Going 1099 is a book that teaches you how to become a solo federal sub-contractor and gain control of your working life, earn more money and unlock more free time. I wrote it because quite a few people have asked me how they can become a 1099. I figured it was best to write a single book that I can send them and that I can share with others who are interested. This newsletter goes out Monday - Friday and covers topics that will help you succeed in starting and maintaining successful 1099 career.
Are you too senior to go 1099?
In my book, I make a point that if you're already pretty senior (management level) at a company, it will be a little tricky to go 1099 (at least, using my methods) as there are less spots for senior people and most companies won't want to bring on a management level person as a 1099. I think if you're at this level, you have a few options. The first option is to fall back to an individual contributor type role. This might mean going back to doing work you did a few years ago, if you still have those skills. You would probably be a Subject Matter Expert (SME) and lean heavily on your client relationships to pull this off. The second option is to go straight to building a company. Presumably if you're senior enough, you have the experience and the network to convince four or five people to come work for you, and then find a friendly prime to bring on your company to an existing contract or a future proposal. You can take one of the positions for yourself so you're billable. It will come down to a personality/interest thing. If you like being a SME and not managing people, pick option one. If you like the idea of being a business owner and growing a successful company, pick option two. Either way, I don't think it's impossible to become a 1099 if you're very senior, I think it's just less straightforward because there are fewer opportunities at a higher level. If you're interested in learning how to get your first solo 1099 federal sub-contract, check out my book: |
I'm Dale, the author of Going 1099
Going 1099 is a book that teaches you how to become a solo federal sub-contractor and gain control of your working life, earn more money and unlock more free time. I wrote it because quite a few people have asked me how they can become a 1099. I figured it was best to write a single book that I can send them and that I can share with others who are interested. This newsletter goes out Monday - Friday and covers topics that will help you succeed in starting and maintaining successful 1099 career.
One of the reasons a company would bring on a 1099 or a sub-contractor is because bringing on a full time W2 employee would be too risky. If a contract has a limited amount of time left on it and there is a vacancy, companies may not want to hire someone because they're not sure if they'll have billable work for the employee after the contract ends. This is when hiring a 1099 would make sense, even if it reduces their margin. They're trading margin in exchange for a lower risky profile. In...
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...
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...