Hiya everyone, OP here. If you reached out to us in the last 14 hours, I'm sorry to say we probably haven't gotten back to you. We didn't anticipate this many responses-- we were expecting under 10 offers, and instead we got over 100-- and our management system is still really shoddy. For example, we're still copy and pasting your email into our admin dashboard to get your signup link.
We're working on fixing/scaling things, but in the meantime I didn't want to insult everyone with an automated message, so hopefully this message can catch you before that frustrated comment! Also, we do intend to get back to everyone eventually.
Just since we're on HN, if you have any thoughts to share feel free to reach out to me directly - [redacted]
Sounds like a well-defined task, so we've got you covered :) Send us an email and mention you're from HN in the subject line, and I'll take care of you myself.
Thanks for the advice. I'd like to take your suggestion to radically raise rates to prevent this from happening again. What do you suggest I do to get in touch with/market to/work for clients willing to pay that much?
The only thing you have to do to hit $100 an hour in e.g. Python programming, which you appear to do, is to stop taking gigs which pay less than $100 per hour. People express disbelief at this, and it is headdesk inducing to me.
For general Python contracting work, go to people who already employ Python programmers, demonstrate competence, and then ask if they are hiring or know anyone who is. This can be virtually or in meatspace, at meetups and whatnot.
For getting work which is more than just being an interchangeable body who can ship a web app in Python, you'll want to find businesses which have problems which are amenable to solutions with computer programs, and then sell them that you're the right person to do that. I've gone over this many times on HN -- use hn.algolia.com and search for [patio11 consulting] or [patio11 prospecting].
(n.b. You should also shutter the business which sells fully functional prototypes for $3k, because that is not sustainable. Good clients know this, so if you're using that business for lead gen, you're selecting for pathological clients. You're also proposing to do project management for projects for the worst freelancers and the worst clients, at a fee of 8% on $3k, which is an even worse idea than delivering those engagements yourself.)
Sorry to ask what are probably silly questions, but: how do I, uh, find these people? Like where do they gather? Should I look up local businesses in my area, call them, and talk about their problems?
You could start by Googling "Vancouver Python meetup" like I just did, and you'll find that there's a meetup happening this coming Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Facebook's offices there.
I know that sounds snarky, but that's really that's all there is to it. Once you find your way into a local dev community, you'll quickly find more and more connections. Good luck!
It's hard to think straight when you're going to be sleeping on the streets in a few days. Thinking becomes cluttered. Depression sets in. Please take that into account.
If I search Vancouver and Python, this is the first result: http://www.meetup.com/vanpyz/ The next event is this Wednesday.
The organizers of that event probably know of companies in Vancouver who are looking for Python developers. You could also comb the attendee list and try to figure out what companies they are working for, as they'll probably be using Python.
Search job listings for jobs in your area that list python. Doesn't need to be a python shop, as long as they use python somewhere. You can call up or email HR, or better yet hiring managers/decision makers, and ask if they need any contract developers.
This is not it. To all intents and purposes bitcoins are a fictional currency with no relevance to the real world of getting food on the table. Do not pursue some displacement activity based on selling tulip bulbs!!!
No one is suggesting that he sell them. I'm suggesting he earn them, from anyone around the globe, and then use them to pay for food at one of the many restaurants and/or groceries in Vancouver that accepts Bitcoin.
It doesn't cost that much actually; once I find a permanent place and buy groceries etc. I can live off maybe $600-$700/month. The issue is really just that I need money last-minute.
Recently vacationed and stopped in Vancouver, plus have family that are Canadian. BC in general, and Vancouver in specific is expensive compared to places in the eastern part of Canada. It's primarily, as I understand it, a touristy area, which drives up cost in most cases. I wasn't there long, but it did seem a bit pricy from my admittedly limited perspective. Of course, that also depends on where you are from/what you are used to!
I sit down with each person and agree on a specific list of features they want before I get started. I say explicitly on the site that the $2,345 is only for one iteration.
I think the definition of what constitutes a single iteration is subject to personal values and tendencies. E.g. I myself have a hard time calling a task "done" when it simply meets a rough guideline that was specified in text ahead of time. For me, it has to be better than just satisfactory. And that's before adding the customer's expectations into the mix. Hence, I would be a horrible candidate to try this. But I have met devs who are the other way around, and you may well be like that. I do think it's bold of you to give this a shot.
Hm, I was considering going from "$2,345 for 3 weeks" to "$2,345 per week, up to 3 weeks." But the fee right now isn't as low as it seems; I was planning on taking projects in parallel.
We're working on fixing/scaling things, but in the meantime I didn't want to insult everyone with an automated message, so hopefully this message can catch you before that frustrated comment! Also, we do intend to get back to everyone eventually.
Just since we're on HN, if you have any thoughts to share feel free to reach out to me directly - [redacted]