enjoy that one on one time with the client.

So I don't like to share things until they're ready. So it's a little bit of that hard balance at this moment of like, how much am I willing to share to keep with the algorithm, but also how much do I want to keep private and make sure that it's not unsustainable for my process.

Steve Folland: What does your use of social media look like to you then?

Mariery Young: I, I, so basically I do log on my computer and my phone. So basically Twitter threads, anything that's written, it's only on through my laptop, not on my phone. The only notification that pops in my phone, it's my email. So that I don't get, I don't know what's happening on codependency. So I try to keep a balance between those two things.

Like I try to not, like I'm the one who leaves the phone on the studio and goes, goes to the bedroom and the phone is not with me. So I try to take that. And luckily, my friends are also in the creative industry, so they, when they see me or when we see each other, it's also like a unplug for everybody.

None, none of us wants to be an influencer, so everybody's like, once we see each other and we go cooking or we go make ingredients and go get, make something and hang out and just play or watch something together, we all like, unplug. Maybe we post one picture? Of like, everybody, so everybody can do like the content, so the, so the, so the algorithm gods are happy with us and they don't forget about us, but you know, but that's, everybody collectively has agreed that's just for, because we have to, and then we just relax, enjoy.

Steve Folland: You do know lots of other freelancers, do you?

Mariery Young: Yeah, we need you need that you need that you need the connection even if the freelancer is not in your same industry I feel like you do need that Connection of people who understand at least the daily, you know for going for a pint and being like, okay, let's unwind Well, I might be crazy or what is going on if it's just me.

I think you do need to vent out You do need connections. You can't be on your own in that sense. You do need a community.

Steve Folland: And are those people you've met in person?

Mariery Young: Yeah People I met in person, people I met after like three years of knowing online also, like when I travel I take advantage and be like, Oh, I'm gonna be in your town. You're like, oh, let's go for a beer.

And it feels like we just, I have met a lot of artists and designers that way. Like I've known them for years. And once I'm around their location, I'm like, yeah, yeah. Let's go hang out. Let's go have a beer.

Steve Folland: So nice.

Mariery Young: Yeah. That's the best thing about working online. It's like, you can go meet those people. And most of the artists I know, they're like, Just like themselves online very laid back when it comes to like after work It's like everybody wants to just like have good good connections and not think about That forced, algorithm thing that we're we're all going through at this moment

Steve Folland: So, so that time that you took a holiday for, to London and then end up working and

Mariery Young: of course, you know, you're like it's it's like I feel guilt. I I do get the guilt like the you know I don't know if you've seen this but like a lot of creatives say like The one time that when you get more jobs as a freelancer when you announce you're going on holiday You Have you seen

Steve Folland: well, I've, I've certainly experienced it. That's for sure.

Mariery Young: Yeah, so that's why I never say when I'm on holiday I have I have learned that the hard way i'm never I always say i'm a holly like when i'm halfway through the holiday Unless I really have a deadline, but that's only on email privately to the client But if not, I have signed contracts hopping into the plane.

I have negotiated Contract agreements in between flights. I have had interviews in holidays I had like the whole team to go interview me during my holiday and I had to like freak out What am I gonna show them because I'm not I'm in holiday So I have definitely have paid the price of announcing myself when I'm on holiday.

So yes, I will keep my holidays private For my own peaceful mind.

Steve Folland: Unless work goes quiet, and then you're gonna go and book one and tell everyone.

Mariery Young: Yes, exactly. I'm always looking at my email, but like, unless it's something really important, I'm not gonna It's a real, it's a real thing. It's like, if you really want a job, just say you're gonna go on holiday and clients will come your way in that moment.

Steve Folland: So it sounds like you've got to a really nice place where you're able to really choose the sort of projects that you want to work on.

Mariery Young: Yeah, it's getting to that happy place because I can see the difference between my first clients. When we were not sure what we were doing and seeing them now where they're going with their projects. And I can see them excited about coming back for business and getting themselves growing and, you know.

Again, like they support me and I support them. So it's like that genuine connection. I really want them to do well. I really want them to grow. Like one of my clients right now, she's just, she just got the lease on her place on her, on her studio. And we've been working for that for like almost like a year looking for the right place.

So she sends me videos of the real estate and be like, Oh yeah, I'm not so sure. And I'm like, okay, just send me the other one. Let me see the other place. And then like, you know, trying to figure out. Her next stage is going to be this big space now. So it's like, I've been with her since like the first idea, the branding, the packaging, getting her to see like designing her display for events, seeing like if the ideas worked in the events, if people come together and said hi to her.

