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I (along with the family) did a week at an all inclusive resort in Negril, Jamaica back in January. It was awesome!
The wife and I did a tour of the Appleton distillery. Pretty cool.
I loved Appleton rum while in Jamaica... less so back at home.
That's what I do. I drink, and I know things. ~ Tyrion Lannister
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I've become a bit jaded in my choice of all-inclusives.
1 - Tipping must be absolutely forbidden (at least until departure)*
2 - Adults Only (just more fun)
The rum I bought was/is supposedly sipping quality. I found out I like single-malt scotches and thought a cask-aged rum would be an interesting diversion. It should literally last for years.
* Cancun has really gone down the tubes with this. If I have to carry money for tips I might as well just get a room and choose exactly what I wish do/eat and when.
| Ravings en masse^ |
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| "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein | | "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you are seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010 |
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There is a rum distillery (Wicked Dolphin) in the town where I live - their Black Rum is good, the Coconut is better, and they make a run that is aged in used stout beer barrels (I do not like beer, but my friends say it is pretty good).
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For me, it's a wait and see - how does this stack up to the Single Malts. Hopefully very well as these are quite a bit cheaper these days.
Scotch prices have taken off because demand, particularly in China, exceeds expectations. It will take 8yrs (minimum) for supply to begin to catch up with demand.
I've a stash - and am slowly looking for options.
| Ravings en masse^ |
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| "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein | | "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you are seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010 |
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Hello everyone,
I would like to ask for an advice.
I am a freelance developer in upwork/freelancer and my past and current jobs are developing applications that are already existing. I am hired as a developer to be part of their team.
Now, i am planning to establish my own agency for software development. My problem is how can i get clients and projects? I can see that there are a lot of job posting in upwork/freelance hiring developers so they must have clients out there.
Thanks
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Networking. Lots and lots of networking.
A question for you. Do you have deep reserves of cash for those periods when the client invoices are outstanding, but you still have to pay your freelancers? I know a fair few agencies who it would just take a client missing two weeks payments and they would have to shut down because of having no funds. If you want to build yourself a reputation for being reliable, you have to start by treating those who you're going to get to do the actual work, right.
Beyond that, you're going to have to show clients that you have ready access to the talent they need. That means you're going to have to have people willing to give you a go as their agent here.
This space for rent
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Thanks Pete for the advice. I just know that i should keep a deep reserves of cash for outstanding client invoices.
For a starter how can i get a lot of networks?
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You need to spend a lot of time on the phone. Expect to develop a thick skin dealing with rejections. Make sure that you can answer in less than 20 seconds why people should use you, and make sure you know the worth of what you've got. Go to local business forums if you have them available. Talk to people. Find out what they can do for you and what you can do for them. There's no magic bullet - this is a sales job you're doing.
This space for rent
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Thanks again Pete. I will take your advise, i learned a lot. I am consolidating the knowledge i got in starting an agency business. 
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cyborgkagaw, plan on LOTS of working hours. You'll need to work billable hours yourself until you get a critical mass of people so that you can devote your time to just sales & management.
I'm on my third contract with a small agency. The owner has been billable 40+ hours/week for something like 15 years. Plus he did another 10-30 hours of sales and marketing beyond that. Recently he got enough critical mass to step back from billing.
Two things are critical: money and ethics.
Money? The first time you miss a paycheck, your people will most likely be gone. Doesn't matter why -- your contract with clients is completely separate from your contract with your people. People have bills to pay and most will lose faith at the first burp in their money. One choice is to float a loan to ensure the payroll ... and build that into your cost structure.
Ethics? In my experience every small company that did not act ethically towards their people and their clients failed. Yeah, ethical business fail, too, but not because they are untrusted. People talk and a poor reputation travels. As has been said, thirty years of good deeds is wiped out by one bad deed.
Regarding sales -- if you win 10% of the contracts you bid on, you're doing good. Most of your proposal efforts will produce nothing. Someone said you need a thick skin -- that is absolutely true.
Good luck and perseverance!
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Are you a "people person"?
Are you happy at the idea of spending hour after hour on the phone, just trying to find words that will keep people happy? (because that is what "doing something useful" is, in that line of work).
I confess that I myself couldn't do it; I'm just not made for it.
But if you can put aside the idea of doing concrete things, and instead spend your time handling other people's needs, then don't wait for the phone to ring.
Push! Call people constantly (potential employers and employees, with an accent on employers), even if it's only to "check in".
Your telephone will become your life (e-mail is inadequate, because people can choose not to reply).
And be prepared for anger. Everyone gets angry at their agent, whether deserved or not, and you will have to live with that.
