1099 Success Story: A reader's first 1099 gig

by Dale Davidson

A reader "John" just e-mailed me an update: he found his first 1099 gig!

Here is what he wrote:

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Good Morning Dale,

I wanted to follow up with you on my 1099 progress.

Previously I had informed you that I was going to attempt to convert my current w2 position into a 1099. The Program Manager informed me that the contract was “frozen” and would not add anyone at this time.

I went out on the market and reached out to a recruiter who I had previously interviewed with and they were willing to 1099 me on a contract they really needed filled! I was able to negotiate a sweet deal too!

I am in the process of doing security paperwork and I don’t have a start date yet.

I wanted to leave some runway to eventually get a Facilities Clearance so I can hire employees onto the contract. Is there anything else I should be verifying with them at this time? I know in your blog you said to make sure “the prime adds your company and not just you”.

Should I verify that with the contracts administrator?

Thanks again for any help!

-John
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A few things pop out:

  • The first attempt at going 1099 didn't work. John tried to convert his job but his PM didn't want to do the paperwork. No big deal, he went back to the market.
  • He leveraged a previous relationship. John reached out a recruiter he had met before and whom he had impressed. This facilitated getting the 1099 gig.
  • Timing matters. The company he will 1099 for was desperate. Desperation means primes are willing to do things they wouldn't normally do, like add 10992
  • He has an eye to the future. John wants to hire employees so asked an administrative question about a Facility Clearance. Going 1099 can be the first step in building out a "real" company.

I love this story. This can be your story with enough persistence.

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1099 Private Online Coaching

I wrote Going 1099 because there were almost zero (good) resources for government contractors who were interested in working for themselves as 1099s.

The book is comprehensive and is enough to cut down the time it takes for you to go 1099 by a significant amount.

However, readers who bought the book still had questions that applied to their specific situation and often want to bounce their ideas off of me.

This includes John who e-mailed me previously about how to handle his "frozen" contract when he first tried to convert his job. He even has more questions about his Facility Clearance which I am helping with.

These personalized questions happen often enough that I'm piloting an online group coaching program for $150/month.

The format is simple:

  • I'll set up a private online forum/chat
  • You can post as many questions as you want about your situation
  • I'll answer them
  • You can see other people's questions/responses
  • If there is something you don't want others to see we can do a private chat/call on an ad-hoc basis

If you'd like to sign up, just reply to this e-mail and we'll get things set up.

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Want the full playbook? Check out Going 1099.

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