> and do not have a lot of experience being the new person. I'm almost always 'the new person', and have rarely been on projects more than 2-3 years. I operat

> and do not have a lot of experience being the new person. I'm almost always 'the new person', and have rarely been on projects more than 2-3 years. I operate as an independent - sometimes solo, sometimes with a team. Most team projects have not gone more than 2-3 years, some solo projects have gone longer - 4 or 5 was about the longest. The pace changes over time - initially a lot of work, then some transition to maintenance, slower feature rollout, etc. Then... another project comes along, and ... you're "the new person" again, with more experience about what's worked and what hasn't. I can not imagine working one place for 27 years. It boggles my mind. I've had to learn to accept that I will never get one of those '20 years of service' plaques I saw on TV shows as a symbol of "the company man" sort of thing. It's just not possible. I have had 20+ years of self-employment, in spurts, although the last round has been going on 13 years now.