

Ask HN: How to do freelance jobs and a full time at the same time - sown

I&#x27;m trying to bootstrap a consultancy&#x2F;freelancer business.<p>For now, I have a possible situation where I can work full time and then also work part-time probably on a contractor basis (not sure) for another company.<p>What do I need to know about this? What are the legal considerations? How do taxes work? Lifestyle stuff I should worry about?<p>Do you have any war stories about this kind of thing?
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SurfScore
Talk to your friends/colleagues and find a _good_ lawyer to talk to about
this. The legal situation could be all over the map depending on your
employment contract.

Taxes are usually done after the fact. I.e you get a 1099-MISC from each
person who has paid you, and you are liable for that.

Speaking of payment, learn to be a squeaky wheel about it straight off the
bat. Freelancing is notoriously inconsistent, expect 60 day swings between
receiving payment. DONT BILL BY THE HOUR. There's plenty of reasons why
online.

Lifestyle-wise, figure out a way to be productive. You have to enforce
accountability in yourself, you don't have a boss or a team counting on you.
It doesn't matter when you work, you don't need to show up 9-5, you just have
to get your shit done.

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sown
Thank you for your input. :) I was expecting 1099, just not sure about the
specifics. Thanks for the tip about hours.

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tagabek
_Time_

Make sure you set your hours (preferable a week in advance) and follow them.
For example, if you work 9am-5pm Mon-Fri, set 6pm-9pm (an example) Mon-Fri and
11am-4pm on weekends for freelancing projects. In addition, realize that a
freelancer is always thinking about his/her business, so you will 'always' be
working. You will be emailing clients, marketing yourself, and building your
brand at all times.

 _Legal_

Consult a few lawyers for about 30-60mins each (they usually offer this for
free) about your situation. You are essentially interviewing them at this
point, and finding the right one. If you don't feel quite right, move on. They
should be able to accurately explain the answers to your questions thoroughly.
Taxes, incorporation, setting up contracts, etc. should all be covered.

Also, they should be able to tell you what their fees are!

 _Money_

Watch this: [http://vimeo.com/22053820](http://vimeo.com/22053820)

"F*ck You. Pay Me." is a talk about how to make sure you're getting payed what
you are owed as a freelancer. The speaker's lawyer comes up and also gives
fantastic advice.

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jf22
I did this for a while. Now I freelance more or less full time.

Contrary to popular advice I billed per hour.

Don't do any contracting work at your job and you should be fine legally.
Don't tell anybody you are working on the side though. Raises eyebrows you
don't need raised.

Best tip: Find businesses that actually need a problem to be solved and not
somebody that just has a budget.

They'll appreciate you more, pay faster and generally love all over you if you
let them.

Companies with budgets to spend but no pressing problems to solve are a real
pain.

