> Do you need to be an some online platform to get projects?
No. You need to either find work on your own or have a pipeline. Word of mouth and referrals work best. Start with former employers and colleagues. Companies in related businesses can outsource to you -- web design and marketing firms usually outsource programming and even system admin, for example.
Alternately you can work through an agency (10X Management represents me as a freelancer), or a contract shop such as TopTal.
> How do you protect yourself from financial abuse (someone not paying you)?
Work for people you trust, walk away from customers who give you a bad feeling. Don't work on spec, don't discount. Don't put yourself in the position of your customer owing you a lot of money. Agree on clear deliverables and prices. Contracts will not protect you.
> Do you need a lawyer at all times?
No. You should never need a lawyer unless you need to negotiate a tricky NDA or contract. Once you have lawyers involved your billable hours go down and you end up paying the lawyers. In most US states breach of contract and similar disputes go to arbitration anyway, a process that can take a long time and more often than not ends up with both sides splitting the difference and losing money in the process.
> Should you create a legal entity of some sort so you're a "company" and use that instead of getting projects as an individual?
You can if you want, but unless you have employees or significant assets at risk you can operate as a sole proprietor in your own name. An LLC or S-corp can offer some protection in case of a lawsuit, but you should avoid those possibilities in the first place. An LLC or corporation may offer some tax advantages, but generally single-owner LLCs just pass through income to your schedule C (business income). Keep it simple, no reason to create a bunch of paperwork and compliance issues -- focus on billable time.
Don't get in the position of a customer owing you a lot of money, and don't put yourself in the position of owing your customer a lot of work you can't deliver on.
I have some free (no ads or popups or affiliate links) articles about freelancing on my site typicalprogrammer.com.
No. You need to either find work on your own or have a pipeline. Word of mouth and referrals work best. Start with former employers and colleagues. Companies in related businesses can outsource to you -- web design and marketing firms usually outsource programming and even system admin, for example.
Alternately you can work through an agency (10X Management represents me as a freelancer), or a contract shop such as TopTal.
> How do you protect yourself from financial abuse (someone not paying you)?
Work for people you trust, walk away from customers who give you a bad feeling. Don't work on spec, don't discount. Don't put yourself in the position of your customer owing you a lot of money. Agree on clear deliverables and prices. Contracts will not protect you.
> Do you need a lawyer at all times?
No. You should never need a lawyer unless you need to negotiate a tricky NDA or contract. Once you have lawyers involved your billable hours go down and you end up paying the lawyers. In most US states breach of contract and similar disputes go to arbitration anyway, a process that can take a long time and more often than not ends up with both sides splitting the difference and losing money in the process.
> Should you create a legal entity of some sort so you're a "company" and use that instead of getting projects as an individual?
You can if you want, but unless you have employees or significant assets at risk you can operate as a sole proprietor in your own name. An LLC or S-corp can offer some protection in case of a lawsuit, but you should avoid those possibilities in the first place. An LLC or corporation may offer some tax advantages, but generally single-owner LLCs just pass through income to your schedule C (business income). Keep it simple, no reason to create a bunch of paperwork and compliance issues -- focus on billable time.
Don't get in the position of a customer owing you a lot of money, and don't put yourself in the position of owing your customer a lot of work you can't deliver on.
I have some free (no ads or popups or affiliate links) articles about freelancing on my site typicalprogrammer.com.