Taking On Too Much Responsibility as a Web Developer

My Personal Problem

From Matt's perspective

• I’m a person that always sees the problems that could happen - the worst case scenarios
• This makes me worried to take on anything too big, or too complex
• Big and/or complex jobs pay the most (generally)
• I spend a fair bit of time trying to talk clients down in complexity due to my own worries of what could go wrong
• Personally I know I’m overzealous in this regard, but there is a limit on how much you can do as a web developer (especially solo, or in a small team)

When a Single Project is Too Much

• A single project doesn’t sound like much, but that’s very dependent on how large and complex it is
• When it comes to freelancing as an individual, a single project can easily overwhelm your capabilities as just one person
  • If you have other clients, your work for them (and even the big project) may suffer greatly
  • Your work/life balance may take a serious hit
  • Single projects oftentimes don’t pay as much as you can get across multiple “appropriately sized projects” and therefore you may be taking a pay hit (this varies greatly depending on your clientele)
• The warning signs of a project that's too big
  • Needing to hire a team but having no hiring/management experience
  • Tech stack or business logic way outside your expertise
  • Project scope creeping into full-scale platform territory
  • Feeling anxious or avoiding the work entirely
• Common traps
  • Saying yes because it’s a “big opportunity”
  • Not asking enough questions during the scoping phase
  • Assuming you’ll “figure it out as you go”
• How to handle it
  • Saying no, or counter-offering a smaller scope
  • Referring the client elsewhere
  • Partnering with someone who has the skills/team you lack
  • Taking note of common shortfalls, and learning to fill those gaps (ie maybe you need to learn how to hire a team? You may need to learn how to use a particular tool to make yourself more productive)

Multiple Projects/Agency Burnout

• If you’ve mastered the art of taking on individual projects that are “appropriately sized” for your unique situation - what about when that project becomes projects?
• Scaling an agency (or a list of clientele as an individual) can be an absolute nightmare- just think what would happen if two or three of your clients suddenly started having issues that needed to be dealt with right away - are you equipped to deal with that?
• We all know somebody’s whose work notifications never stop going 24/7 - for someone that loves their job, or likes to work fast, this might work great but…
  • …what about when they can’t work fast (ie their sick)?
  • …what happens when they inevitably start to run on empty (burnout/fatigue)?
• How responsibility stacks up across multiple clients
  • Handling different tech stacks, goals, and communication styles
  • Ongoing retainers mixed with new builds
  • Context switching slowing down productivity
• Freelancer vs. small agency challenges
  • When you're still the only one answering emails, deploying updates, and writing code
  • Burnout from being everyone’s “go-to” all the time
  • Scaling issues: hiring help vs. losing control
• Strategies for balancing the load
  • Capping the number of active clients
  • Creating systems for onboarding, updates, and support
  • Building a referral network
  • Raising rates to prioritize quality over quantity
  • Ensuring that scope of work is clearly defined (ie make it clear what your response time is for issues)

Personal Discussion Question

From Matt's perspective

• How much should you worry about this stuff? Should you just chase the bag and deal with the consequences later? Are you being too easy on yourself by holding back on your client acquisition?

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