The 10 Rules of Contracting
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My guide to starting and surviving within the tech contract market
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The 10 Rules of Contracting
- 1. 10 RULES OF CONTRACTING JAY HEAL Lead User Experience Design Consultant (CONTRACT)
- 2. a person or firm that undertakes a contract to provide materials or labour to perform a service or do a job. Contractor.
- 3. YOU DON’T TALK ABOUT CONTRACTING CLUB RULE NUMBER ONE
- 4. I’M NOT SURE CONTRACTORS ARE ALLOWED THE FREE COFFEE - YOU’LL HAVE TO ASK YOUR LINE MANAGER Head of UX (perm) - line manager RULE 1: YOU DON’T TALK ABOUT CONTRACTING CLUB
- 5. DO CONTRACTORS SPEND XMAS IN MONACO? Technical Architect (perm) RULE 1: YOU DON’T TALK ABOUT CONTRACTING CLUB
- 6. WHEN YOU WALKED IN I THOUGHT ‘GREAT, ANOTHER LAZY ASS CONTRACTOR’ - BUT ACTUALLY YOU TURNED OUT ALRIGHT. UX Designer (perm) RULE 1: YOU DON’T TALK ABOUT CONTRACTING CLUB
- 8. RULE 1: YOU DON’T TALK ABOUT CONTRACTING CLUB CONTRACTORFREELANCER Gets paid for a deliverable Gets paid for their time Can work from any location at any time to get the job done Most commonly works from client’s office Registered self employed (Sole Trader, Partner, Ltd) Registered self employed as Limited Company only Work is self-sourced (word of mouth, advertising, online communities, etc) Work usually sourced via recruiters and direct in- house contacts
- 9. DO YOUR HOMEWORK RULE NUMBER TWO
- 10. MOTIVATION ✓Security ✓Career progression ✓The people ✓Perks (e.g. free coffee) ✓Learning new skills at work RULE 2: DO YOUR HOME WORK Bought a house, got married & had 3 children Really don't want to turn out like my boss The people The coffee ain’t that great Groundhog Day
- 11. TALK TO A CONTRACTOR
- 12. REMEMBER: YOU ARE THE PRODUCT RULE NUMBER THREE
- 13. PRODUCT YOU ✓ What experiences do you have (skills, sectors, etc) ✓ What makes you stand out ✓ How much could you expect as a day rate ✓ Where are my skills most in demand RULE 3: REMEMBER YOU ARE THE PRODUCT
- 14. UX Contracting map £300 - £600 per day More for specialist industries
- 15. SURROUND YOURSELF WITH THE RIGHT PEOPLE & TOOLS RULE NUMBER FOUR
- 16. ✓Get a good accountant - one that understands contracting ✓Find a mortgage broker - one that deals with contractors ✓Invest in bookkeeping software - http://fre.ag/44c6xl0m ✓Legitimate software & hardware ✓Business insurance (Indemnity) RULE 4: SURROUND YOURSELF WITH THE RIGHT PEOPLE & TOOLS A-TEAM
- 18. ✓CV - keep it short but meaningful ✓LinkedIn - list out when you are available ✓Portfolio - show the processes not just the output ✓Online presence - UX Jobs, YunoJuno, etc ✓Meet-ups RULE 5: GET NOTICED VISIBILITY
- 19. USING RECRUITERS TO YOUR BENEFIT RULE NUMBER SIX
- 20. ✓The most common pipe line to work ✓Negotiate the best day rate for you ✓Will chase interview feedback on your behalf ✓Pay invoices directly on time (weekly, fortnightly & monthly) RULE 6: USE RECRUITERS TO YOUR BENEFIT RECRUITERS
- 21. ๏You are just a number, only interested while you are an option ๏Charge employer a percentage of your day rate (£50-£100) ๏You will hear from them constantly ๏BECAREFUL: they will put their candidates in for the jobs your applying for & leaving RULE 6: USE RECRUITERS TO YOUR BENEFIT RECRUITERS
- 22. DON’T TAKE IT PERSONALLY
- 23. MAKE A GOOD IMPRESSION RULE NUMBER SEVEN
- 25. STAYING RELEVANT & KEEP WORKING RULE NUMBER EIGHT
- 26. SHORT- TERMISM ๏Take the highest paying work ๏No long term strategy ๏Always recycling existing experience RULE 8: STAYING RELEVANT & KEEP WORKING
- 27. RULE 8: STAYING RELEVANT & KEEP WORKING DAY RATE ADDED VALUE
- 28. DON’T FORGET THE TAX MAN RULE NUMBER NINE
- 29. ‣ Quarterly VAT returns - 14.5% for Flat Rate Scheme ‣ Yearly Corporation tax - 20% on profits ‣ Self Assessment / personal tax - Every April ‣ Accountant’s fees RULE 9: DON’T FORGET THE TAX MAN TAX
- 30. BE HAPPY RULE NUMBER TEN