So like all these little stages I've been with her. So for me, it's rewarding to see them grow and see if things work out or not and stuff like that.

Steve Folland: Lovely. What, what do you feel works, makes a good client relationship?

Mariery Young: I feel you do need the same values and mindset. I think that's very important. What is more valuable for you? Like, is it valuable to be organized? Is it valuable to have the same level of communication? Like I like, I like email communications and my clients are very email friendly. So it's like, do we communicate the same way?

Do we prioritize the same things? I feel like that is a good base for a good business, for a good business, no matter what industry you're in. And there, and then later on, you will like. Geek over stuff. Like my clients are very excited about their projects and I love that about them. So like and I'm like the person who is going to be cheering on the most crazy idea.

They did, I probably told all our family members and the family members would be like, Oh no, that's not going to happen. And they told me, Oh, and I'm like, yeah, let's go do this. Just give me five minutes. I'm going to figure this out and then do a budget and we're going to get it done. So it's, so it's like that level of excitement I want from my projects and my clients.

I want them to be it. You know, to the level of ridiculousness, we're like, shamefully just into their projects and trying to go for it.

Steve Folland: Wonderful. What would you say you found the most challenging thing about being freelance?

Mariery Young: I think it's the moments where nothing is happening. I think for me, it was like, I got surgery last year and after it, I was working so slow. I was going slower working so it was a little bit of annoying with myself because I was like I could have done this in two days. What's going on with my brain? so it was like readjusting my brain and going slow was really hard for me and it was like My doctor was laughing because when we scheduled the surgery this was like, oh, it's a normal procedure.

Don't freak out So I scheduled between two contracts. I was like, yeah, I'll finish this contract You do surgery, I can take a month off before I start the other one. And he's like, what? It's like, yeah, yeah. It's like, I'm a freelancer. I need to. I actually had my friend's wedding. So I scheduled between my friend's wedding, my contract, the other one.

And then she was like, how are you doing? Are you going to be okay? It's like, yeah, no worry. I'm just going to get surgery after your wedding and then I'll be okay. So you have to learn how to take slow. It's hard for me, but. I'm getting better, I think. I think.

Steve Folland: So not just slow as in there's no work, but actually having to slow down.

Mariery Young: Yeah, it's, it's, it's hard. I think for me, and I think for a lot of people, a lot of artists, we get excited about things we want to do, right? We have those dream projects, those like, bucket listing, and then I have this tendency of not saying no to things I've never done. So it's like, can I just, tell me these crazy ideas, and I'm gonna, if it sounds right in my head, I'll be like, I really want to do this now.

Like, I really want to get this done. So it's. Finding that that level of slowness, it's sometimes a bit harder. Sometimes like it takes longer to get things rolling. So I feel like I always thinking about future me. So sometimes when I get to that point, I was like, Oh, future me was so smart. I got this ready done before this happened.

So it's like, I always try to do things ahead of time. Cause I know they're going to take time because I'm like Christmas designs are done in August. So by, by June, I'm already freaking out about Christmas designs by August, I'm already should be submitting the Christmas designs or have the lineup ready by September.

I'm Latina. So every Latin American country is already like on Christmas mode. So it's like, so it's all this planning ahead. For six months ahead for a project. So it's like, that teaches you a lot of patience when it comes to projects. So, okay, but you're still doing stuff, but you still, we're not going to see the reward in like in a year or in six months or a whole two years after.

So it's a lot of patients when it comes to designing.

Steve Folland: Yeah. Oh man. Do you know, I don't think I could cope with that. I don't think I have the patience. Where I make podcasts and videos, I'm so used to them going out so soon. The idea of packaging and you know, designs on things.

Mariery Young: Yeah. Thank you. I'm taking a whole year to see things happening. Yeah. It's usually big projects. The timeline is the whole year to see it finally on product mode. So it's a lot of, of like. You have to like work and then forget about it and then keep working on other stuff and then be like, Oh, yeah, this is going to be launching this day, this month.

Like that's how, that's how I do it because if not, I'll be in an anxiety waiting for it to happen.

Steve Folland: So in terms of like your revenue streams, is it mostly client work?

Mariery Young: It's mostly client work. It's also, I think it will be passive income, but it will be more like licensed contracts. And then some are mostly like royalties from contracts, from products. So from brands. Royalties are good because you do the product and then they take over the marketing, the shipping, all this other logistics.

So I think it's like a one, a one woman designer show studio. It's a good one. So you don't have to worry about that stuff. But I think those take a lot of toll for brands. Yes,

Steve Folland: Yeah. You mentioned your studio. So you have a business name, right?

