Michael Madigan wrote:
>
> --- Nancy Folsom <lists (at) pixeldustindustries .DO.T com> wrote:
>
>
>>Michael Madigan wrote:
>>
>>>Working for other people sucks big time, always has, always will.
>>
>>Unless one has a trust fund, one is _always_ working for other people.
> But if you have 10 clients and one pisses you off, you can drop him. If you have one employer,
> you're screwed.
However, that is not what you said. I've included your statement to
which I replied for context. BTW, I agree. Consulting certainly allows
one to spread the eggs out among several baskets, but it of course
carries different risk.
For the record, I am an independent, and I love it. I feel much more in
control of my own destiny. However, the one thing that is _not_
different between contracting and employment is that I still work _for_
someone. It's worse as a contractor in one way because I have no one to
mediate conflicting priorities! Oh, and I've been laid off on my
birthday, and been threatened with lay-offs after 5 years of 100%
billable time because I had 2 weeks of only 40% billable hours. I've
worked for two other companies that were so badly mismanaged by the
owners that they went bankrupt. It was traumatic, but somehow I never
took it personally. Well, other than thinking I was jinxed for a while <s>.
I don't know Chet and so all I have are the words we type here. What the
thread _does_ bring to mind--generally--is that we frequently mistake
our importance and the importance of our pet projects. Given the context
of the discussion:
- Software serves the business need, not the programmer's ego. Killing a
project is not about the programmer (usually) but is about the business.
I gather Chet's loyalty is more to his software and less to the company.
Frankly, if I was the employer, I'd welcome the resignation of anyone
who's loyalty was so placed.
- Our software itself is sometimes the cause for jobs being lost, and
even when it's not, it's often perceived to be a threat. And, so, it's
rather ironic when programmers complain about job loss when we are in an
industry that has at the very least displaced who knows how many workers?
I've written and deleted a bunch of drivel about how maybe one is better
served by detaching their feelings business decisions--saving themselves
from the feeling that the world is out to personally slight them at
every turn. Uh oh, I see it's slipped back in. <eg>
©2005 Nancy Folsom |
