I always negotiate all my gigs as contracts because it makes a lot more sense, both for me and the employer. It immediately removes all the silly little lies a

I always negotiate all my gigs as contracts because it makes a lot more sense, both for me and the employer. It immediately removes all the silly little lies and coercion that need to go on between you and your employer. You don't need to "share their vision" or think your options are going to be worth something if they exit. They're paying for your time, so if they want more, there's a mechanism for that. Just ask and you'll bill them at your day rate. Similarly, there's no awkwardness if you wrap up your piece ahead of schedule or they decide they don't need you for a while. Just say the word and you'll down tools and send a final invoice. No bridges burnt and you can ramp back up when they need more help. You can also be the most expensive guy on the team without looking like it on the books, which can be handy for the company. You can even schedule in downtime over the course of the year so that you end up billing the same as a salaried dev in the end (while getting an extra six months of vacation in the mix). There's tons of flexibility, and that's the appeal for me. I love programming computers. I just don't really love doing it all day every day for 2000 hours a year, so contracting makes a lot of sense.