[Discuss] suggestions for contracting work?

[richb at pioneer.ci.net (Rich Braun)]

My thoughts on the contracting world:

* Back in the late '80s, I picked about 4 or 5 contract agencies (Kenda, CEI
are two names I recall) to use as my primary sales outreach for new work

* Contract rates were once lucrative (about 2x to 2.5x equivalent salary+ben).
 They're pretty awful these days, IMHO.

* If you're not finding enough work despite substantial outreach in greater
Boston, there's more than plenty in the Bay Area and probably quite a bit in
Seattle and Austin.  Consider relocation if contracting is what you want to
do.

* Although contracting is no longer a way to garner huge pay, it does give you
much more freedom to take lengthy time periods off from work.  (That said, I
often had times when I had to overlap two gigs for a week or two of 70+ hour
weeks in order to ensure continuity to the next job.)

* One guy I ran into out here in SF seemed to do quite well in his specialized
niche by limiting each client to no more than 20 hours/week.  That way no
single engagement can cut off your paycheck.  But you have to be in very high
demand.

* As a contractor, you have to throw out everything you ever knew and re-learn
a new top-demand skill every 3-4 years.  It's challenging to find the time for
this level of career management, especially if you're also having to do all
the sales/promotion to find new gigs.

In 2012 I spent a year as contractor (about half of my 30-year career has been
contract, the other half employee).  This year I'm on salary.  Benefits out
here in the Bay Area make employee status much more compelling for me but
there's plenty of opportunity for contracting.  (There's a lot of talk in the
media about the high price of housing, now that SF surpassed Manhattan for the
highest-cost housing.  But the paychecks more than make up for the
difference.)

-rich