How to get more free time as a 1099

On my first 1099 gig, I negotiated Friday's off.

It was great!

My second gig was full time. Sad.

But, I started taking Friday afternoons off pretty regularly and I took long vacations, including my honeymoon.

Not all contracts just allow you to take time off whenever you want. The customer has some expectation of you being there during business hours. But here are different ways you can do it:

• Leave work early or come in later. The customer will get used your cadence.
• Fridays are slow. Take Fridays off.
• Find a part time project. Negotiate it up front.
• Find a fixed price project. You are responsible for outputs, not hours. Work efficiently.
• Become valuable to the client and tell your PM you are leaving your current project. Then negotiate a part time schedule.
• Take time off in between projects (a month or two). Get the sub-contract in place but then negotiate a later start date.

Having more time to yourself is one of the best perks of working yourself. But you do have to be a little mindful about how you go about getting it. You don't want to ruin a client relationship or be labeled as unreliable.

Want the full playbook? Check out Going 1099.