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bill at $52/hour

If you have year-round, full-time contract work with no downtime due to acquiring new clients or negotiating new jobs with existing ones, then you probably don't have enough clients to be truly independent.

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Well, yes, but you can change the numbers to account for that. Say, bill at $100/hr? Or take the route of selling software. My main point was that the bar is much lower than the targets he gives, if your goal is "make a good living" rather than "become rich".

I like your general point.

I'm sure there are unforeseen expenses in all of those scenarios that would require some padding to insure against, but the contracting scenario is the one I'm most experienced with, and the assumptions behind your numbers have bitten me in the past.

If you work as a consultant in the US in tech, juniors tend to make 50 to 75$. If your anywhere good/experienced/wanted, 125$/150$/hour.

You'll probably also find it's easier to get work if you bill at triple that. Generally people don't hire super-cheap consultants.

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