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Ask HN: How many of you are self employed?

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Re: Ask HN: How many of you are self employed?

#101

Post by bemmu »

I just build projects that interest me (websites, apps, games). So far released 62 things, of which 10 made >$10k. It's interesting because you get to do a variety of things, and I don't really mind the unpredictability. Might even like it in a slot machine variable reward sort of way.

Just now I spent 3 months making a game that turned out to be worth $0, but that's part of the process. As long as the project itself is interesting and you learn something from it, it doesn't feel like totally wasted time.

Re: Ask HN: How many of you are self employed?

#102

Post by V-2 »

lifestyleguru wrote: post #91
V-2 wrote: post #90

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, but how do you know which application was and which wasn't? Apart from some big customers, it usually isn't public knowledge. Eg. my previous project was a banking app for a rich Middle Eastern country. There's no "acknowledgements" section in the app. My original question still stands - by what metrics do you regard "software from Poland" as "tacky crap"? I'm not being belligerent about it, but somewhat curiou…

Ain't gonna fight. Good luck.

I'm not fighting, I was just curious what you're basing your claim on. I disregarded your unnecessarily incendiary phrasing ("software from Poland is such a tacky crap") completely.

Re: Ask HN: How many of you are self employed?

#103

Post by mkaszkowiak »

lifestyleguru wrote: post #78
lqet wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This would be quite risky where I am from, for both the freelancer and the employer. Being self employed, but only for a single customer, is false self-employment. If you get caught, your employer has to pay taxes and social security contributions retroactively for up to 4 years, and afaik both the employer and the freelancer are liable for the money owed to the tax office and social securities. If you are caught doi…

> Being self employed, but only for a single customer, is false self-employment This is exactly what happens in Poland and everyone involved feels very smart for cheating the system. That's also why software from Poland is such a tacky crap despite so many "talents". The software professionals have no leverage to push back, they only can walk away. The irresistibile benefit is that one can write off buying a car into…

How is tax optimization related to the quality of developed software?

Re: Ask HN: How many of you are self employed?

#104

Post by fredsted »

I've been working on https://webhook.site since 2016 when I posted it here on HN. In fall 2023, I quit my job to work on it full time, and it's one of the best decisions I've ever made. I have around 1400 subscribers, which is enough to pay myself a good salary. I've not done any funding or marketing so far.

Re: Ask HN: How many of you are self employed?

#106

Post by neom »

Consulting. I've worked deeply on startups for the past 20 years. Now I'm on my own working with founders who need some help getting through a stuck patch/thinking through problems. It's a great way to stay around startups without doing one yourself.

Re: Ask HN: How many of you are self employed?

#107

Post by mkaszkowiak »

lqet wrote: post #51
V-2 wrote: post #46

In Poland, where I'm from, it's pretty much the norm to be self-employed in Poland in the IT sector. I believe that around 50% of workers are technically contracted one-man companies, and this percentage is inversely correlated with the seniority level - the greater the earnings (and the sense of job security that goes along with expertise and experience), the greater the incentive. Going B2B makes a substantial diff…

This would be quite risky where I am from, for both the freelancer and the employer. Being self employed, but only for a single customer, is false self-employment. If you get caught, your employer has to pay taxes and social security contributions retroactively for up to 4 years, and afaik both the employer and the freelancer are liable for the money owed to the tax office and social securities. If you are caught doi…

Similiar laws are in Poland, except they're not really enforced.

It's really rare that the tax office would prove a company exists solely for tax optimization. The risk virtually drops to zero if one freelances after the hours and has legitimate invoices with other companies.

This often causes mismatch between Polish employees who wish to work remotely abroad, and for ex. employeers from the DACH region, where I've heard the laws are strictly enforced. One party claims there is no risk, and the other claims it's too risky :-) (taking other factors aside, such as employee protection, etc.)

Re: Ask HN: How many of you are self employed?

#108

Post by _t2bs »

philip1209 wrote: post #2

I've been self-employed for the last ~18 months. In the past I started two VC-backed startups, then was a PM at some later-stage companies before returning to entrepreneurship. This time around, I'm building a solo "digital product studio" [1] instead of a startup. So, I'm staying one person, haven't raised money, and have multiple revenue-generating products. Product revenue doesn't cover my costs yet, so I do occas…

Really cool - I’m in a similar boat, having created startups and also was a PM in senior roles at a few great companies. I’ve been consulting, which is fine, but wanted something with a little more connection to the project so I just set up https://metaluna.io and am aiming for something on the agency route. That said, I really like the way you’re thinking of a “digital project studio”. Is there a community of people doing this somewhere?
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