I started the by-the-hour type of contracting back in 1988 when I was 20. It was a 6-month help desk gig and I loved it. I think I was making $35/hr and worked probably upwards of 50 hours a week. I was a keener!
Since then I haven’t yet ‘turned to the darkside’ of permanent work. I’ve worked mostly in the Toronto area over the last 12 years, but did manage to get a few years in London, England spending almost every Friday from noon onwards getting drunk at the pub! Billing for it, of course!
Two of my stints have been over 2 years, with the rest up until recently falling in the 6 months to a year range. I do prefer the longer term contracts and I will take a cut in hourly rate to go for longer periods – it’s better for meetingpeople and making long-term friends!
People ask me why I would rather work contract over full-time. There’s only one reason: money. I’ve got a few contract friends that will tell you they do it because it’s more flexible, or they get to learn new technologies, or they prefer not to be an ’employee’ of a company, blah, blah, blah. That’s all crap – we do it because we get to put more money in our pockets. And if you’ve been consulting long enough, you develop a lifestyle that almost REQUIRES that you continue getting the by-the-hour type of pay.
But things have changed over the last year or two. Companies don’t really want consultants like they used to, and when they do they’re usually under fairly strict budgets and timelines. The full-time people you work with initially have almost a dislike of you as well – they
