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.
Sneakoffproofitis
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There's a great chapter in the book, The Art of Gig that describes the phenomenon of "sneakoffproofitis." --- "The problem is, as a free agent, you are your own boss, and you’re likely a bad boss, unable to relax, and driven by fretful anxiety about lining up the next gig. That would be bad enough, except that you’re also an omniscient bad boss. You know all your own tricks and nothing is hidden from you. You can’t sneak away from yourself. You have sneakoffproofitis. Here’s what sneakoffproofitis looks like. Your bank balance looks healthy for the moment. You have enough work lined up so the cash flow looks good for the next few months. You’ve only committed a modest fraction of your hours—say ten a week—to deliver that work. You’re temporarily cash rich and time rich. It’s a sweet situation, right? So why is it so hard to take your time/money surplus and do something interesting with it? The thing is, fun things are only fun when you sneak off from things that feel like work to do them. There is a certain creative freedom that is unleashed when you’re using up free time that feels like it is stolen from commitments towards necessary work. The courage demanded by the time theft fuels boldness in the sneak-off activity. This is funny because the idea of time theft is only well-defined for robotic labor where you are paid to execute a production algorithm, with a clear relationship between time and output. It is incoherent when applied to knowledge work where there is only a weak correlation between time spent at work and the quality/quantity of output." Rao, Venkatesh; Witherell, Grace. The Art of Gig, Volume 1: Foundations --- It's funny that as soon as you have some actual ability to take time off to do fun stuff as a 1099, you don't actually take it. We've become so conditioned by the oppositional relationship to a boss or employer that we don't know what to do when that relationship is gone. As a solo 1099 in the government world though, you probably have what looks like a full time job, so you can still trick yourself into thinking that you are stealing time or reveling in some sort of way. I recommend taking the random Wednesday off or bugging out early on Friday to take a nap. It may seem silly but it's a small way to enjoy the new work setup you've created for yourself. You'll get more comfortable with "stealing" time for yourself and be able to focus on more meaningful projects than napping (if you so choose). So beware of sneakoffproofitis, particularly if you are an anxious ambitious type. 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.
Rocky was a 1099 If you're a decently skilled employee in the government contracting world, there is no reason you shouldn't be able to go 1099. The main differentiator I've seen between people who claim they want to go 1099 and the people that actually do it, are that the people who pull it off are just a little more aggressive (assuming they are equally skilled, in desirable fields, etc.). The successful ones "pester" their network a bit more, negotiate a bit harder, and push to go 1099 for...
Offering half a muffin can often be helpfulvia X When you're trying to go 1099, you're largely focused on what you want. Imagining getting what you want is highly energizing and motivating, so it's easy to focus our energies there. But it's important to focus on what you can do to help others. For example, when you network with people, see if there are ways you can assist them. Maybe they have a friend looking for a job in your field, and you can meet them for coffee and make an introduction...
Treat Yo Self ... to non-billable funvia Reddit One of the fun parts about going 1099 is find opportunities to increase your billable rate. My own billable rate progress sent from something like $85 -> $100 -> $110 -> $115 -> $160 ->$180 per hour over an eight year period. Those early rate increases made a big differences. Actually all of them made a big financial difference. But the thrill of bumping up your rate wears off quickly, and then you're left with figuring out how to make your work...