During the past two years, I have helped dozens of startups create MVPs, and my hourly rate has grown from $10 to $100. In this article, I will share my approach to freelancing and how to rapidly grow your hourly rate.
Create a fantastic experience for your client.
Startup founders are often not technical and need assistance at every step. We aim to help them understand the technical side and how to work with technical people. It is essential to realize that every person is not ideal, and your knowledge of tech topics is probably much higher than that of your co-founder or client.
I doubt every word I hear from my clients. One of my clients wanted to build a platform using Django + React. I asked him why he chose Django, and he said some of his friends suggested it. After a deeper dive, we came up with a solution to replace Django with WordPress Headless. This single question and decision saved us thousands of dollars. Your hourly rate will grow along with the value you give a client.
The most significant partnerships I had in my life started from a trial. I have a Harvard degree and have not even finished my bachelor’s degree. Despite that, I charge ridiculously outstanding fees, which a few clients are ready to pay immediately by looking at my profile. I like my actions to speak for myself. I never ask for payment upfront, and I always start working for free initially. After working with me and seeing my skills, a few people can say “no” to my proposed hourly rate.
There are millions of people with great resumes, and a few of them are smart. If you show that you are smart – you got the deal. The best way to show that you are wise is to ask great questions, give great answers, and find not-obvious solutions for problems. It requires another level of mental preparation where instead of replaying what is on your mind, you first examine the thought and try to find a better way to answer. Sometimes, being straightforward means being fired; you have to show that you can think on a level deeper than anyone else.
Action points:
- Start a partnership with a free trial, giving the first.
- Always have notifications on and reply to clients' messages instantaneously; the quicker, the better.
- Provide weekly and daily updates, make sure he understands what is going on and why
- Ask deep questions about how every feature has to work in detail.
- Don’t allow misunderstanding and unmet expectations; clarify every step and every agreement.
- Think of his fears and address them with messages or calls.
Be loyal
I would never lose an engineer loyal to me, even if he is a lousy engineer. To generate loyalty, you have to develop trust. You must not lie and be dedicated to the project to generate trust. If the project does not meet the deadline, you can stay longer to show that you care. If a startup proposes to lower its salary before the next investment round, you should consider taking shares. Asking for shares in the company is the most significant sign of loyalty you could make. It means you believe in the company vision and are ready to sacrifice your present for a bright future for the company.
Never cheat on working hours. People will see it ruining the trust you have been building all these years. Taking an official day off and resting instead of skipping working hours is better. If you feel bad, just take sick leave. Try to be as productive as possible during your working hours. You have to ensure you sleep well, are not distracted during work, and have balanced nutrition.
As an engineer, your decision could cost the company millions of dollars. They pay you for decisions, not for working hours. So don’t just mindfully follow what is happening around you; show loyalty and try to propose improvements.
Action points:
- Don’t cheat. If you are working, your 100% attention has to be on work.
- Don’t hesitate to work longer than expected for the first weeks; it will pay off.
- Don’t be too greedy over money, and don’t be afraid to lower your rate on the agreement to increase the rate after raising money.
- Consider taking shares; ensure the price is frozen and you don’t have to pay to exercise options.
Be proactive
Usually, the more proactive you are, the better your career will be. If you are proactive, people will see a leader in you, and leaders are rare. Every project needs a tech leader, which is why they are expensive. To quickly grow your hourly rate, become a leader.
You don’t necessarily have to lead the whole team; start by leading yourself and the things you are working on. The difference between proactive and reactive people can be easily tracked in how they complete tasks. A reactive person requires the whole spec to be written, and if you didn’t write something down, this person won’t do it, even if it is something obvious like error handling or a login screen.
A proactive person can execute complete tasks with a few requirements. He will think from an end user's perspective and try to ensure this feature is complete and user-friendly. He will add error handling for all edge cases and some animations.
Action points:
- Be honest about the product, code, and client itself. Provide feedback and your opinion from time to time.
- Propose new features to the client.
- Think from the business perspective and ask questions about how the business will earn money and how this whole product will be helpful.
- You can add additional things like animations, error handling, and edge case handling even without the client asking for them.
- Be self-managed and develop/prioritize tasks for yourself, even if the client disapproves.
Conclusion
Create a fantastic experience for your client, be loyal, and be proactive. You must learn that mantra to be a successful freelancer on Kavun UA and in life. Your hourly rate will grow, you will have a queue of people who want to work with you, and your job will feel like a vacation.