TFS 346: Setting Boundaries on Engagement Scope

In this episode of The Freelancer’s Show the panel discusses setting boundaries on the scope of engagements. This means not taking jobs that are too big or too small for you. They begin by define projects that are too small. They explain how many may not realize that there is such a thing a project that is too small.  A too-small engagement may be too short in duration or not profitable enough.  An example Erik Dietrich shares is a two-hour job that is three hours away and they are only paying your $200, between travel, and labor that is 8 hours of work for only $200 which is not worth it. Jeremy Green shares an example from his past. He fell into the trap of taking on 2-hours per month retainer contracts. The problem with contracts like these is that clients cannot intuitively understand how long things will take or may feel that the 2-hours they paid for should roll over when a month goes by without using them.  They explain how setting boundaries defining what is too small is better than trying to use your judgment at the time of the engagement. Many developers have an any work is better than no work mindset, the panel explains how this is not true especially when you are losing money to the overhead of communicating for 5 hours, doing a 5-hour job and only getting paid for 5-hours of work, ostensibly cutting your profits in half.  Erik walks listeners through a helpful exercise of putting numbers to your costs, working your way backward through the numbers to decide how much you would actually have to make in order for a project to be worth your time. He explains that he wishes he had started doing this years ago. This exercise will also arm you with information that will help you from a negotiating perspective. It allows you to speak with authority about what you will and won’t do, giving you the power in the sales conversation and allowing your clients to see what they are really asking of you. Besides the time spent and how much money you will make, the panel shares another scoping boundary, turn around time. They explain that if a client tells you they needed this done yesterday, run. It is a red flag, this means they haven’t done enough planning and it will only lead to a bad situation. Jeremy explains the difference between those who say they want it as soon as possible and those whose hair is on fire and they need it now now now.  Some ways to set boundaries for this is to require a certain number of weeks before you can begin a project and a certain number of weeks for actually working on the project. By setting these boundaries you make sure the project is sane and workable. Erik explains that as the professional you have the experience to set a reasonable timeline for the work required, which means you should have control over the conversation of time.  Next, the panel moves on to establishing boundaries with clients. They explain the importance of setting expectations when it comes to contacting your and the hours you keep. Also, set expectations on how quickly you expect them to respond to you. Jeremy shares times when short projects were dragged out because the client failed to respond to his emails. The panel discusses strategies for getting feedback from clients and escape routes for when clients refuse to communicate.    On the opposite end of the scale are projects that are too large of an engagement. How large is too large depends on the individual. Some developers may want a year-long contract where they work full time on one project while others may be looking to build a consulting practice. However, no matter what you are looking for it is always possible to get in over your head.  The panel advises listeners to have a realistic view of what you can actually do and what you want as a freelancer. Do you want to work solo or over a team? This decision will affect the types and sizes of jobs you will take. You don’t want to take a job that should be done by a team when you want to remain solo,...