I work almost solely off retainer, wear the project manager from time-to-time, and communicate stopped progress via email and GitHub issues (I use it as a simpl

I work almost solely off retainer, wear the project manager from time-to-time, and communicate stopped progress via email and GitHub issues (I use it as a simple project management tool). Things typically move as expected, and working off retainer definitely provides an incentive for them to get back on schedule. However, a lot of being a successful freelancer is having skills outside of technology. I might even argue they are more important. Clients are always blown away from what I would think are essential skills of the trade: honesty, communication, documentation, planning, setting expectations, pushing third-party developers to hold up their end, being positive, etc. If you can provide those at a high level of competency, I have found very few people/orgs are tough to deal with. In fact, it works so well that I have companies perpetually buy slices of my time each week, give numerous recommendations to others, present our work to others/conferences praising the relationship, etc... based purely on the project management aspects (tech competency does this too). I say this only to communicate that the typical "hassles" we all experience as developers can be turned into an asset/talent that many companies desire (e.g. hey this guy/gal not only knows tech, but can also keep projects moving for fast deliverables).