E07: Contract work and what you need to know to do it

Chance the Developer Podcast

Matthew and Eamon, co-founders of Readybase, sit down to talk about what they've learned about working as contractors and what you can do to make working for yourself a success.

00:46: WHAT I’M WORKING ON THIS WEEK 🔨 Well, recording this podcast (twice) for starters — still finishing my kitchen reno and finishing my new website built using React and Next.js

02:50: #100DaysOfBlogging challenge -- you can follow along and read my daily blog at chancestrickland.com

05:30: My guests today are Matthew Wallace and Eamon Baghernejad, co-founders of ReadyBase, a contract web development service provider

06:00: Matthew and Eamon’s early experiences with self-employment

14:15: Eamon talks about leaving his own business for a traditional agency job, and then going back again

17:30: Matthew’s first clients as a freelance developer and a path to growth

22:45: Reasons why you maybe SHOULDN’T be a contractor (myth vs. reality)

• Remote work — it requires a lot of discipline and can cause loneliness
• Less work — you have to be ready to work more than 40 hours consistently
• You don’t want a boss — when you work for yourself, your get more bosses, not less. Your clients are your boss and you need to be ready to deal with them as such.

27:30: Why is it worth all of the trouble? For Eamon, it’s getting to build something from scratch, help serve other people, and make your own financial decisions

30:30: Why Readybase? What do you provide for contractors? (Spoiler 🙈 they let developers build things and not worry about the rat race)

33:20: Why Matthew wants to help developers find their real value through other important skills

37:00: The most important skill for a contractor — building trust

45:00: Matthew admits what we all knew all along…

45:30: Why being a good programmer is far less important than being transparent knowing how to solve the client’s core problem

51:30: So you want to go out on your own? Start by asking yourself “why”, building a network and creating a plan

55:25: Eamon suggests starting by joining an agency — especially a smaller one — where you’ll gain a lot of the same experiences and skills you’ll need on your own

56:40: Stop worrying and just build stuff. You don’t need to get a job or a contract to help people build tools. Worry less about the contract at first and invest time in building the relationship and building things that make you better

60:00: Take the time to enjoy success when it comes (and a beer). It might be harder than you think

62:30: WHAT I’VE LEARNED THIS WEEK 💡 A lot about building a simple React application using the Next.js framework, and the (high-level dummy version) difference between imperative and declarative programming (in the context of routing). Good metaphor and overview can be found here.

Follow me on all the things @chancethedev. twitter.com/chancethedev instagram.com/chancethedev and chancethedev.com KTHX.