| How I did it : - started in a particular industry - Kept working in same industry and built "domain expertise". Need min 5+, ideally 8+ years of "actual" experience. - Changed jobs 3-4 times within the first 5 years. But remained in the same industry. Built a lot of networks/contacts on the way. (Job hopping is not necessarily a bad thing in today's world if you know how to do it properly). Every hop, negotiated a good raise (15-20% in US is good raise). I always sold myself using the "value" that I was already bringing to the table because I was in the same domain doing specific thing that the next employer really needed. - Finally after 5 years of solid experience, decided it was time to go consulting on my own. Started talking to all my contacts in the industry where I was already known/valuable and started somewhere. Charge flat Daily rate and take care of your own expenses. - Raise your rates at the end of every engagement. But try and get long term engagements as well. Personally, i work on 18+ months contracts (the nature of my industry and projects). So by the time you are done 1st time, client usually wants you bad enough to give you a decent raise. Won't always work however. - Never settle for less if you know your worth. So first figure out what you are worth to a prospective employer whom you are interested in or who is interested in you. Always fight for the extra few grand. Why ? Because the next time you are negotiating with the next guy, those few grands will make a difference on what number you are asking for next. People always look at what you are making currently unless you are an expert in your field or were currently underpaid for whatever reason etc. |
If you want to make money you have to be a businessman in addition to being a good programmer/engineer or else other businessmen will take the money on the table.