Funny, I worked as a government contractor in a past life. The government was worse IMO in that work was very slow and bureaucratic even beyond the big company

Funny, I worked as a government contractor in a past life. The government was worse IMO in that work was very slow and bureaucratic even beyond the big company overhead. Politics couldn't be ignored; you need to keep the contract, outmaneuver the other guys going golfing with the agency head every weekend, deal with having 10 half-backed solutions you contractually cannot touch but need to in order to get things done. Promotions were almost always about tenure, certification, and education. You could never get far ahead if you're more skilled. Worse: you couldn't really fall behind, either. In the right spot, though, it would be lower stress. But much lower pay