To give myself mental breathing room, I have to create a financial safety zone. I sit down and calculate how much money I need each month (which is surprisingly consistent).

I try to always have six months’ worth of expenses in the bank. If something goes terribly wrong, I know I have a few months to figure out what to do. It isn’t easy, but I found that having this buffer has real repercussions on the quality of my work, since it allows for two very critical luxuries:

1. I can turn down assignments that might not be a good fit.

2. Even though I’ve only done this once or twice in my career, I know I can afford to walk away from any job.

I try to take some time once a month to inspect my accounts and see if I can just keep going or whether I have to actually freak out.

Life is not predictable, and I’m not always able to maintain this system. Worrying about money is stressful, and what’s worse, I know that this fear and desperation will show in my work. That’s why I consider financial prudence an uncool but crucial element of my practice.

More interesting and more difficult are questions about the creative direction of one’s career…