[DoctaWho]

There's been a lot of talk about making money in the oil fields, programming, being an account...This left me wondering if anyone here has any experience with high dollar contracting. By high dollar I mean 60+/hour (a dollar figure that working just 6 month contracts still puts you well ahead of the crowd). I've seen a few programming jobs in my area that are around that salary range, but they're generally contract to hire and unless you're great or the company really just wants someone to come in and crush it for a few months, most don't seem to like jumping around or resume gaps.

I'm most interested in jobs that give you skills to pick up work once you decide contracting is no longer for you or want to settle down for a bit longer.

I'm going to guess that with US troop presence going down the days where a guy could make 100k in 6 months working in a green zone are done. With that said, I can't imagine the state department not needing people who are willing to work in some African or Eastern Europe shit hole for a few months.

I've been struggling to find companies with jobs posted as well as what could help to stand out from the crowd so I figure I'd turn to you guys for help.

Any thought/comments would be appreciated.

[sammybiker]

Experienced construction engineers - degreed and non - that work for me contract themselves out at $100+/hr. This is in an industrial construction/mining&metals/oil field related work zone.

1) Go get a degree 2) Go get work experience 3) Perform and obtain references 4) Contract yourself out in a bull market 5) Join a company as a salaried employee in a bear market

Your question seems pointed perhaps more towards military contractors? I'm unsure. But above is how folks I know contract themselves out for $100+/hr. They have expenses, of course...but they do well.

[Cattle Rustler]

Become a pipeline welder, bring your welding rig, rent it out to the company. Boom.

[sammybiker]

The best part is when you start bringing on your qualified buddies...pay them $60/hr, bill the client regular rate of $100/hr and you take the spread.

[CrackerDaddy]

(04-11-2015 08:55 PM)DoctaWho Wrote:  

There's been a lot of talk about making money in the oil fields, programming, being an account...This left me wondering if anyone here has any experience with high dollar contracting. By high dollar I mean 60+/hour (a dollar figure that working just 6 month contracts still puts you well ahead of the crowd). I've seen a few programming jobs in my area that are around that salary range, but they're generally contract to hire and unless you're great or the company really just wants someone to come in and crush it for a few months, most don't seem to like jumping around or resume gaps.

I'm most interested in jobs that give you skills to pick up work once you decide contracting is no longer for you or want to settle down for a bit longer.

I'm going to guess that with US troop presence going down the days where a guy could make 100k in 6 months working in a green zone are done. With that said, I can't imagine the state department not needing people who are willing to work in some African or Eastern Europe shit hole for a few months.

I've been struggling to find companies with jobs posted as well as what could help to stand out from the crowd so I figure I'd turn to you guys for help.

Any thought/comments would be appreciated.

Yes, IT contractors will make the kind of $$$ you want. Generally speaking, you will need about 5 years experience and be up to date with your skill set. IF you can hustle your own contracts, $85/hr+ is easily doable. If you want to go through a 3rd party, be prepared to give up 33% - 40% to the one who hustled the job for you.

[scotian]

(04-11-2015 10:16 PM)Cattle Rustler Wrote:  

Become a pipeline welder, bring your welding rig, rent it out to the company. Boom.

(04-11-2015 10:23 PM)sammybiker Wrote:  

The best part is when you start bringing on your qualified buddies...pay them $60/hr, bill the client regular rate of $100/hr and you take the spread.

I know experienced rig welders who pull in $100/hour and there's some who have multiple trucks and do what Sammybiker mentioned, they rig up a welding truck (costs about $80,000 for truck and equipment) and rent it to other guys and make $40/hour while they sleep. There are many millionaire welders out there but it would take a guy about five years experience at a minimum to get to that level and to build the necessary industry contacts.

[roberto]

(04-11-2015 10:23 PM)sammybiker Wrote:  

The best part is when you start bringing on your qualified buddies...pay them $60/hr, bill the client regular rate of $100/hr and you take the spread.

You can do the same with regular work. You just need three staff instead of one for the same profit. Your qualified buddy will soon realise that he can become a contractor and get the full $100, especially in a bouyant market.

Gardening, cleaning, home help- these are all less 'glamorous' industries where you can pay someone close to minimum wage and charge them out at triple. I pay my guys £60 a day, my day rate is £180-200. Maybe £4k worth of tools and vehicle on an average day. But to keep us busy with different types of work I have about £25k tied up in tools, plant and vehicles. Still not much. We only work 5 miles from base too.

The only thing with this is you have to be on the ball as the boss. And it's limited. To get bigger you need managers, and it can become a downward spiral. Find your business' sweet spot.

[Cattle Rustler]

Sure, your employees may know how much you make out of them but then again there's a reason why they are still employees.

They don't have the balls to start a business themselves.

[SlickyBoy]

You can forget the military contracting in Iraq route, unless you want to get thrown under the bus like four BW guys did yesterday. That ship has sailed - its not worth trying to catch it.

$60 per hour is very realistic as the right kind of IT person, but you need to find your sweet spot. Private sector is great, but government rates aren't what they were even just a couple of years ago. They are starting to creep back up lately, though.

[vinman]

If you have a Masters in anything you can make a killing in UAE. I know guys who worked over there, and they told me with a Masters the sky is the limit. So now you have FAGs (Former Action Guys) trying to get advanced degrees in underwater basket weaving just to have a degree.

[Teutatis]

(04-13-2015 11:19 PM)vinman Wrote:  

If you have a Masters in anything you can make a killing in UAE. I know guys who worked over there, and they told me with a Masters the sky is the limit. So now you have FAGs (Former Action Guys) trying to get advanced degrees in underwater basket weaving just to have a degree.

Haha, I should really get my masters some day. What kind of things were those guys doing?

[obrero]

(04-13-2015 11:05 PM)SlickyBoy Wrote:  

You can forget the military contracting in Iraq route, unless you want to get thrown under the bus like four BW guys did yesterday. That ship has sailed - its not worth trying to catch it.

I'm hoping the US gets involved with this ISIS thing so I can go back to the desert and make some bread. I heard somewhere that the 82nd was deploying to Iraq, not sure if that's true or not or when its happening.