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Coming up to 40 this year I have decided I hate my job as a Payroll manager, looking after 15 team members, office politics, the same grind day after day is just killing me. So I have set up a side business as a consultant, and have just landed my first gigs. 3 days work with a company setting up some reporting structure, and a really good gig where I have minimum 12 months work, and they have offered me a choice of anything between one day a week and full time for the duration. Basically they have a million projects and I can take on as many or as few as I want. For the next couple of months I will still do my full time job while billing 2 days a week for evening and weekend work, then have to decide whether to jump all in on the consultancy thing or keep it as a sideline. I really want to jump full time into contracting, but am shitting myself a bit. On paper it is a no brainer, but it is a big leap from a stable 9-5 (well 8:30-5:30) job to managing my own company, sourcing work, etc. Those of you who have made the leap, would you reccomend it? And are there things you wish you had known before you did? The money is obviously an appeal (while risky) but it is more the getting away from office politics, getting to work from home, taking long term holidays etc that appeals. The working from home being key, I fully intend to spend a month in Thailand later this year working remotely if I can. |
So who does contracting?
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RyanDS 14,074 posts
Seen 13 hours ago
Registered 13 years ago -
Jeepers 16,616 posts
Seen 7 hours ago
Registered 16 years agoI contracted for the last couple of decades. It’s good in many ways but get yourself a good accountant, don’t fuck around with HMRC and remember to put aside a good chunk of your cash to pay for holidays, sickness, pension etc. -
One good route to source work is to join local business networks such as the BNI. -
Make sure you've got enough savings to cover yourself if things go wrong. It'll stop you worrying if nothing else. You need the discipline obviously and sometimes you might miss the simplicity of paid holidays and having other people around. If you're working from home getting past the wanking stage is quite important or you'll wank your company down the drain. -
BreadBinLidHero 10,803 posts
Seen 4 hours ago
Registered 12 years agoYep, what Jeepers and Duke say. Make sure to put plenty aside for sickness/holidays. Also remember to take holidays, it can be quite easy to work yourself into the ground if you keep taking contract after contract to stave off the fear of running out of work. -
RyanDS 14,074 posts
Seen 13 hours ago
Registered 13 years agoCheers chaps. The wanking bit worries me. I have seen the Mitchell and Webb bit on it. -
How hard would it be to get another regular job if things don't work out? If not that hard then you don't really have much to lose.
Get an accountant and running a company is easy, just pay stuff when they tell you to.
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