[masraum]

Originally Posted by nostatic

This is why I don't talk hourly rates. A job costs what a job costs. I learned this at an early age. When I was about 16 a friend of my mom's wanted me to pull two tree stumps out of his back yard by hand. He had started digging but determined it was too much work and hired me. He was a good business man and a pretty nice guy to boot. He said $100, figuring I'd take a day or two to get them out. I said, "OK." Two hours later I was finished. He paid up. My mom said I should give some of the money back because I made "too much" for the amount of time. I called him up and he said he wouldn't take any money back as we agreed on a price that was fair.

So if I am consulting, I try to do it per job. It shouldn't matter to my client how much time it takes me - either short or long. I need to deliver something. The only time I deviate from that is if they want me "brainstorming" in which case I'll quote a day rate.

There's a book about Networking (the type that Mikester and myself do) called "From Serf to Surfer". It's a how to about how to become a Consultant. In the book he does exactly this. He has an hourly rate that he charges, but only he knows that rate and it can change if he wants. He bids his work out at a fixed prices. It makes sense. He said that he often gets business despite a higher bid because so many businesses know that someone charging by the hour can drag something out and blow their bid out of the water with time overages.

It was a pretty cool book that covered everything. I just wish I had the money and balls. I'm doing pretty decently now anyway.