I am thinking to start freelancing with PHP. I need more money besides my actual job and I just love to code.

It will be my first time developing profissionaly.

Any tips?

CONTRACT FOR EVERYTHING.

PS: Seriously, do.

@Jilano thanks! I didn't think about it before. :)

@brunofontes Ha, you're very welcome!
I'd say there are many things that you need to be careful of, but for others it's just experience. It might seem funny, but being able to understand the client is really hard sometimes.

I'm sure others will have good advice!

Don't wait to learn how to say no to a client when you have to. Because you will be facing different kind of situations where this will be your best move, but it's not always easy to do. Learning how and when to do this will avoid you some mistakes I made when I started freelancing at the time (trust me you don't want to know that feeling when you have to anounce to a client that you fucked up his deadline).

Start by little projects that you can achieve quickly and with quality. That will help you to gain confidence and good practices, and soon you'll realize you've reach a point where you can handle more ambitious projects.

Also, try to adopt work hours even at home. That too is not always easy (I love so much coding during night) but you'll be more productive.

@Masta I just have the night time, so I can only work on small things. But it's very interesting to have work hours. :)

Thank you so much. You, guys, have really good advices. :)

As others have said. Contract up. Learn to say no (in more words if possible).

And most importantly, get yourself a killer accountancy firm. Preferably one that does it all, from incorporation through to contract review. It can be pricey, but having experts you can contact for the million questions that crop up is invaluable.

I've cringed in my seat at the sound/read of PHP.

Required viewing: fuck you, pay me.
https://youtu.be/jVkLVRt6c1U

Clearly define the project scope... you don’t know how many times projects gets prolonged by adding small features that were not included in the original proposal. Even if it is small effort to do it, just don’t without revising the original proposal and update its terms.

@matteusbrevik
Exactly!

Only do what was originally planned. If you think about more features or anything, sell them afterwards for extra.

Wow! Your tips are just gold! Thank you so much!

I am taking notes of everything.