4 ms·

Thanks for the advice. I'd like to take your suggestion to radically raise rates to prevent this from happening again. What do you suggest I do to get in touch

Thanks for the advice. I'd like to take your suggestion to radically raise rates to prevent this from happening again. What do you suggest I do to get in touch with/market to/work for clients willing to pay that much?

patio11 12y ago
The only thing you have to do to hit $100 an hour in e.g. Python programming, which you appear to do, is to stop taking gigs which pay less than $100 per hour. People express disbelief at this, and it is headdesk inducing to me. For general Python contracting work, go to people who already employ Python programmers, demonstrate competence, and then ask if they are hiring or know anyone who is. This can be virtually or in meatspace, at meetups and whatnot. For getting work which is more than just being an interchangeable body who can ship a web app in Python, you'll want to find businesses which have problems which are amenable to solutions with computer programs, and then sell them that you're the right person to do that. I've gone over this many times on HN -- use hn.algolia.com and search for [patio11 consulting] or [patio11 prospecting]. (n.b. You should also shutter the business which sells fully functional prototypes for $3k, because that is not sustainable. Good clients know this, so if you're using that business for lead gen, you're selecting for pathological clients. You're also proposing to do project management for projects for the worst freelancers and the worst clients, at a fee of 8% on $3k, which is an even worse idea than delivering those engagements yourself.)
- brandonhsiao 12y ago
  Sorry to ask what are probably silly questions, but: how do I, uh, find these people? Like where do they gather? Should I look up local businesses in my area, call them, and talk about their problems?
  - freshyill 12y ago
    You could start by Googling "Vancouver Python meetup" like I just did, and you'll find that there's a meetup happening this coming Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Facebook's offices there. http://www.meetup.com/vanpyz/ http://www.meetup.com/vanpyz/ I know that sounds snarky, but that's really that's all there is to it. Once you find your way into a local dev community, you'll quickly find more and more connections. Good luck!
    - memoirmasters 12y ago
      It's hard to think straight when you're going to be sleeping on the streets in a few days. Thinking becomes cluttered. Depression sets in. Please take that into account.
  - pwim 12y ago
    If I search Vancouver and Python, this is the first result: http://www.meetup.com/vanpyz/ http://www.meetup.com/vanpyz/ The next event is this Wednesday. The organizers of that event probably know of companies in Vancouver who are looking for Python developers. You could also comb the attendee list and try to figure out what companies they are working for, as they'll probably be using Python.
  - rmc 12y ago
    Look at Python conferences (e.g. https://2013.pycon.ca/en/ https://2013.pycon.ca/en/ ), and look at the list of sponsors.
  - wikwocket 12y ago
    Search job listings for jobs in your area that list python. Doesn't need to be a python shop, as long as they use python somewhere. You can call up or email HR, or better yet hiring managers/decision makers, and ask if they need any contract developers.

patio11 12y ago

The only thing you have to do to hit $100 an hour in e.g. Python programming, which you appear to do, is to stop taking gigs which pay less than $100 per hour. People express disbelief at this, and it is headdesk inducing to me. For general Python contracting work, go to people who already employ Python programmers, demonstrate competence, and then ask if they are hiring or know anyone who is. This can be virtually or in meatspace, at meetups and whatnot. For getting work which is more than just being an interchangeable body who can ship a web app in Python, you'll want to find businesses which have problems which are amenable to solutions with computer programs, and then sell them that you're the right person to do that. I've gone over this many times on HN -- use hn.algolia.com and search for [patio11 consulting] or [patio11 prospecting]. (n.b. You should also shutter the business which sells fully functional prototypes for $3k, because that is not sustainable. Good clients know this, so if you're using that business for lead gen, you're selecting for pathological clients. You're also proposing to do project management for projects for the worst freelancers and the worst clients, at a fee of 8% on $3k, which is an even worse idea than delivering those engagements yourself.)

brandonhsiao 12y ago
Sorry to ask what are probably silly questions, but: how do I, uh, find these people? Like where do they gather? Should I look up local businesses in my area, call them, and talk about their problems?
- freshyill 12y ago
  You could start by Googling "Vancouver Python meetup" like I just did, and you'll find that there's a meetup happening this coming Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Facebook's offices there. http://www.meetup.com/vanpyz/ http://www.meetup.com/vanpyz/ I know that sounds snarky, but that's really that's all there is to it. Once you find your way into a local dev community, you'll quickly find more and more connections. Good luck!
  - memoirmasters 12y ago
    It's hard to think straight when you're going to be sleeping on the streets in a few days. Thinking becomes cluttered. Depression sets in. Please take that into account.
- pwim 12y ago
  If I search Vancouver and Python, this is the first result: http://www.meetup.com/vanpyz/ http://www.meetup.com/vanpyz/ The next event is this Wednesday. The organizers of that event probably know of companies in Vancouver who are looking for Python developers. You could also comb the attendee list and try to figure out what companies they are working for, as they'll probably be using Python.
- rmc 12y ago
  Look at Python conferences (e.g. https://2013.pycon.ca/en/ https://2013.pycon.ca/en/ ), and look at the list of sponsors.
- wikwocket 12y ago
  Search job listings for jobs in your area that list python. Doesn't need to be a python shop, as long as they use python somewhere. You can call up or email HR, or better yet hiring managers/decision makers, and ask if they need any contract developers.