Those pesky hipsters got it right. There’s nothing quite like being there “before they were famous” and getting to watch somebody’s career journey as they develop their abilities and confidence.

For a lot of industries, it can be hard to demonstrate the progress you’ve made since the beginning of your career but at the Freelancer Club, your profile is a great way to visualize the evolution of your work.

Since joining the Freelancer Club at the start of her career, Donna Marie Boyer has moved seamlessly through every corner of the modelling industry and successfully leveraged her connections to launch her own personal health brand, Detox Juice Cleanses. As you scroll through her profile, it’s lovely to be able to see the progression of her talent after years spent honing her craft. [readmore}

Donna signed up to the Freelancer Club on the recommendation of a friend after moving to London to pursue a career in modelling. Though she had no experience and had never worked on a commercial shoot before, she credits our community for helping to build her a solid foundation in modelling and has enjoyed watching the site grow alongside her own career.

BEGINNER TO PRO

Modelling is an intense career that doesn’t pull its punches. Being a successful model takes a driven personality with the determination to achieve their goals no matter the setbacks. That first open casting call was eye-opening for Donna:

“Wow, let’s just say I was overwhelmed. It wasn’t my finest work. I was in awe of the sheer confidence of all these professional models and feeling inadequate.”

It took Donna some time to learn the ropes, master the basics and banish the self-doubt but once she did, she found a new confidence in her abilities.

“I slowly started to gain confidence and essentially learn how to model well. I’ve now worked in every corner of the industry; sports, underwear, beauty, hair, editorial and commercial.

This well-earned confidence shines through in her work, giving her images a sense of accomplishment and meaning that has appealed to many premium fitness brands and magazines, as well as the agency she signed with.

THE ROAD LESS TRAVELLED

While modelling often has a reputation for being an easy career for pretty people, it’s a lot harder than most people think. Remaining positive and professional whilst having to deal with the uncomfortable outfits and constant body contortions is a challenge. 

Although she’s worked on every kind of shoot imaginable, Donna believes she was able to learn the most about modelling from lingerie shoots:

“I remember how much you have to move your body to make it look aesthetically good on camera. It’s a lot. It’s like a yoga session. You have to really channel your inner goddess and let any insecurities go, I mean you have to feel sexy.”

SWITCHING FOCUS

Though Donna still models occasionally, she now divides her time between shoots, personal training and her newly launched health brand, Detox Juice Cleanses. She uses her knowledge of both nutrition and personal training to create custom juice cleanses for her customers that elevate their vitamin, mineral and phytonutrient intake.

“Health has always been a running motive in my life, starting in my early twenties, it’s something I've always been passionate about. My personal training experience has definitely opened my eyes to fad diets and unsustainable lifestyle changes.”

“I guess for me, creating a personal brand evolving around consultations, in-depth conversations, and long term solutions makes me feel good about what I’m bringing to the table; as well as simplifying nutritional solutions. I feel the knowledge that I share is knowledge that isn’t usually given freely or isn’t bespoke to that person at the other end of the phone.”

She’s always careful to share that juicing isn’t for everyone and includes a free health consultation before any purchase to ensure that her personalised health drinks are supporting her customer’s fitness journey. 

Donna continues to learn and improve her own skills to advance her personal health brand but she knows she’ll get back to modelling sooner or later.

“I’m still always learning. The next stage will be blood work; getting a read of deficiencies and tailoring diet plans or juice programmes to help people on a hyper personal level.”

“The irony is that I got signed when my business started taking off and I found that hard to manage - getting signed had to take the back seat for now.”

UNIQUE PARTNERSHIPS

It’s clear that Donna understands the value of collaborating with other freelancers as her Freelancer Club profile is littered with positive testimonials from photographers, makeup artists, and creative directors she’s worked with over the years. They praise her professionalism, her friendly nature and her willingness to try new things and stay in character.

She loves to work with as many different people as possible as everybody brings something different for her to work with:

“I’ve had so many great shoots that it’s really so hard to choose any in particular. All of them are valuable and all of them: the photographers, the muas, the hairdressers, the editors, the fellow models, all have something so unique to bring to London’s creative scene. 

 “I actually paid a fantastic portrait photographer that I met and worked with on Freelancer Club to take some shots of me in Boxpark when I was set up there. Sam Palmer, what a ledge!”

DONNA’S GOLDEN NUGGETS

When we asked Donna what her advice to newer creative would be, she stressed the need to tailor your portfolio images to the needs of the clients you want to attract:

“It’s important for there to be a selection of photos that represent you in several lights. Essentially, the client is looking for you to bring YOU but in their environment, so they might see one picture on your profile that could be the difference between a yes and a no. Versatility is key.”

Ever the collaborator, she also praised the constructive feedback you can get from other freelancers in your industry:

“Asking other people in the industry about what should go on your main page is always a good shout. If you don’t like a photo but 10 other people around you do, sometimes you gotta take that into account.” 

Her advice for new models who might feel as insecure and overwhelmed as she once did, is to remember that you’re there for a reason:

“From someone that’s been there, a deer in headlights, you have to believe that you are getting recognition because people see something in you. People are shortlisting and inviting you to castings or meet-ups because they see something in you. Just understanding your unique power, owning it and believing in yourself. Confidence is so important. As a newbie, the fine-tuning comes with time and experience that comes from just believing in yourself!”

The Freelancer Club can help you to facilitate the connections you need to advance your career, just like Donna, using our Discover or Collab tools.

If you’d like to work with Donna for modelling, personal training or her personalised health juices, you can find her on Freelancer Club or Instagram.