

Ask HN: Get on freelance sites or start a corp for some extra income? - lbacaj

Is it better to get on websites such as E-Lance to generate a bit of extra income or start your own consulting Small Corp&#x2F;LLC?<p>Without going into too much detail I ask because it seems like a good time to make some extra money in our industry especially if you have engineering&#x2F;development skills. Not sure where to start but I am sure I want to use up my time wisely. The type of work I am talking about would be part time small to medium size engineering&#x2F;development job&#x27;s after full time work. Meaning minimal overhead but best return for the time spent.<p>(For Example)
Some pros I can think of going the corp. route would be:<p>1) building some intellectual property especially with clients that are not very interested in the source code but really interested in the final product.<p>2) This route you can take equity as a payment rather than just cash.<p>Some pros of going the E-Lance route are:<p>1) Low overhead to  none at all can just get to work.<p>2) Hassle free generally.<p>I am interested in hearing from HN readers who are doing this already and what challenges&#x2F;benefits they are facing or have faced with each route.<p>Thank&#x27;s in advance.
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yen223
If you need the money _right now_ , go for elance. I wouldn't stick with it
long-term though.

Personal experience: Part-time consulting doesn't work too well - you need
time and flexibility to get clients and to build up your network. You will
have to make skype calls at midnight, or be available at the client's office
in the middle of the day. A full-time job gets in the way of both.

If you have the stomach for it, save up enough money to last at least 3
months, quit your current job, and attempt to go the consulting route.

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lbacaj
Thanks for that. It sounds very reasonable.

