Contract vs. captive

[geoff-h -at- MTL -dot- FERIC -dot- CA]

 Keith Anderson explained why he got out of the
 contracting business for a full time position:

 <<I got burned-out on consulting and contracting... The
 name of the game was billable hours... The more hours past
 40/week I put in, the more my potential for a big bonus.>>

 This is one of the reasons I've stayed away from full-time
 freelancing so far... I have a tough time saying no to a
 good client. Many of my friends freelance, and have the
 same problem. You can end up with no life if you're solely
 client-oriented, or with lost clients if you set (to you)
 reasonable limits on your hours. It's a tough call for
 anyone. Me, I made a conscious decision to live more simply
 on less money in exchange for knowing that my life is
 pretty much my own outside the 40-odd hours per week when
 I'm in the office.

 <<Then I sub-contracted to work for a training company... I
 was told that I had no input and to just do what they say
 since they are the customer.>>

 That's always the case to a greater or lesser extent,
 whether you're a captive or a freelancer. The one great
 advantage with freelancing is that you can walk away at the
 end of the contract, or even break the contract sometimes,
 and never come back. At work, you have to reach a modus
 vivendi with your problem clients.

 <<Personally, I'm glad to be out of the consulting racket.
 I don't want to stick it to clients because I want as much
 as I can get. I think it's criminal to agree on a delivery
 date and product and then push out deadlines or go over
 budget. Yet that's every day business.>>

 You recognized the ethical problem and felt strongly enough
 to use it as part of your reason for quitting, which is
 laudable, but the conclusion is a non sequitur. _You_
 personally felt no need to screw the client, and wanted to
 have the reputation of giving good value for the client's
 money. There's nothing stopping you from doing this...
 provided you work for _yourself_ and not an unscrupulous
 agency. Peter Kent deals with this issue in his book, and
 uses it as one primary distinction between those who work
 for agencies and those who "consult". As a consultant, your
 reputation for fair play and quality work is what gets you
 repeat business, to the point that guys like Peter don't
 need to do much looking for work anymore. Worth a thought?

 --Geoff Hart     @8^{)}     geoff-h -at- mtl -dot- feric -dot- ca
 Disclaimer: Speaking for myself, not FERIC.