6 ms·

I've been a consultant most all of my life -- mainly because I don't trust stock-price-driven companies to be honorable or to know what the heck they are doing.

I've been a consultant most all of my life -- mainly because I don't trust stock-price-driven companies to be honorable or to know what the heck they are doing. I love all the people I've worked with: it's just the organizations and business models they create that's so crazy. The nice thing about being a consultant is that you do something they like, they pay you. Repeat and rinse. Pretty soon you're out on the street looking for a new gig. If they don't like you, you don't get paid (and you're on the street quicker). It's a very simple and easily understandable deal. And being on the street is not the end of something or a failure -- it's a chance to go on an even greater adventure. I even had one government employee who had a high level job at a place we all know tell me "Look. This is easy. You do all the work. Solve all the hard problems. I'll take credit for it." Sounded good to me. Finished the job early and went on to something else. He's still there doing the same thing. There are a lot of implied or assumed promises in corporate full-time jobs. It's been my experience that you shouldn't trust any of them -- even from people who are trying really hard to do the right thing. IT is just a business where everything is always changing. It's not like any other business I've ever seen

thwarted 16y ago
I even had one government employee who had a high level job at a place we all know tell me "Look. This is easy. You do all the work. Solve all the hard problems. I'll take credit for it." The only thing that is missing from this Don Draper-esque speech is the "That's what the money is for" line, as that's what consultants are supposed to do.
gcb 16y ago
> There are a lot of implied or assumed promises in corporate full-time jobs There is a lack of unions and labor laws. bye karma.
- davidw 16y ago
  I'm not one of the libertarian crowd, so what I say below is not just a knee-jerk response, and in any case I don't really wish to pursue these sorts of discussions (politics) here, because they end badly. Suffice it to say though, that you can't summarize the problem and solution in "lack of unions and labor laws". Italy, where I reside, has both, especially the latter, and they are quite detrimental in many ways. It's a complex issue with many factors, and likely has both regulatory, cultural and economic causes and solutions, some of which are easy to change and some that aren't.
  - va_coder 16y ago
    There needs to be balance. God knows we don't have that in the U.S.A these days. But maybe we only have ourselves to blame. My grandfather, with no education, came from Italy had 3 kids a stay at home wife and a home. I on the hand am very educated and skilled and can barely afford a two bedroom apartment. Somethings changed.
- forensic 16y ago
  The lack of unions is due to culture rather than labour laws. I've spent a lot of time trying to convince IT people to start a voluntary union for their own benefit. In a word, they are too competitive and naieve to make it happen. IT employees in general could double their average salaries without resorting to labour laws just by starting voluntary unions and doing a modicum of collective bargaining. Instead they allow themselves to be divided and conquered and they even hide their salaries from co-workers which benefits no one aside from management. Ideologically, I am against government-enforced unions. However I am very much in favour of voluntary unions and there is lots of evidence that they can work especially when they behave in reasonable ways that don't threaten the existence of companies. Some corporations will prefer to hire from unions for a variety of reasons including less variability in work quality and higher morale. Anyway collective bargaining does not have to be enforced in law to be effective. The real issue is that the most talented and resourceful people in society tend to be the ones who become owners, and they use their talent and influence to convince IT employees that unions are bad. The average programmer is stubbornly anti-union for no logical reason - the reason is that he's brainwashed by the strong opinions of industry leaders who don't want to pay him what he's worth.
  - jasonkester 16y ago
    I'm stubbornly anti-union for this reason: https://www.surveymonkey.com/sr.aspx?sm=QpfonhAfJ6Q_2b96IzwzwYHG8rRP95fT_2fNNAWjvnLWTzw_3d https://www.surveymonkey.com/sr.aspx?sm=QpfonhAfJ6Q_2b96Izwz... Chart 16 is a breakdown of salaries for StackOverflow users, nearly all of which are so low that a good developer should be insulted to be offered it. Where, on that chart, do you suppose the Union would decide to set my fair salary based on my experience in the trade? 60k? 80k? 100k? No thanks. I'll stick to the free market.
    - forensic 16y ago
      1. A rising tide floats all boats. 2. Unions don't have to fit the rigid model you have in your head of the UAW. They can still allow for inequality of pay negotiated on an individual level, but after an initial negotiation on a collective level. Basically you can design the union to still pay higher performers what they are worth and pay low performers a lot less - but with everyone's salaries being increased relative to management.
davidw 16y ago
Consulting is like running though: the minute you get tired and stop a minute or two, your velocity is gone - no more money coming in. A functioning business is more like a bicycle - it's not like you're just along for the ride, you have to work, but you can coast a little bit now and then. For instance, vacations. That's true for both bosses and employees. I enjoy consulting too, but it leaves me with the feeling of not building or being part of something for the future... if that makes sense.
- dools 16y ago
  Hope you caught the Tom Rossi interview on Mixergy :)
  - yeahsure 16y ago
    Agreed. Awesome interview! Here's the link: http://mixergy.com/tom-rossi-molehill-interview/ http://mixergy.com/tom-rossi-molehill-interview/
- jasonkester 16y ago
  Ah, but in your analogy, salaried employment would be like walking, since it moves you forward more slowly (in terms of money) and is more continuous. If you're running, you can stop every once in a while, sometimes for long enough to get a cup of coffee, and still stay ahead of the guy who set off walking at the same time as you.
  - davidw 16y ago
    I'm not going to try and push the analogy too far, but in good jobs (I think they're rarer, but do exist), you can take vacations, get sick, and things like that. With consulting, the minute you're not working or hustling to find new gigs, you're not going anywhere.
    - jasonkester 16y ago
      Right, that's the good part about consulting, the honesty. The agreement is "Pay me roughly twice what you pay everybody else, and I'll deal with all the benefits stuff myself". Also included in that price tag is the ability to be let go at any time for any reason. In an ironic way, that actually tips the terms further to the site of consulting, since the reality is that salaried employees will also be let go at any time when the company decides to do so. So yeah, you have to save some money. Fortunately, they give you a lot extra so that you can.
loewenskind 16y ago
>It's a very simple and easily understandable deal. This is also one of the big reasons I switched to consulting. I find it a more honest way to work. My career advancement is completely in my own hands and not tied to a specific company. There is no tit-for-maybe-possibly-someday-tat involved.

