Hi all, Not returning to the newsletter just yet but thought I'd send out a link to an interview I did with Jonathan Stark on his podcast, Ditching Hourly. https://podcast.ditchinghourly.com/people/dale-davidson Jonathan advocates for getting away from hourly billing in your independent consulting practice. I agree, but I discuss why that's difficult in government contracting but why it might be okay anyway, particularly if you're jus getting started. He's a great follow for those of you who...
18 days ago • 1 min read
Hi all, I've enjoyed writing this newsletter for over a year now, but I've decided to take a hiatus for the time being. There is an extensive archive if you'd like to go back and read the previous ones. As always, if you have 1099 questions, feel free to ping me via e-mail at dale@1099fedhub.com. Good luck to you all! -Dale If you're interested in learning how to get your first solo 1099 federal sub-contract, check out my book: Going 1099: How to become a solo federal sub-contractor and gain...
2 months ago • 1 min read
Your client when you tell them no "That won't work" is the worst thing you can say to the client when they suggest an approach or solution to something. No one likes being told no, especially clients, and especially by their contractors. Instead of saying "that won't work," you should 1) Acknowledge their approach as one way to do that, 2) Suggest two or three alternate approaches along with your reasoning, and 3) Recommend one of them and say why This feels less "hostile" and gives the...
2 months ago • 1 min read
Being a people person makes you a target for PIPsSource The WSJ had a great article about how companies use "Performance Improvement Plans" or PIPs as a pretext for firing people. The Most Hated Way of Firing Someone Is More Popular Than Ever. It’s the Age of the PIP. -- In the messy business of getting rid of employees, the PIP is having a moment. A performance improvement plan is usually a list of tough-to-achieve goals to be completed within 30 to 90 days. Can’t shape up? You’re out. The...
2 months ago • 1 min read
You're not fooling anyone robot...Source Yesterday I wrote about the advice ChatGPT gave me to navigate government bureaucracies as an "ideas" guy. It was good advice, and I was pretty impressed how it was able to link the concept of personality with a somewhat specific work scenario. But still, some things are going to require actual humans, and my guess is that society will value human authenticity even more once most things are done by robots. Here's an article describing what happened...
2 months ago • 1 min read
AI professional advice is here I asked ChatGPT for advice on how to work in a government agency as an "ideas" guy, specifically, with the "Wonder and Invention" strengths in the Working Genius assessment. The advice was actually decent! Specifically, I've used 1, 3, and 7 in my work. The thing is though, my nature will always clash with working in a large bureaucracy. There are some projects that are better than others for me, but it's not sustainable long term. This is why I must pursue...
2 months ago • 2 min read
Even Homer Simpson can't tolerate bureaucracySource The WSJ had a funny article about the Chinese government being frustrated by its own bureaucracy. China’s Plan B to Save the Economy: A Crusade Against Busywork President Xi has mandated that its various government entities stop being so focused on things like daily reporting of their work, vanity projects, and nonsense activities in order to actually do, you know, real work. "The directive to supervisors: Hold fewer meetings and make them...
2 months ago • 1 min read
The unreliable narrators in your brainSource If you're worried about if you're "good enough" to go 1099, you need to look for external indicators of success in your career field. Do your clients praise your work? Have you been offered raises/promotions? Are you regularly taking the lead on difficult projects (and succeeding?) Is it easy for you to get a job offer for another company? The voice in your head may not be an accurate one. You must weigh that voice against concrete and external...
2 months ago • 1 min read
When you and your client have mismatched personalitiesSource Your government client is the main person you have to make happy. But to do that, you have to have a compatible personality. If you're not a detail oriented person, and the client is extremely detail focused, you probably need to get a new project. All your small errors will just annoy them and eventually you'll be asked to leave the project. The worst type of client for me is the "mid-level manager" personality. They require things...
3 months ago • 1 min read