Subj : Beginning Contracting
To   : comp.programming
From : kylben
Date : Mon Jul 04 2005 12:08 pm

Hi sll,

I've been employed as a programmer for about 4 years, and am
considering trying my hand at contracting for the first time, and I'm
looking for some pointers on getting started.

I've had an offer from a company I met at a conference to do a
short-term contract, and if it works out, to  be hired on full time to
work from my home. While this is not srictly a contracting gig, it does
have some things in common since I'll b working from home.  And if it
does not work out, it may be a way to get my toe in the water for
full-time contracting work.

I have questions right now mostly about how to prepare for doing such
work, rather than on how to get contracts.

First in the working environment.  My home is fairly active, as my
partner runs a small business there, with one part-time employee. So it
will be busy and noisy.  We'll be setting aside part of one bedroom
that is currently used as storage for my office, but what other
considerations are there?  Obviously, some rules about interruptions
and distractions will have to be worked out.  But are there other
things I can do to make a better work environment?

This leads to work habits.  I know how easy and tempting it is to give
in to distractions and taking time away from work, and I'll have to
watch for that.  But what other advice do any of you have for good
working habits in the home?

Another issue is business management.  I'm guessing offhand that it
will take 5-10 hours per week just to manage the business of
contracting.  What kinds of things should I look for from the
perpective of business management?

Then there is edcuation and maintenace of skills.  I'm mostly self
taught, and though I've been very successful at my programming jobs, in
a variety of langauges, etc, my skills are only partly broad, and not
very deep.  Aside from the issue of getting contracts in the first
place, I assume I'll need to get up to speed quickly on new
technologies when a contract demands something I am not as familiar
with.  I also assume that even for those areas I know well, I will have
to increase the depth of my knowledge quickly.

I obviously won't take any contract I don't think I can handle, but I
know I will have to push myself on some of them to meet the clients'
expectaions.  I'm guessing that another 5-10 hours a week will have to
be devoted to research and skills maintenance, more at the beginning of
a contract, less as the project progresses.

Tools are another issue.  Obviously, I'm expected to have the tools I
need, and can't charge the client for them.  That's no problem, and I
know the basic tools I need for the programming I've done so far
(C++/Win32 and VB.NET), but do any of you have a list of some necessary
tools I might not have thought of, or might take for granted coming
from an employment stuation?

I'm getting better at estimating projects, but it's still an iffy
proposition for me, and my impression is that very few people, if any,
are truly expert at it.  In a contracting situation, it is vitally
important to have a reasonable estimate.  I love the XP approach for
how it handles requirements and estimating, but I don't think that is
possible in a single-programmer environment.  How do other contractors
handle this?

Finally, there is what to charge.  I know the rate for contracting
would be much higher hourly than the rate for employment programming,
because of the inconsistency of the work, the need to purchase tools
and manuals, etc, and the time for manging the business and skills
maintenance that can't be charged to the client. What kind of rates are
typical?  Do any of you have any ideas for traking billable time?  What
hours are and are not billable?  How do clients expect this to be
documented?

Thanks for reading this far, I know it's long.  I'd appreciate any
advice anyone can offer.  Parts of it might be moot if I get the
full-time at-home job, but some of it will still apply, and I suspect
I'll want to do the contracting thing at some point sooner or later.

--Kyle Bennett

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