How did you make the permie to contractor jump?

[Old Greg]

One of the hardest things about making the jump is that you ususally have hand in your notice at your permie job and then find a contract at the last minute - all a bit scary.

Anyway, I heard indirectly from an ex-permie who left under a bit of a cloud from my current gig - not fireed, but encouraged to move on. He's a nice enough guy, but an incompetent fantasist - think typical CUK poster but nice. He found a new permie job and handed in his notice. Hust before he started his new job, he found a contract and ditched his new job, which was always his intent. It's quite a nice (in a Macchiavellian kind of way) approach to de-risking the jump. You have something to go to if contracting doesn't work out. You're not pissing off your current employer, who you may need for a reference. The new employer is very unlikely to sue you when you drop out even if you've signed a contract (or perhaps they might in certain industries).

Anyone done this? I'm guessing some people go into contracting after redundancy. I was caught in an NHS merger and 50 people were going to be made redundant, so they were happy to see someone leave to reduce their redundancy bill.

Share your heart-warming story.

[SupremeSpod]

Completed my apprenticeship at Ferranti, I spent some time there helping a contractor debug some code, found out he was on 5* what I was earning.

I tendered my resignation and 4 weeks later started as a contractor. That was almost 26 years ago.

[Doggy Styles]

Redundancy then luck

[doodab]

I had my one and only permie job, I was getting pissed off with them so I applied for a few others on Jobserve, one of them using some niche technology that I had been working with, and got an offer of a contract (I had no idea what that meant until then) for 5x what I was earning and 4x what I was expecting. It was quite satisfying when my bosses boss, who wanted to try and keep me on, took me aside and asked me what they were paying me. When I told him his reply was "that's more than I get. Good luck!"

[ChimpMaster]

My hand was forced a little by circumstances. I was a consultant for a software vendor and used to travel a lot for assignments, many months at a time away from home.

I got married and bought a house, and was then assigned to work 200 miles away on an assignment that would last a year. No chance, especially after many years of living out of a suitcase, and having been very recently married and moving into my new home.

The consulting manager/director was a class one d1ck so the only option for me was to resign - which was difficult as I was giving up a lot, including a 100k package

Luckily I found a contract where the client was prepared to wait 4 weeks for me, and I negotiated my permie notice down to that from 3 months.

The irony is that the contract was still some 100 odd miles away from home, so I had to live out for those 6 months anyway. My wife travelled decided to move with me and travel back to work in London every day (2.5 hours each way on trains!). But I was doing it on my own terms so was happier.

8 years later and I've done OK. This is my final year of contracting (for now) but I have few regrets.

[Sysman]

Nice fat redundancy cheque and they found me a lucrative contract before my official end date.

[Scrag Meister]

Been looking to do it for years but Ex-Mrs Scrag Meister wouldn't move anywhere.
My kids were young straight after the divorce so stayed around the area for them for some years.
Moved to London with Perm-Employer.
Boredom at permie role.
Death of my grandmother (££ facilitation) Thanks Grandma
Quit with nothing to go to, but contracting in mind.
3 months looking, first contract.
Never looked back.

[Sysman]

It was quite satisfying when my bosses boss, who wanted to try and keep me on, took me aside and asked me what they were paying me. When I told him his reply was "that's more than I get. Good luck!"

I bumped into a former boss after I'd been contracting for a year and he couldn't resist telling me that most contractors pack it in after a couple of years.

He also assumed that I was on standard bum on seat rates and told me that it was "an awful ot of money". I didn't tell the condescending twat that I had been on considerably more than that.

I forgot to tell him about the tax free bit..

[bless 'em all]

Spent the best part of 18 months benched at a large telecoms co. Jumped at a generous redundancy and hit the bench Jan '01 2007.

It took me less than two months to find a gig and I have invoiced someone for something every month from day 1.

[Support Monkey]

moved to another permie job and it was me and one other fella who was a contractor, he rolled in at 9 and left at 4 for a day rate way beyond anything i had ever earned or was likely to earn, he was rinsing the job, after a few conversations with him my mind was made up.

As i had only just started i was on 3 months probation with a weeks notice, just before that came to an end i went on holiday, discussed with wife (we had 2 small children and 1 large mortgage at the time) she said leave it a bit see how thing go i said if i leave it i will have a months notice before i can leave, so i came back from holidays handed me notice in on the Monday interviewed on wedneday and started Thursday, never even finished my weeks notice and never looked back.

Thinking about it now after 7 years of pay rises i would probably be earning around £26000 a year if i had stuck with it