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farox t1_j4m771b wrote

I can't tell you about ML specifically, but maybe some useful pointers for freelancing in general. I've been in software for ~25 years, 15 or so freelancing.

First thing is that as a freelancer you're not part of "the team". This can be good or bad for you, I think it's fantastic. No dealing with political bs, I charge hourly, so no gorging with overtime etc.

But that's it. You're a tool to do a job and then leave (in theory).

In my experience most small companies won't have use for you. For one, you'll be more expensive than their employed staff, but they also want to keep that know how in house.

Mid to large companies is where you will get the most traction. However they see you as a tool. So they don't want to hire you specifically, but "an ML engineer with 6 YoE". So they outsource that problem to a recruiter or similar agency. This is for the case that you get hit by a bus, they make a phone call and get a fresh body.

So far I only had good experiences with these agencies, pay is good, it's professional and shit just gets done and you paid.

The other option is going through your network. As you have more work experience you should be able to build that and then lean on it if you have more capacity, read: looking for a job. Then you're more likely to find a smaller business because they are interested in getting you on board.

I tried my hands on those fancy new websites as well, with the same result. The problem here is also that you're more likely to compete with some kid in India that charges 1/10th of your rate.

Another thing to keep in mind: Do not go into this for the money. If you factor everything in: Vacation, sick days, hardware, licenses, pension/retirement (rule of thumb: 30% of your net income) etc. it doesn't come out that far apart.

TLDR: Computer Futures, Hays that sort of company or through your network

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z_fi t1_j4mh2w0 wrote

I’m a consultant, and most recently was running the AI wing of a publicly traded consulting company as a full time employee , and OPs feedback is entirely correct.

I’m currently on a career break and returning as an independent consultant

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__mishy__ t1_j4p5mm8 wrote

Completely agree, I would also add just a couple of tips I've found (not directly related to the question):

- have a good circle of friends in ML you chat to, you will sometimes find yourself in places where you are the only ML expert and you will need people you trust to bounce ideas across/tell you about new things you missed

- invest in a decent workstation and if you can't afford one try to get your first gig where it's not needed and buy one as soon as you can. This has saved me tons of time over the years

- get good at showing results quickly to stakeholders... and I mean you should be able to hack it in an hour at most. They are paying you a lot of money and want the feeling of progress. Something in slides/powerpoint is OK, a dumb streamlit/whatever app is even better. Impressing a stakeholder is the best way to get repeat work

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KerbalsFTW t1_j4wschy wrote

Ex-software freelancer here.

> First thing is that as a freelancer you're not part of "the team". This can be good or bad for you, I think it's fantastic.

Agreed, but with a few caveats:

  • You always need a plan for your contract to end, including early. (Never happened to me, but I always planned for it).

  • Companies will eventually try to treat you like staff: assuming you'll always be there and they can tell you what to do rather than asking if you'll do something. At this point you need to start telling them about the break from them you are about to be taking.

> In my experience most small companies won't have use for you. For one, you'll be more expensive than their employed staff, but they also want to keep that know how in house.

Disagree here: small companies struggle to get a wide enough set of skills, and they also have projects that need finishing without expanding their committed outgoings.

There are two major downsides to freelancing:

  • Location. If you are not in a very big tech city you will have to frequently relocate, or work primarily from home (in which case you are competing with very, very cheap people).

  • Skills. Companies do not give you time to learn the next big thing. You are expected to turn a profit for them from day 1. If they are going to be investing in their staff learning new things, it will be with staff they expect to stick around.

> Another thing to keep in mind: Do not go into this for the money. If you factor everything in: Vacation, sick days, hardware, licenses, pension/retirement (rule of thumb: 30% of your net income) etc. it doesn't come out that far apart.

Agreed.... depends how much you value flexibility and time to work on your own projects.

As regards finding work: agencies are essential at first, tell everyone you meet you are a freelance software guy (keep it vague: they'll probe if they need someone), friends and contacts works great but not at first, try to find a "social technology hub" in your city. These are clubs that are frequented by people who work at the big tech places and socialise, this might be a hackerspace or an exercise club. They are not always easy to find.

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