I know I'm sounding negative, but their are negatives in every job, and you have to prepare for the bad bits, not just hope for the good bits.
I wanna be a eunuchs developer! Pass me a bread knife!
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I am not a kinda "People Person" i don't speak to strangers in an event or gatherings.
Yes i agree, there are somethings that we are not just made for it. But i will still try it.
Thanks for the heads-up.
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This is a HUGE red flag. If you are not really an extrovert, then please reconsider your choice.
I made the transition a decade ago. I am very outgoing, and even then it was not easy.
I stumbled into it, because I have always had people who enjoyed working with me. Eventually
they were willing to work for me, and some clients approached me with the idea. So I had
clients and resources already lined up. Pretty lucky!
There are 2 parts of the job that are the hardest:
1) Meeting and not doing. I was used to being the guy to get it done. I had to shift to getting it
understood, and handing it over. Or finding the client, and connecting the resource.
2) Constantly meeting people and spending time, and not always getting the job. Some people are just
insane (they want a programmer with 5+ years of experience for less than double minimum wage.
Good luck, but be careful it is not going to be easy for you!
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If you are married, it's best if your significant other has a steady stream of income to carry your family through the inevitable (and sometimes seemingly endless) dry spells. I say this from experience, since my wife owns a piano / musical instrument store, and I'm the steady income. Be prepared for the time between starting and being steadily profitable to be at least several years; some businesses can take up to 10 years to reliably profitable.
If you are single, you'll need more savings than you can imagine.
Just be prepared to drop plan A for plan B. Then plan C. Then plan D. And so on...
'PLAN' is NOT one of those four-letter words.
'When money talks, nobody listens to the customer anymore.'
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First you must calculate if your income will cover your spending like IRS ,office ,salaries,bills etc.If you think you can do it then we have a start.As people said above networking.Unfortunately you must be really social and connect with people if you want them to find you and hire you.You have to use facebook,twitter, phones,website etc to learn about what you do and start finding you.If you have that also, then you are going to do well.Finally ,if people start to find you and you make stuff for them your services must apply to their needs.Price ,service delivered,quality and the most important thing that makes you different from the competition is after sale support.One happy client will lead to another client ,one disappointed client will make you lose clients.
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I noticed that you are located in Philippines, so I do not have a concrete advice for you as such. However, this is what worked for me in the U.S.:
1. Craigslist's free classified. This leads to small time work first, but it builds up soon after.
2. Meet the clients after the first contact. In my case, it has doubled or tripled my chances of getting a project, once the clients put a face to a name.
3. Repeat business. Make your first impression by delivering a quality product, you will get repeat business.
4. Referrals. Don't feel shy to ask your clients to refer you to others.
What did not work for me:
Direct mail. I sent out $1200 worth of postcards to a list I purchased. I did not get a single call.
Good Luck!
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Yes i am from Philippines but i am planning to get clients outside the Philippines because i can bill a lower rate but when converted to our currency its bigger, but i am open to working with local clients here as well.
Thanks for the advise.
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Pete wrote a series of articles about the subject some time ago. Wonderful and valuable read:
Going Solo - First Steps in Building a Successful Company[^]
To alcohol! The cause of, and solution to, all of life's problems - Homer Simpson
Our heads are round so our thoughts can change direction - Francis Picabia
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Thanks for the article. 
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The way it works is like this:
You convince a bunch of "coder" schmucks to "work for you".
You tell them you will find work for them and pay them $2.50 an hour (or thereabouts).
Once you have 5 or more schmucks, you start bidding on jobs; you tell the client you will do this job for $5.00 or 10.00 per hour, even though it "should be" at least $15+.
Your low-ball bid wins the job, you put one or two of your schmucks on the job, pay them the 2.50 (minus "expenses") and pocket the rest.
That's how you run a successful "agency".
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It's all about networking. I've targeted the local geographic region where I live that has around 800,000 people and built a lot of bridges. People say, "Hey, I know this software developer who builds apps!" I have built free/really cheap apps for some people who know LOTS of people. I consult and come by as easy and approachable. A lot of people are scared of tech talk. I can talk tech all day, but I get a friend who can sale, talk in a way that I can't to the client. Then, we wow them! Once hooked, then we build a relationship.
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Neurotech - Alleviate[^]
Been listening to this song since the album came out a few weeks ago.
It's awesome (the song and the album) 
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The following has terminated: this[^].
I'm not sure what kind of mood I'll be in - being tanner and rounder.* Running on four hours sleep, I could slip into crabby mode at any moment - but for this moment,
What you tink? Dat be good!
* Red Stripe is a truly lousy beer.
| Ravings en masse^ |
|---|
| "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein | | "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you are seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010 |
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