Plan B Overdrive

[Gumbo Robot]

Plan B is the only way forward for us ageing developers in my opinion.

I reach the ripe old age of 50 next March & my Plan B has started with a realistic aim of being my main income in 4 years time. I intend to slow down my contracting days over that period from 9 months work this year down to 5 or 6 months work a year in 4 years. Again I feel this is realistic in today's climate. By then I think my work will have completely dried up as a full time profession.

Really hope my Plan B works as I'm putting a lot of effort into it with no reward at all at present.

I am in the same place. May also be a reason why things are starting to dry up...

[ChimpMaster]

I am in the same place. May also be a reason why things are starting to dry up...

I'm probably 7 or 8 years younger but was going to put up a similar post. I've been contracting for around 10 years now in the same tech and knew it was going to go out of fashion but I must admit that my lackadaisical attitude meant that I didn’t move on. It wasn’t just that though: the rates I managed to secure were decent and tempted me to stay on til the waves hit the shore.

So I’m now in the situation where I have at most 6 months left on this contract and there hasn’t been a new contract advertised in the past 2 years (or more!). I can probably get a permie job as a generalist rather than a tech specialist (in my field) but it’ll be a hard grind for what, £50k a year? Or a much harder grind for say £90k a year. But that’s not my cup of tea any more. I also feel burnt out. I have the ability to learn new things but right now little energy or motivation to do so. A couple of months off would be nice but that would kill my IT career (easier to get a job while you’re in one, and certainly if I’m trying to change skillsets).

So I don’t know what I’m going to do – in terms of IT anyway. I have been investing in property, though it’s certainly not an empire and hasn’t grown in value as much as say a London asset would – but with a bit more attention it would pay my bills.

My bigger concern is what the heck am I going to do with my life. I’m used to being the point expert in my tech, but the tech is not in demand any more. Clearly like many here I have much else to offer, but I feel somewhat naked without my core tech skill. Is this what retirement feels like?

Now what?

[Gaz_M]

I'm probably 7 or 8 years younger but was going to put up a similar post. I've been contracting for around 10 years now in the same tech and knew it was going to go out of fashion but I must admit that my lackadaisical attitude meant that I didn’t move on. It wasn’t just that though: the rates I managed to secure were decent and tempted me to stay on til the waves hit the shore.

So I’m now in the situation where I have at most 6 months left on this contract and there hasn’t been a new contract advertised in the past 2 years (or more!). I can probably get a permie job as a generalist rather than a tech specialist (in my field) but it’ll be a hard grind for what, £50k a year? Or a much harder grind for say £90k a year. But that’s not my cup of tea any more. I also feel burnt out. I have the ability to learn new things but right now little energy or motivation to do so. A couple of months off would be nice but that would kill my IT career (easier to get a job while you’re in one, and certainly if I’m trying to change skillsets).

So I don’t know what I’m going to do – in terms of IT anyway. I have been investing in property, though it’s certainly not an empire and hasn’t grown in value as much as say a London asset would – but with a bit more attention it would pay my bills.

My bigger concern is what the heck am I going to do with my life. I’m used to being the point expert in my tech, but the tech is not in demand any more. Clearly like many here I have much else to offer, but I feel somewhat naked without my core tech skill. Is this what retirement feels like?

Now what?

That is so close to how I feel I could almost have written that post myself!

However, about 6 months ago I realised that "what the heck am I going to do with my life" was a reality staring me in the face. I have until the end of July in my current gig and like you, I haven't seen hardly any other contract out there with my skill set for a long long time. Not that that would matter a great deal as I too just feel burnt out with this contracting game. I just can't motivate myself to go & start somewhere else fresh, get to know everybody again, fit in, make an impression etc etc.

Try to get a Plan B on the go. Your property investment could well be it.

One thing I don't agree with is that two months out of this game would kill an IT career. I aim to take 3, 4 or 5 months off in between every contract once my Plan B gets going. I've also come across contractors who only do three months here and three months there & it's never stopped them getting work.

[sirja]

Plan B is the only way forward for us ageing developers in my opinion.

I reach the ripe old age of 50 next March & my Plan B has started with a realistic aim of being my main income in 4 years time. I intend to slow down my contracting days over that period from 9 months work this year down to 5 or 6 months work a year in 4 years. Again I feel this is realistic in today's climate. By then I think my work will have completely dried up as a full time profession.

Really hope my Plan B works as I'm putting a lot of effort into it with no reward at all at present.