thwarted 16y ago

I even had one government employee who had a high level job at a place we all know tell me "Look. This is easy. You do all the work. Solve all the hard problems. I'll take credit for it." The only thing that is missing from this Don Draper-esque speech is the "That's what the money is for" line, as that's what consultants are supposed to do.

gcb 16y ago

> There are a lot of implied or assumed promises in corporate full-time jobs There is a lack of unions and labor laws. bye karma.

davidw 16y ago
I'm not one of the libertarian crowd, so what I say below is not just a knee-jerk response, and in any case I don't really wish to pursue these sorts of discussions (politics) here, because they end badly. Suffice it to say though, that you can't summarize the problem and solution in "lack of unions and labor laws". Italy, where I reside, has both, especially the latter, and they are quite detrimental in many ways. It's a complex issue with many factors, and likely has both regulatory, cultural and economic causes and solutions, some of which are easy to change and some that aren't.
- va_coder 16y ago
  There needs to be balance. God knows we don't have that in the U.S.A these days. But maybe we only have ourselves to blame. My grandfather, with no education, came from Italy had 3 kids a stay at home wife and a home. I on the hand am very educated and skilled and can barely afford a two bedroom apartment. Somethings changed.
forensic 16y ago
The lack of unions is due to culture rather than labour laws. I've spent a lot of time trying to convince IT people to start a voluntary union for their own benefit. In a word, they are too competitive and naieve to make it happen. IT employees in general could double their average salaries without resorting to labour laws just by starting voluntary unions and doing a modicum of collective bargaining. Instead they allow themselves to be divided and conquered and they even hide their salaries from co-workers which benefits no one aside from management. Ideologically, I am against government-enforced unions. However I am very much in favour of voluntary unions and there is lots of evidence that they can work especially when they behave in reasonable ways that don't threaten the existence of companies. Some corporations will prefer to hire from unions for a variety of reasons including less variability in work quality and higher morale. Anyway collective bargaining does not have to be enforced in law to be effective. The real issue is that the most talented and resourceful people in society tend to be the ones who become owners, and they use their talent and influence to convince IT employees that unions are bad. The average programmer is stubbornly anti-union for no logical reason - the reason is that he's brainwashed by the strong opinions of industry leaders who don't want to pay him what he's worth.
- jasonkester 16y ago
  I'm stubbornly anti-union for this reason: https://www.surveymonkey.com/sr.aspx?sm=QpfonhAfJ6Q_2b96IzwzwYHG8rRP95fT_2fNNAWjvnLWTzw_3d https://www.surveymonkey.com/sr.aspx?sm=QpfonhAfJ6Q_2b96Izwz... Chart 16 is a breakdown of salaries for StackOverflow users, nearly all of which are so low that a good developer should be insulted to be offered it. Where, on that chart, do you suppose the Union would decide to set my fair salary based on my experience in the trade? 60k? 80k? 100k? No thanks. I'll stick to the free market.
  - forensic 16y ago
    1. A rising tide floats all boats. 2. Unions don't have to fit the rigid model you have in your head of the UAW. They can still allow for inequality of pay negotiated on an individual level, but after an initial negotiation on a collective level. Basically you can design the union to still pay higher performers what they are worth and pay low performers a lot less - but with everyone's salaries being increased relative to management.

davidw 16y ago

Consulting is like running though: the minute you get tired and stop a minute or two, your velocity is gone - no more money coming in. A functioning business is more like a bicycle - it's not like you're just along for the ride, you have to work, but you can coast a little bit now and then. For instance, vacations. That's true for both bosses and employees. I enjoy consulting too, but it leaves me with the feeling of not building or being part of something for the future... if that makes sense.

dools 16y ago
Hope you caught the Tom Rossi interview on Mixergy :)
- yeahsure 16y ago
  Agreed. Awesome interview! Here's the link: http://mixergy.com/tom-rossi-molehill-interview/ http://mixergy.com/tom-rossi-molehill-interview/
jasonkester 16y ago
Ah, but in your analogy, salaried employment would be like walking, since it moves you forward more slowly (in terms of money) and is more continuous. If you're running, you can stop every once in a while, sometimes for long enough to get a cup of coffee, and still stay ahead of the guy who set off walking at the same time as you.
- davidw 16y ago
  I'm not going to try and push the analogy too far, but in good jobs (I think they're rarer, but do exist), you can take vacations, get sick, and things like that. With consulting, the minute you're not working or hustling to find new gigs, you're not going anywhere.
  - jasonkester 16y ago
    Right, that's the good part about consulting, the honesty. The agreement is "Pay me roughly twice what you pay everybody else, and I'll deal with all the benefits stuff myself". Also included in that price tag is the ability to be let go at any time for any reason. In an ironic way, that actually tips the terms further to the site of consulting, since the reality is that salaried employees will also be let go at any time when the company decides to do so. So yeah, you have to save some money. Fortunately, they give you a lot extra so that you can.

loewenskind 16y ago

>It's a very simple and easily understandable deal. This is also one of the big reasons I switched to consulting. I find it a more honest way to work. My career advancement is completely in my own hands and not tied to a specific company. There is no tit-for-maybe-possibly-someday-tat involved.