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Ask HN: How do I reach making $1-1.5k/mo in 13 months?

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Re: Ask HN: How do I reach making $1-1.5k/mo in 13 months?

#51

Post by reinder »

Great question! And I think that where you are right now is as good a starting point as any. With COVID and lockdowns and economic recession going on, I think more and more people are going to ask themselves how they can bridge the gap on their own for the next 6-18 months.

I'm saying "good starting point" because this is where you are right now. Start from there. Start where you are. Don't think "I should've" because it never helps.

3.5 years of coding experience is terrific! I wouldn't call that "almost no experience". Even if you wouldn't count all 3.5 years since starting. In my experience, for gaining experience, a good mindset and a little bit of a head start is what you need to tackle new projects. After 10 years, I still feel like (and am) a beginner every day.

I recommend you revisit your assertions about consulting, SMB, etc. I'm sure things are tough right now, and the market is getting smaller, but it's going to pick up at some point too. Consulting as a freelancer for you could mean a few extra months of runway. The upside you can get by experimenting with freelancing far outweigh the negatives. This is even more true for online freelancing with platforms like Upwork.

Invest time into building a network online. When you're supported by a network of peers, you'll get more opportunities. It's also fun, you learn a ton, and a network is generally an asset that doesn't go away quickly if you keep putting energy in it. For me, networking starts with putting stuff out there: writing, helping others, building projects. IMHO, networking doesn't merely include chatting on Twitter, LinkedIn, etc., but contributing in thoughtful forums and communities definitely helps. The best way to start here is to start building projects. I've always met people through their works and their projects.

How can you make $1k a month? With the above (freelance + networking) I think you can already get there, if you get opportunities to build projects for people. It's also smart to start thinking in terms of assets. Freelancing is a trap in the sense that time == money, and if you stop working, you stop making money. Can you build something online that makes money? A SaaS, an app, an email newsletter, a website about something you like, teaching/mentoring people, a service – anything.

(Before you start, get a good book/resource on launching a business. It helps avoid so many mistakes and reinvented wheels. A few hands-on ones come to mind, but see what works for you: $100 startup, traction, AppSumo $1k course, "This is marketing" by Seth Godin.)

I'm mentioning SaaS last, because it takes time and luck to make that happen quickly (or at all). You want to bootstrap yourself first, extend your runway, work on time-for-money projects, and then spend 1/3 or 2/3 of your time on building a SaaS or app.

The last bit of advice I wanted to give is that it all starts with people. Freelancing, networking, building a project – it's all people. Find your people first, and then build something that helps them. Instead of the other way around, is finding a product first, and then retrofitting it for people.

Good luck!

(My credentials: I've been a freelance app developer since 2009, I now make a living teaching iOS development online.)

Re: Ask HN: How do I reach making $1-1.5k/mo in 13 months?

#52

Post by tr33house »

It's hard to give advice without knowing what kind of experience you have. I'll go with all the signals I can get. I grew up in Uganda and Kenya but now live in the US so I have a bit more context. I also have a few businesses making more than what you're looking to make so this might help too.

Temporary Solution:: Your English is good so I'm guessing you're from a former British colony. If you're above average as a developer, look into sites like toptal for some consulting opportunities. They're fully remote so that shouldn't be a big problem. Also, don't necessarily ignore domestic consulting. Just pick your clients more carefully. Reject opportunities that are clearly WAY below market. Have a secondary reason for accepting a gig e.g. learning more about the inner workings of a business/industry or building rapport with the business owner.

More Permanent Solution:: I'd strongly suggest going into the B2B SaaS space. The more money the companies make, the better. It may be a developing country but there's still real money out there. I have a friend making more than $400K a year in a SaaS business with REAL problems that they have and are willing to pay. I guarantee you'll come out with some really nice ideas doing this. Don't necessarily take the first idea you discover. Verify that other business owners in the same industry have a similar problem. An area I'd suggest looking at is the agricultural/horticultural sector. These folks export goods in the billions of dollars and there are definitely some things you could work with them to improve. The harder the better (few choose hard problems and churn is low once things start working). At times, you'll discover they're already paying for some software but the licenses are like $10K a month and they only need it for a single thing. Work with them to create something new with exactly what they need for a steep discount. Trust me, these opportunities exist. I'd also suggest the insurance, banking and healthcare fields. There's little competition there. Logistics (trucks, freight) is also something you can look into. The better you are as an engineer, the easier developing solutions will be. Nothing should be beneath you. e.g. Don't necessarily look for AI/ML problems. Use the right tool for the problem, however simple. Also, listen to your customers.

Sometimes, people have real problems but they just can't find someone they can trust enough to execute them. Trust takes time to build but once it's developed, many more opportunities open up. You want to be invited to meetings where finances are discussed. Seeing the finances will show you exactly what they pay for and this is invaluable.

Hope this helps. All the best and may God bless you in this journey!

Re: Ask HN: How do I reach making $1-1.5k/mo in 13 months?

#53

Post by fxtentacle »

Gustomaximus wrote: post #10

My view is coming from someone who hires people last few years. 1) People hate on Freelancer sites, but get on them and and build a profile. If you are good it will show in time. Expect to work for peanuts at the beginning - consider it advertising. 2) Don't lie about what you can do. Always do a good job. I've tried a bunch of people from poorer countries and those seem to be the 2 main issues. Dont have a mentality…

This is excellent advice.