Totally with you Gaz_M. Iam approaching mid 40's and I really don't see myself doing this full time in the next 5 years. I am lucky and I am on a long term project at the moment, so I've got time to focus and getting plan B off the ground. I guess Being a developer is a young mans job these days. Shame as I really like the work, it's all the other stuff that just wares you down.

[ChimpMaster]

That is so close to how I feel I could almost have written that post myself!

However, about 6 months ago I realised that "what the heck am I going to do with my life" was a reality staring me in the face. I have until the end of July in my current gig and like you, I haven't seen hardly any other contract out there with my skill set for a long long time. Not that that would matter a great deal as I too just feel burnt out with this contracting game. I just can't motivate myself to go & start somewhere else fresh, get to know everybody again, fit in, make an impression etc etc.

Try to get a Plan B on the go. Your property investment could well be it.

One thing I don't agree with is that two months out of this game would kill an IT career. I aim to take 3, 4 or 5 months off in between every contract once my Plan B gets going. I've also come across contractors who only do three months here and three months there & it's never stopped them getting work.

I'm glad I posted this then because it is a very lonely feeling sometimes!

The point about the 2 months off was that there isn’t another contract for me to walk into, and very likely won’t be one. It’s OK for contractors who are in a more marketable skillset; they can work as and when they like because they know there is always another contract available. For me, when I leave this contract I will have to find something completely different to work on, most likely a permie job, and that won’t be easy if I’m unemployed for any length of time.

[Gaz_M]

I'm glad I posted this then because it is a very lonely feeling sometimes!

The point about the 2 months off was that there isn’t another contract for me to walk into, and very likely won’t be one. It’s OK for contractors who are in a more marketable skillset; they can work as and when they like because they know there is always another contract available. For me, when I leave this contract I will have to find something completely different to work on, most likely a permie job, and that won’t be easy if I’m unemployed for any length of time.

Sounds like your Plan B is a must.

The thought of going permie doing this would have me reaching for the medicine cabinet and a bottle of Jim Beam.

[SunnyInHades]

50ish does seem an age many dev contractors are thinking of doing something else. Not all but certainly quite a few.

The 2015 stackoverflow developers survey has the following age breakdown for perm jobs:

60+ 0.5%
51-60 1.9%
40-50 7.6%
35-39 9.1%
30-34 17.8%
25-29 28.5%
20-24 24.5%
< 20 8.8%

with an average age of 28.9

I'm sure contractor age breakdowns have much higher percentages for older ages; I'd be very curious to find out what the 51-60% would be - although higher than perm I still suspect quite a drop from 40-50

[unixman]

I'm 47 and reading this with interest. As a systems administrator, I find the contracts are still to be had, but mostly a mon-fri schlepp and pay rates about the same as 2006. Plan B would be starting a consultancy or some buy-to-let, but I've no time to focus on either.

What are you guys' plan Bs?

[BlasterBates]

I am in the same place. May also be a reason why things are starting to dry up...

No I doubt it.

I contracted for many years but in 2013 I gave up. It has become harder.

This is a general problem not only in the UK but also in other places, Germany and Switzerland for example.

This is due mainly to many large companies ramping up offshore development centres.

I now work permie for a telco company and they're are doing the same as the bank I worked at in Switzerland. Basically they split the work between permies and "contractors" in Eastern Europe, the bank had a centre in the Ukraine and the telco company has contractors in Rumania.

Remote team working, seems to work quite well, in other words one permie works with one or two offshored contractors.

The upside is there are actually plenty of permie roles (though not if you're died in the wool contractor obviously). If permie roles can't be filled they simply use offshore contractors, which is why the contractor market is a bit dead.

Either you have to specialise and be really top at some speciality, in which case you can command high rates, or alternatively look for a good permie role, which are very plentiful.

I'm about your age and had no problem getting a permie role. I couldn't be bothered chasing contractor roles in the back of beyond paying bad rates.

[ChimpMaster]

I'm 47 and reading this with interest. As a systems administrator, I find the contracts are still to be had, but mostly a mon-fri schlepp and pay rates about the same as 2006. Plan B would be starting a consultancy or some buy-to-let, but I've no time to focus on either.

What are you guys' plan Bs?

Mainly BTL, but I'm concerned that it's all eggs in one basket so I can't give up working altogether. Hence will probably have to kill myself in some permie job for a few years once my contract ends in a few months' time.