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Lynn's avatar
Lynn N Community Member

accidentally finding myself in over my head

I accepted a job offer, but am severely underpaid. I should've asked for more money. I accepted the offer because I was a bit desperate. 

 

A part of me wants to complete the project in hopes of at least getting a positive review and rating.

 

Another part of me is tempted to end the contract prematurely. But I fear getting negative private feedback which could affect my Job Success Score. If I end the contract and he privately gives me 1 star, how badly will this affect my Job Success Score? He has not violated any rule.

 

Any advice would help. 

8 REPLIES 8
Saddam's avatar
Saddam H Community Member

Lynn, 

Solution : Keep the project in milestones and you will get paid in parts after doing each part of work. this will keep your good financially and you will also not  lose the client. 

Petra's avatar
Petra R Community Member


Lynn N wrote:

 If I end the contract and he privately gives me 1 star, how badly will this affect my Job Success Score?


Severely! You've only had 2 contracts with feedback so far, so when you get a JSS, it would be affected proportionately. It's not an exact science because contract value plays into it as well, but essentially 1 out of 4 is 25%  so a JSS calculated from 4 contracts of roughly the same value is around 75%

 

It's also unprofessional to accept a contract with known terms and then pull out. It wastes the client's time and money. I would suggest you complete the contract, not only because you want to avoid poor feedback, but also because it's the right thing to do.

 

 

 

Valentina's avatar
Valentina D Community Member

Hi Lynn,

 

Been there a couple of times. Sometimes I accept a job simply because I like it, and then spend weeks working on a project that’s only worth a couple of hours of my time.

 

I don’t know what kind of job it is and what’s in the escrow. But if I were you, I think I would complete it. Just make sure to prevent adding more milestones. Explain to the client that you’ll only be available for a brief time and that you’ll not be able to keep helping them in the long term. 

 

You’re a Rising Talent. If anything goes wrong, you’ll instantly lose the badge and your very first JSS will be quite discouraging. If you’re serious about building your career on Upwork, I think it’s better to do what you’ve agreed to do.

Martina's avatar
Martina P Community Member

Desperation often leads to bad results, we often hear from freelancers realising they want more money mid-contract. Don't try the old bait-and-switch and ask the client for more money now. The client relied on you, being a professional, to know what they are getting into and how much money they want to charge. Being a professional, you realized your mistake, and will not repeat it. Bad feedback at this stage can tank your upwork career before it starts. So give it your best, and finish it. 

Jamie's avatar
Jamie F Community Member

Best to get the job done - and done properly - and put it down to experience. A poor review now would make things harder for you. 

Lynn's avatar
Lynn N Community Member

Thank you everyone! 

Jorg's avatar
Jorg S Community Member

I have been there. Freelancers need to make a continuous income so we say yes to have a padding of clients. And that's ok.

 

No lawyer has just one client for which he works fullt-time. No doctor has just one patient, because once that patient is cured, he would have to spend days or weeks unemployed looking for the next sick person that needs him.

But oddly, clients expect us to drop everything immediately and work full-time for them until their results are delivered 4 days or a week later. Hello? No professional works that way. I need to wait 6 weeks for a non-emergency medical appointment at times.

So it's totally ok to take on a lot of clients and rotate through them. You just need to tell them upfront: "Look, I work like a doctor or any other specialist. I rotate through clients' projects weekly.

 

I can promise you I can get it done, but I can't promise you I will work on it for 6 days straight, because if I did so, after the project I would be out of work completely. I need a roster of clients to keep my income steady. Rarely any freelancer can throw themselves fully into your project, and then risk being unemployed after it. If you need a full-time employee, this is not the platform to find one. Upworkers are consultants.

So you can expect me to spend X hours per week on your project, give or take. At that rate, your project will take Y weeks to complete. That's my proposal to you. Unlike other contractors, who also have many clients, but promise to everyone that they can get done "in 3 days", I am being straight with you."

You don't need to use these words but the meaning should be clear to the client...

 

 

Tiffany's avatar
Tiffany S Community Member


Jorg S wrote:


But oddly, clients expect us to drop everything immediately and work full-time for them until their results are delivered 4 days or a week later. Hello? No professional works that way. I need to wait 6 weeks for a non-emergency medical appointment at times.

 

This depends to a great degree on the clients you choose to work with and the expectations you set early in the relationship.