> without having to deal with autistic colleagues and managers Every client is a manager, but often they don't have those skills (and... they probably shouldn'

> without having to deal with autistic colleagues and managers Every client is a manager, but often they don't have those skills (and... they probably shouldn't have to). So, either you need to become a manager, convince them to, or bring someone else on to do it and ... you'll end up with a small team of folks. Bam - you now have to deal with a variety of communication styles. Try dealing with a client who wants integration with a third party system, then tells you the data is wrong based on data they see in their own internal tool that they won't give you access to ("you might screw it up"). "The customer is always right..." except when they're not. > they want you to work on their project, while on the other, they want to save as much money as possible. So... don't charge hourly? Or time-based? Flat rate problem/project estimation is another way to go, but ... I've found many clients don't actually want to think that way, because you end up having to say 'no' to almost any change in the scope of an engagement. And you end up spending almost as much time trying to scope out changes and agree to new terms as you would just working on the problem.