Re: Contract salary calculation question

[Barb Philbrick <caslonsvcs -at- IBM -dot- NET>]

Though I agree with some of what you say, I'd also like to add a few
thoughts.

On Thu, 30 Apr 1998 13:23:33 -0600, you wrote:
>Where the rub is,  if you
>are really going to run your freelancing operation as a business
>rather than a lark, you are probably going to be overpriced as far as
>the market is concerned.  Not fair,  not just, just real.
I haven't found this to be true. I am charging a rate that covers my
costs comfortably and only run into a few potential clients who won't
pay it. (One said, "That's more than I paid the programmer!" If I'd
been thinking, I would have said, "Then double my quote!")

>As a freelancer you can do anything you want, except work a 40h/week,
>take a vacation and get sick.
I do typically work more than 40 hours a week, but I also really enjoy
what I'm doing (and spend a little too much time on this list). I
definitely take vacations -- I think it's important to both my sanity
and quality of work to take some real time off (no work comes with me
on vacation). Working for myself allows me to take more time off if I
want to -- no quibbling over allotted vacation days or sick days. I do
have to plan to make sure all the work is covered while I'm gone, but
it's not much worse than being a responsible full-time employee.

A lot of these decision depend on how much money you want to make vs.
how much you want to work. I found a balance that works well for me.

Regards,

Barb
Barbara Philbrick, Caslon Services Inc.
Technical Writing. caslonsvcs -at- ibm -dot- net
Cleveland, OH