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.
Why you procrastinate
I regularly procrastinate. There are lots of tasks that I don't want to do. I get a great sense of relief when I push off something I don't want to do. But, if you're going to be successful as a 1099, you'll need to find ways to counteract this tendency. I read somewhere that procrastination is your brain not buying your plan. If you have a goal that says "I need to go 1099," that means nothing to your brain, and you're going to procrastinate. So the key is to make a viable plan. A plan is composed a) achievable sub-goals and b) a realistic schedule. If you're trying to go 1099 and using the job conversion method, that might mean first conducting a value assessment and blocking off one hour to do it. You ask yourself if your clients value you, if your skill set is regularly in demand, etc. The next step might be to research your current project's contract and see if your company is the prime. You can allocate one hour to poking around the company SharePoint, and 15 minutes to schedule a call with your program manager to ask him questions directly. By breaking up the job conversion method into manageable steps and scheduling it, you will make progress. No single step will seem overwhelming on its own. Manage your procrastination by regularly breaking down big goals and scheduling time to accomplish the sub-goals. Before you know it you'll be making more money and taking Friday's off. 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.
A 1099 with too much timeSource One of the perks of going 1099 is you'll likely have opportunities to increase the amount of free time in your life. On my first project, I took Fridays off. It was great! No issues there. Three day weekends are very natural. But there were times when I intentionally or unintentionally took an extended time off (> 2 months). You would think that with all that free time I'd be ultra productive or doing something fun and interesting. Nope! I'm embarrassed to...
How to deal with a sucky clientSource If you have a troubled relationship with a client, the best thing you can do is find a new project where you don't work with that client. Trying to fix it is almost certainly not worth it because clients have the upper hand in the power dynamic (unless you changed all the passwords to key programs, in which case you might have leverage...). If you try to fix it, you're just going to be frustrated. Use that energy to find a gig that's a better fit. If...
Grandpa Simpson commands SME level ratesSource Here's a rough bill rate estimate based on your experience level. Obviously, depending on what you do and the particulars of your contract, this could change dramatically, but I just want to give you sense of what I've seen. Junior (0-4 years experience): $75 - $100/hour Experienced (4-8 years experience) : $100 - $140/hour Very Experienced/Expert (8-15 years experience): $140 - $180 / hour Subject Matter Expert (15+ years of specialized...