How much do you consider to be a decent war chest?

[craig1]

I think you need to assess your own circumstances (commitments, dependancies, debts, outgoings) and then the field you work in, and how confident you are at what you do.

Don't listen to the people that seem to go out of their way to put people off contracting (it's unrealistic for any normal person to save £20K before contracting).

For me personally I am probably 95% confident I could walk out of my current contract today and walk into another for the same or more money within 10 working days. But then I don't mind where I work, if you have a family and cannot work away then you would have to be prepared to wait longer for a contract within a reasonably commutable distance.

I would be more than content with a warchest that would last me 3 months, and that is absolute worst case scenario (perhaps a dry period over Christmas with the added cost that Christmas brings).

I disagree. I know some very credible and experienced contractors who have been benched for a good bit of time, including a few who have previously been contracting solidly for years in different places.

If you can't save £20k then you probably are either:
1. Too inexperienced; or
2. Too financially troubled/inexperienced
to contract enough to be financially stable.

If you've a family to support then £20k doesn't go far and you may be forced into taking utter dross that's both demoralising and undervalued, defeating many of the key benefits of contracting.

Although people CAN do that, I'd recommend that they put aside about £400 as a plan b to help them get through bankruptcy court.

[TheFaQQer]

For me personally I am probably 95% confident I could walk out of my current contract today and walk into another for the same or more money within 10 working days. But then I don't mind where I work, if you have a family and cannot work away then you would have to be prepared to wait longer for a contract within a reasonably commutable distance.

So was I, until I had seven months off.

[bobspud]

So was I, until I had seven months off.

+1

I had 17 years of back to back employment. Then spent from october 2008 till march 2009 sat on my arse in shock, followed swiftly by a year on a really crap rate. Should have had a far larger contingency chest but had spent much of it on the basis that I hadn't needed it in 10 years so why would I need it now...

It took me to breaking point and I took most of 2010 to recover.

A war chest doesn't just cover out of work it needs to cover rate crashes as well.

Its a balance between getting rid as of as much debt as possible and getting as much cash in the business both are key to contracting. Remember you only ever have as much future income as your notice period...

I am working on getting my outgoings down to well below £1700 per month

[Jacko_1975]

To give you all some background I've got good development skills C#, wpf silverlight. All of which seem to be in demand but it's hard to tell from the job sites. Anyone with similar skillset know any better?

My permie roll if I stayed would involve a lot of travelling so I'm prepared for that...It's just a bit scary to make the jump...

[escapeUK]

To give you all some background I've got good development skills C#, wpf silverlight. All of which seem to be in demand but it's hard to tell from the job sites. Anyone with similar skillset know any better?

My permie roll if I stayed would involve a lot of travelling so I'm prepared for that...It's just a bit scary to make the jump...

I thought I read in PC Pro that microsoft were dropping silverlight? I consider enough to live on for 2 years a decent size.

[ChimpMaster]

+1

I had 17 years of back to back employment. Then spent from october 2008 till march 2009 sat on my arse in shock, followed swiftly by a year on a really crap rate. Should have had a far larger contingency chest but had spent much of it on the basis that I hadn't needed it in 10 years so why would I need it now...

It took me to breaking point and I took most of 2010 to recover.

A war chest doesn't just cover out of work it needs to cover rate crashes as well.

Its a balance between getting rid as of as much debt as possible and getting as much cash in the business both are key to contracting. Remember you only ever have as much future income as your notice period...

I am working on getting my outgoings down to well below £1700 per month

Don't get me wrong but 17 years and you're not comfortable yet? Or have I misunderstood in that perhaps you were contracting only a short while out of that?

I've also seen contracting as a 'bonus' period of my life and I treat the income with massive respect. Yes I enjoy the nice holiday or odd treat like a nice AV system, but otherwise I save/invest something like 70% of my post-tax earnings. I've only been contracting around 6 years. If I had been contracting for 17 years... wow the things I could do!

[SueEllen]

To give you all some background I've got good development skills C#, wpf silverlight. All of which seem to be in demand but it's hard to tell from the job sites. Anyone with similar skillset know any better?

My permie roll if I stayed would involve a lot of travelling so I'm prepared for that...It's just a bit scary to make the jump...

If you go contracting you may find yourself doing a lot of travelling.

Though you do have the advantage you can find a base for a few months except if it goes wrong.......

[bobspud]

Don't get me wrong but 17 years and you're not comfortable yet? Or have I misunderstood in that perhaps you were contracting only a short while out of that?

I've also seen contracting as a 'bonus' period of my life and I treat the income with massive respect. Yes I enjoy the nice holiday or odd treat like a nice AV system, but otherwise I save/invest something like 70% of my post-tax earnings. I've only been contracting around 6 years. If I had been contracting for 17 years... wow the things I could do!

Ever heard the saying: "if you can't be a good example then a terrible warning will have to do..."?

Fun has been had.

However I really would not recommend anyone follows my path.

Unless they like having serious fun

[ChimpMaster]

Ever heard the saying: "if you can't be a good example then a terrible warning will have to do..."?

Fun has been had.

However I really would not recommend anyone follows my path.

Unless they like having serious fun

Fair point. At least you've had a good life out of it

Must admit, if I had been contracting during my younger years, I would have probably had a great time out of it too. It's only because I was in my early 30s when I started and had already become all sensible and settled down, that I am like I am.

[kingcook]

It's just a bit scary to make the jump...

He who dares Rodders, he who dares my son!

I'd wanted to do contracting for a couple of years but was scared to make the jump. In the end i was pushed (made redundant from my permie job).

I liked it at first, then got major pissed off due to the amount of travelling and being away from the family, but the upside is that i've never had the amount of money that i have now, to spend on holidays, going out with the family at weekends, etc.

Another good thing is the amount of time i have not working between contracts, can get away with having a couple of months off at a time (providing enough warchest has been built up!)