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Contracting can be very lucrative. It is also extremely flexible. It also involves a lot of tasks that you don't need to think about as an FTE. Importantly, it

Contracting can be very lucrative. It is also extremely flexible. It also involves a lot of tasks that you don't need to think about as an FTE. Importantly, it also usually grows through a daunting non-linear curve where: 1. [Scary Phase] you don't have enough work in the beginning and don't know how to find it and freak out and look at FTE job listings and think about giving up. 2. [Frustrating Phase] you start accumulating good clients and bad clients and have to learn to avoid new bad ones and shake existing bad ones; you feel like you're always working with the bad ones and are neglecting the good ones. 3. [Lucrative Phase] you're good clients keep coming back with fresh work and you've really gotten the hang of getting new leads without even trying and you have more work than you can handle on your own. And if you have good business instincts, you're earning quite a lot. Often (but not always), it can take quite a while to get to (3).

ratsimihah 8y ago
That's a hopeful one! It sounds like I could pick up from where I left off and keep growing from there, thanks!
j88439h84 8y ago
How do you identify a bad client?
- CodeWriter23 8y ago
  They either: - don’t pay - don’t pay on time - want to low ball you on bids - don’t follow your advice - get upset when the pain you told them would happen if they ignore your advice, happens - are verbally abusive or manipulative - anything else that makes you unhappy working for them Bottom line my mentor taught me to take work from the troublesome clients but to make sure their rate was sufficiently high so that I was always happy to work for them. They can be jerks but I would smile because I knew I was getting a fat check from them. Experience has shown me however crap loads of cash aren’t always enough.
- swatcoder 8y ago
  In a way, it's personal. Any client that makes you really stressed out and leaves you feeling tempted to avoid their calls and ignore their messages is a bad client for you. With practice, you'll figure out why that is and whether it needs to be that way. Sometimes you can even turn a bad client into a good client by adapting things on your end. In a broader perspective, a lot of people have trouble with clients that - don't communicate - don't listen - don't learn - don't respect boundaries - don't pay

ratsimihah 8y ago

That's a hopeful one! It sounds like I could pick up from where I left off and keep growing from there, thanks!

j88439h84 8y ago

How do you identify a bad client?

CodeWriter23 8y ago
They either: - don’t pay - don’t pay on time - want to low ball you on bids - don’t follow your advice - get upset when the pain you told them would happen if they ignore your advice, happens - are verbally abusive or manipulative - anything else that makes you unhappy working for them Bottom line my mentor taught me to take work from the troublesome clients but to make sure their rate was sufficiently high so that I was always happy to work for them. They can be jerks but I would smile because I knew I was getting a fat check from them. Experience has shown me however crap loads of cash aren’t always enough.
swatcoder 8y ago
In a way, it's personal. Any client that makes you really stressed out and leaves you feeling tempted to avoid their calls and ignore their messages is a bad client for you. With practice, you'll figure out why that is and whether it needs to be that way. Sometimes you can even turn a bad client into a good client by adapting things on your end. In a broader perspective, a lot of people have trouble with clients that - don't communicate - don't listen - don't learn - don't respect boundaries - don't pay