Solo developer interview: Jesse Bennett-Chamberlain

This is the final in a series of five interviews - first was Matt Brett, second was Lea Alcantara, third was Ryan Masuga and fourth, Jonathan Snook - with individuals who have started and are managing successful businesses on their own. In this interview, I speak to Jesse Bennett-Chamberlain of 31Three based in Grimsby, Ontario, Canada.

When and how was your business started?

I started 31Three about six years ago. I was working at a newspaper then and started to take on some side projects. Over time, I found myself working day and night, and eventually came to the point where I had to make a decision on which job I was going to keep.

With lots of encouragement from my wife, I decided to make the leap and do freelance full-time.

Are the services you provided at the onset the same as you offer now?

Not at all. When I started out, I was mainly doing print projects and assumed that would be my main income stream. It seemed most of my print clients would eventually ask, “Do you do web as well?” Because of this, I eventually picked up a program called Freeway and started making WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) websites.

I quickly found the demand for web projects outpaced that of print, and after a couple of years, I ended up dropping print altogether.

My main focus now is working with developers on just the design phase of their projects. I still do some code from time to time, but I try to spend most of my day in Photoshop.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of running a company by yourself?

Most people usually say the main advantage of running your own business is being able to set your own hours and routine, and although that is a great thing, it’s also one of the toughest.

For the first few years of business, setting my own hours meant working 12-13 hour days and often working on the weekends. Now that the business is more established, it’s been really nice to work regular hours again and take a day off when I want to.

What I really I like about running my own company is that I’m responsible for everything. This makes me a lot more motivated in the hard times, and landing a big client is that much sweeter.

Is your office based from home or do you work at another location?

For the first five years I worked out of the house and actually just got an off-site office in the last few months. Although I love my new office, working from home was a great experience too.

The deciding factor for me to move out was when my oldest daughter got to be around three years old and couldn’t understand why I wasn’t able to play with her all day long. I figured it would be easier on both of us if I was out of sight during work hours. So far, so good.

Is the addition of other full-time, on-site employees in your future or do you plan to remain solo?

I’d prefer to keep things as small as possible and just outsource portions when needed. Bringing on employees involves additional work, and I’d instead prefer to spend that time and energy designing.

Do you outsource any portion of your projects to contractors or handle everything yourself?

I’m starting to get more comfortable with outsourcing sections of projects to people I trust.

I am pretty particular - and so are my clients - about the quality of my work, so it has taken me awhile to find the right people to work with. It’s a really great feeling knowing the work I’m getting back will be a step above what I could do myself.

What are some important business lessons you’ve learned over the years?

The main thing for me has been recognizing what I’m good at and what I enjoy doing.

It’s very easy to get distracted and think you have to offer a ton of different services to be competitive, when in reality, it seems the more you specialize, the more in demand you become.

In the case of 31Three, it has been a continual process of trimming down the scope of my work and client base. I’m guessing in the years to come, as I learn more about myself and business, I’ll narrow my focus even more.

I’ve been a fan of Jesse’s work for some time. It’s so good it hurts sometimes. Great attention to detail - well deserved success and and inspiration to those thinking of going solo!

Jesse is one of my favorite web designers and any time I’ve talked with him, he’s been very wise. Back when I worked at Digital Web I snagged him for an article about his process and he wrote a winner. I enjoyed reading this interview…any tidbits from someone who is talented and has a good head on his shoulders are always great to read.

I always like to get a peak into the professional lives of other designer/developers and I too am a fan of Jesse’s design work.  Thanks for the interview.

Always been a fan of his work and professionalism…great write up.

These recent interviews have been great.

I’m with Jason on this one in regards to seeing how other designers and devlopers work. Would be awesome to see more of the same on here.

Thank you so far.

Everyone, thanks for the kind words. It was great fun interviewing Matt, Lea, Ryan, Jonathan and Jesse. In each case, I have been rewarded with helpful insight and an even greater respect for their achievements.

Thanks for this, as others have said its always great to read about other fellow designers lifes and workflow.

As a young freelancer myself, who has just started out, its interesting to read about the guys at the top of the field.