Perrin Harkins wrote: > > > Now take the amount you want to make and divide it by the number > > of hours you came up with above ($40,000 / 1,000). You get $40. > > That's your target hourly rate. And despite what they high-flying > > .com weanies were saying a year ago, that's going to be a nice > > living for a young guy unless you're smack in the middle of a > > high-cost area and can't bother to cook your own meals. > > Don't forget that self-employed people in the US must pay considerably more > in social security, as well as covering the full cost of their own health > insurance and other needed benefits. $40K as a consultant is much less > spendable money than $40K as an employee. > - Perrin
Yes, that's an additional 7.5% for social security. In addition, you have to take care of your own benefits, etc. Market downturns can be a better time for contract work over full-time, especially since stock options don't mean what they do during an upturn. ;-) And many employers don't have the resources to take on full-time staff. I'd recommend that you start to inch up your rate with new clients, and that you try and see what your market will bear. Your target should be $100+ in the U.S. for basic consulting and more for mod_perl specific work, again if your market will bear it. Good Luck, Ed