I would like to add one thing, which is to regularly compare your skill level and your pricing to others on the platform.

You'll start at $10 an hour to get good ratings. Then you prove your skill set at $50 an hour. Then after 1-2 months of working in the same niche, you might have the experience and working speed to go up to $100 an hour. Once you reliably get bookings at that price, you're ready to hunt for projects outside of upwork.

Re: Ask HN: How do I reach making $1-1.5k/mo in 13 months?

#54

Post by wokwokwok »

crc32 wrote: post #44
wokwokwok wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Expect to work for peanuts at the beginning - consider it advertising. This is terrible advice. Don't work for free, all you're doing is allowing other people to take advantage of you... which, they will. There's plenty of other great advice in this topic; this: "work hard and do a good job, for free and it'll be great experience / advertising / whatever the f" is total BS.

OP didn't say "work for free", they said "work for peanuts". I agree that freelancer sites have some problematic aspects, but I don't think there is anything wrong with the idea that you need to start small and build a reputation/profile. This applies to any bootstrapped business, not just when working via freelancer sites.

I would argue work for peanuts and work for free are not significantly distinct on many freelance sites.

Unless you're suggesting that there's a meaningful difference in doing 40 hours of work for 5 bucks and working for free?

Re: Ask HN: How do I reach making $1-1.5k/mo in 13 months?

#55

Post by major505 »

weel, you problably is in a similar situation like me, live in a country where the local currency is falling like flys in relation to the dollar, so you can try remote jobs.

Don't sell yourself short. You problably cheaper than local works, and there's always jobs that a noobie can do (dull jobs most of the time, I know, but they put food on the table). You clearly speak english well, so this helps a lot.

Here are some sites that may help you bud. https://www.workingnomads.co/jobs

https://weworkremotely.com/

https://remoteok.io/

https://angel.co/remote

Re: Ask HN: How do I reach making $1-1.5k/mo in 13 months?

#56

Post by noddly »

fipar wrote: post #12

Since you mention having finances to manage for some time, I can share that in my personal experience, when I lost my job amid a regional financial crisis, I focused my efforts on an open source project (something I built, I didn't join an existing one, though at first I did have former coworkers hack on it with me). I did it to stay busy (I found back then that it's important to stay busy and maintain a routine when…

Open source is one thing that has popped up multiple times in this thread and regretfully something I have always ignored. Seeing that I have some time, I'll start putting conscious effort into it.

Re: Ask HN: How do I reach making $1-1.5k/mo in 13 months?

#57

Post by noddly »

kwiromeo wrote: post #17

Since you have about a year worth of exploration, you could look at https://www.indiehackers.com/products You can filter out SaaS products, and explore other business models and what kind of revenue to expect by browsing the products and interviews. I hope this helps.

Wow, that list looks pretty amazing. I had no idea these super targetted products can be this profitable.

Re: Ask HN: How do I reach making $1-1.5k/mo in 13 months?

#58

Post by fxtentacle »

wokwokwok wrote: post #54
crc32 wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

OP didn't say "work for free", they said "work for peanuts". I agree that freelancer sites have some problematic aspects, but I don't think there is anything wrong with the idea that you need to start small and build a reputation/profile. This applies to any bootstrapped business, not just when working via freelancer sites.

I would argue work for peanuts and work for free are not significantly distinct on many freelance sites. Unless you're suggesting that there's a meaningful difference in doing 40 hours of work for 5 bucks and working for free?

There is if you get non-monetary benefits such as a 5 star review pushing you up in the rankings, thereby making it much easier to get future bookings at higher prices.

Edit: conceptually, it's nore like an unpaid internship. I know someone who got a highly paid job by first doing it for free for 3 months to prove his skills, as he was lacking formal certifications

Edit2: I honestly don't get why this is being downvoted. It's neither unfriendly nor offensive and it is relevant to the discussion, even if you might not like this aspect of reality.

Re: Ask HN: How do I reach making $1-1.5k/mo in 13 months?

#59

Post by latenightcoding »

3pt14159 wrote: post #21

What I've seen that has worked in the past is this: Pick an open source project that is in a language that is respectable and commit to contributing to it for three or four months. Full time. Try to make sure that your written English is clear and professional in things like PRs. Try to keep your code as clean and as well tested and linted as possible. Once the core team gets to know you a bit you'll be able to reach…

This is bad advice for someone who has only been coding for 3 years (according to OP).

People who can make $500k/year through connections they make contributing to open source projects could most likely just apply to a FAANG company directly.

It is way more common to see brilliant developers make $0 from open source projects.

Re: Ask HN: How do I reach making $1-1.5k/mo in 13 months?

#60

Post by tannerbrockwell »

Open a Developer account on Gitcoin and start contributing to open bounties. [1]

The track record you establish by completing jobs is more than compensated by the payments. I suggest Gitcoin rather than Github as you are directly compensated. Contributing to Open Source projects is useful and you can certainly point to your Github portfolio. I think that your near term goals will be easier to achieve with Gitcoin.

[1]: https://gitcoin.co/explorer?network=mainnet&idx_status=open&...

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