When I left my staff engineering role to consult independently, I had a solid technical foundation and almost no idea how to run a services business. Eighteen months later, I’ve figured most of it out — through expensive trial and error. Here’s the unfiltered version.
The First Three Months Are the Hardest
Not because of the work itself — because of the psychological shift. A full-time role provides constant feedback: standups, code reviews, Slack messages, performance reviews. Consulting replaces all of that with silence punctuated by occasional invoices.
The practical solution: create your own feedback loops. Weekly reviews of where time went. Monthly P&L. A short journal entry every day on what moved forward and what didn’t. Visibility into your own business is something you have to build deliberately.
Pricing: I Started Too Low
My first engagement was $120/hour. I thought that was high. It wasn’t. I was delivering work worth 4-5x that, charging a rate that left the client wondering if something was wrong.
The uncomfortable truth about consulting rates:
- Clients often correlate price with quality, especially at the senior end
- Your rate needs to account for unbillable time (sales, admin, gaps between engagements)
- Benefits, taxes, and retirement contributions add ~35-40% to your effective cost
A rough formula: (Target annual income × 1.4) ÷ 1,000 billable hours = hourly rate
If you want $200k/year, that’s $280k needed → $280/hour assuming you bill 1,000 hours/year (roughly 50% utilization).
The Engagement Structure That Works
After trying a few models, I’ve standardized on two:
Fixed-scope project: Defined deliverable, defined timeline, fixed fee. Good for new client relationships — removes ambiguity about what “done” means. Requires you to scope meticulously upfront.
Retainer: Monthly fee for a defined number of hours and deliverables. Good for ongoing relationships where the client needs consistent access. Predictable revenue; predictable expectations.
I avoid pure hourly billing now. It creates perverse incentives (slow = more money, efficient = less money) and requires micro-tracking that burns mental energy.
What “Sales” Actually Looks Like
I don’t do cold outreach. Every engagement I’ve had came through:
- Former colleagues who moved to companies that needed my skillset
- Referrals from satisfied clients
- Writing (blog posts, LinkedIn) that demonstrated expertise before the first call
The implication: invest in your network and your public work continuously, not only when you need new clients. By the time you need an engagement, it’s too late to start.
The Systems I Couldn’t Live Without
- Invoicing and contracts: Use proper software (I use Invoice Ninja). Never invoice from a Google Doc.
- Separate business bank account: Day one, no exceptions.
- Quarterly estimated taxes: Missing these is how consultants get blindsided in April.
- A CRM, even a lightweight one: A Notion board tracking prospects, active engagements, and follow-up dates.
What I’d Tell Myself 18 Months Ago
Raise your rates sooner. Be more selective about clients earlier. Build the operational infrastructure before you need it, not after. And understand that the isolation is real — build community intentionally with other independent engineers.
The work is better. The autonomy is everything I hoped for. The path there is bumpier than the blog posts make it look.