"You can refuse to compromise on your rates, provided that you can afford to walk away if necessary" I also wanted to move away from so-called freelancing, but in the end I discovered that it gives me incredible flexibility: I now cherry-pick my clients, taking only projects that are challenging and truly stimulating. I charge a very high hourly rate but I also put my soul into the project, and in the end the clients are more than happy with the work. This allows me to work for ~4 months/year(in blocks, of course), and the rest of the year is spent on personal projects, travelling and building (self-driving)race cars. Try to find your niche and go for it, it's really worth trying!