Every engagement is scoped in writing and priced per phase. No retainers you can't explain, no discovery calls unless you want one. Pick the shape that matches where you are.
You have a product to get into the world. I take it from a written problem to something running in front of real users, then keep it running.
You have a team and need senior hands that have shipped a dozen of these. I work inside your repo and your standups, not beside them.
You have a spec, an estimate, or a stalled build and want someone with no stake in the answer to look at it.
Each phase is a fixed price, agreed before it starts. Framing is the cheapest and tells you what the rest will cost. If the number is wrong for you, you find out after two weeks, not four months.
Me. There is no account manager and no junior team behind the curtain. If a build needs a specialist, I bring one in by name and you'll know who it is.
When I'm the wrong fit, when the timeline needs a team I'm not, or when the honest answer is that you don't need to build it yet. I'll say so and point you somewhere better.