Mariery Young: I do have a business name. It's called Mezclao. It means mixed together, but it's written in Spanish and English, like Panamanian style. Because Panamanians, we do have a lot of English words, but they are said in Spanish, and they mean something different. So I really wanted intentionally to have the misspelling of the word.

And the way the Panamanians do to show the identity and also show the mixed together with my heritage, the way I mix together projects as well and how I tackle it like cooking and ingredients and stuff like that. So that's why I really want to focus. And those are my client work portfolios. So my personal one is more me exploring new themes, new ideas.

And then if they go to client work, then they go to the studio.

Steve Folland: Ah, I see. So have you always had the studio name as, you know, as a freelancer? Have you always had that? Or was that something you came to so you could keep the two separate?

Mariery Young: I don't think they're separate. I wanted when I started to be separate, Well, later I understood I keep getting hired for being myself, so there's no separation. So, what I try to do it is I try to explain it in a way that if it's a commercial job, then it will stay with the studio. And if it's a more personal artist job in terms of like me exploring, like throwing something new, experimenting, it will stay in my personal account.

So there's no disconnection in going with the, what's going on on trans where everybody wants to have a personal brand. It's like, I think there's not going to be. Ever a separation between those two.

Steve Folland: That's really nice though. I like the way that the two then blend together when you realise something from your own experiments comes into your studio.

Mariery Young: Yeah, you you have to experiment. I think you should definitely be open to trying new things and I think We as artists we call it personal work And I think those personal works sometimes are the things like those definitely personal work for me gets me my job So I know I have to invest that time on geeking on stuff that I like Because those would actually are the ones that have keep bringing me when I see my work from the client's brief, what they like, because I always ask them, can you screenshot what you like, so I can have an idea of like, of my work, what exactly was the thing that they like, and it keeps going back to personal work, keeps going back to personal work, so it's like, I understood that By the consistency of them showing me what they caught their eyes, I understood that personal work is actually the best marketing when it comes to you as a, as a designer, something who does the visual things.

Steve Folland: Mm.

Mariery Young: More like a visual deliverables and stuff.

Steve Folland: Do you take time in your day or in your week, like, protect that to work on your own stuff?

Mariery Young: Not as beautifully as protecting. It's more like I'm craving. Like right now, like I get a coffee, and then I'm like, I really want to do this idea. So it's like, do I have time? And I like go in between my, my my tasks. So I'm, one thing I learned in architecture is that you can't do everything. So I always have a list of things I need to accomplish in the week.

That's it. In the day, it's like if I get this thing done, I'm good. I'm okay. Nothing's gonna No, there's not gonna burn anything. So i'm good. So that's always how I tackle projects if I know like Oh, I already got this out of the way. I can Now geek over this thing. I really want to do then i'll do it.

That's how I do it I always try to make sure that i'm always on track on the bigger picture not on like the day to day things

Steve Folland: If you could tell your younger self one thing about being freelance, What would that be?

Mariery Young: I would say enjoy sleeping and not doing anything for a while The beauty of not doing anything. It's it's good when you're a teenager, I would say

Steve Folland: I think that's the first time we've had that one. So just, just enjoy it while you can. Cause once you've become freelance...

Mariery Young: Yeah, of course. I think freelance shifts your your way you see things and the perspective where you value things and stuff like that. I just like I still enjoy sleeping. It's just like, it's like when you're a teenager, you're like, Oh, I used to do nothing for the whole weekend. Or like, I didn't do, you know, like, I could not care about paying bills and stuff like that.

So it's like, once you switch to freelancing, I feel like there's a lot of things you give up. Like the naivete of not doing certain things was like, it doesn't hit you like the reality of freelancing.

Steve Folland: Do you find it hard to switch your brain off from the business and, and the art, I guess the two.

Mariery Young: There's no switch off. I think, honestly, I think as a creative, it's really hard to switch. There's no switch between, there's no like persona in my case where like, Oh, I'm the artist and I'm not like off duty artist. No, it's not. There's no, there's no disconnection between those two people. You know, it's the same person.

So it's just. One is more focused on business. The other one's more focused over art, but it's the same. It's I'm the same person every single day. So it's not, it's not like the YouTubers, you know, like, Oh yeah. Like off camera this way. It's like, no, no, no, it's not. this connection is not a thing.

Steve Folland: Ma, thank you so much and all the best being freelance.

Mariery Young: Thank you so much for the invitation. I had a great time.

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voiceoverSteve FollandAI, longevity, strategy, business, future proof, substackComment