Has contracting made you lose perspective on money?

[Zero Liability]

For example - a good friend of mine left the Royal Marines after 8 years or so. He is a bright bloke, but only had a few average GCSEs to his name.

He trained to be a sparky of sorts - installing access control, alarms, cameras, whatever. He got a job with Chubb or something similar. He then, after a few years, started subcontracting. He earns 70k ish a year which is pretty good for a few aveerage GCSEs.

He could have trained, like another pal did when he left, to be an awsome scuba instructor. He earns alot less though - because he chose to be good at something which people value less.

It's also down to how effective you are at marketing your value proposition, whether as a permie or a contractor, which includes an element of negotiation. No different to what a company has to do when selling any other type of good or service.

[unixman]

Somebody once said that being rich really just means being slightly richer than your brother-in-law. The OP has overheard a conversation that makes him think he is richer than one of his peers, so now he feels rich and a bit smug.

Don't fall for it. Everybody secretly thinks they are richer than everybody else, but also plays down their own wealth in public. Your yummy mummy probably wouldn't mention their other 3 houses or that mountain of cash they just inherited, or the million pound pension pot.

[vetran]

Somebody once said that being rich really just means being slightly richer than your brother-in-law. The OP has overheard a conversation that makes him think he is richer than one of his peers, so now he feels rich and a bit smug.

Don't fall for it. Everybody secretly thinks they are richer than everybody else, but also plays down their own wealth in public. Your yummy mummy probably wouldn't mention their other 3 houses or that mountain of cash they just inherited, or the million pound pension pot.

no people really do live hand to month and overtime or bonus makes a real difference.

I put my hand in my pocket and there is always money there. We have a house bigger than the majority of our friends (and my Brother in law). we are wealthy (I have to work) but not rich.

[PurpleGorilla]

no people really do live hand to month and overtime or bonus makes a real difference.

That is so true, so many couples who are mortgage slaves servicing huge living costs and managing hand to mouth with no savings. This is the reality out there.

How this lot can be expected to a) support the recovery of UK plc, and b) finance the baby boom retirement crew, I do not know!

Having enough money takes the day to day worry of it out of your mind; which is a lovely place to be.

[psychocandy]

Only problem I find is that you get used to spending the money. We're not flash but pay for nice holidays. Cars are average nothing special. But if we want something we have it - without thinking. Not huge purchases but stuff before we had to be careful with i.e. mrs spends £200 on some clothes, we buy a new TV, £300 on garden furniture etc.

I'd be screwed now if I went back to permie :-)

Mrs works (or worked) part-time as nurse. £900 a month it was. Shes been off ill for a year or so now and looks like she's going to have to can it (she may get some money but not a lot). Bit of a bummer. £900 is £900 but I can imagine for some people it would mean unable to pay the mortgage etc. For us its just a bit of an inconvenience (whilst Im on contract)

Although always say its handy to have a partner who earns 'some' income when your on the bench if only to pay the mortgage.

Always moan about long commute on train to client, but most days at 730 I see a poor sod hoovering the floor in the shopping centre I walk though. Probably gets less per week than I do in a day for that.

[eek]

That is so true, so many couples who are mortgage slaves servicing huge living costs and managing hand to mouth with no savings. This is the reality out there.

How this lot can be expected to a) support the recovery of UK plc, and b) finance the baby boom retirement crew, I do not know!

Having enough money takes the day to day worry of it out of your mind; which is a lovely place to be.

They can't but worse than that house prices can't be allowed to fall to fix the problem....

[SpontaneousOrder]

Somebody once said that being rich really just means being slightly richer than your brother-in-law. The OP has overheard a conversation that makes him think he is richer than one of his peers, so now he feels rich and a bit smug.

Don't fall for it. Everybody secretly thinks they are richer than everybody else, but also plays down their own wealth in public. Your yummy mummy probably wouldn't mention their other 3 houses or that mountain of cash they just inherited, or the million pound pension pot.

Plus... you being 'rich' helps everyone else anyway.
How many of these poor people on 20k a year are walking around with pocket sized supercomputer telephones? It's not people on 20k a year that made them possible, let alone afordable to the masses.

[PurpleGorilla]

They can't but worse than that house prices can't be allowed to fall to fix the problem....

Allowed to fall. That suggests there is something beyond a free market going on. Surely not?!?

But prices are high due to a) demand (remember the hundreds of thousands of migrants living on village greens), and b) mortgages are cheap, cheap! Ok so the government has HTB, HTB2, HTB3; but that isn't interfering in a free market is it?

Prices falling would be (impossible) terrible news for the banks, stamp duty, and BTL landlords. Why do we want young people to have money to spend on beyond housing. It will just get wasted on iPads. Although We could lower the threshold they have to start paying their student debt; or even tax them more to pay off the national debt. Seems fair; the minimum wage is lower for under 21s so why not increase tax for under 21s too. They just would waste it on clubbing if they were allowed to keep more.

[eek]

Allowed to fall. That suggests there is something beyond a free market going on. Surely not?!?

But prices are high due to a) demand (remember the hundreds of thousands of migrants living on village greens), and b) mortgages are cheap, cheap! Ok so the government has HTB, HTB2, HTB3; but that isn't interfering in a free market is it?

Prices falling would be (impossible) terrible news for the banks, stamp duty, and BTL landlords. Why do we want young people to have money to spend on beyond housing. It will just get wasted on iPads. Although We could lower the threshold they have to start paying their student debt; or even tax them more to pay off the national debt. Seems fair; the minimum wage is lower for under 21s so why not increase tax for under 21s too. They just would waste it on clubbing if they were allowed to keep more.

There is a free market but it's propped up by 0% interest rates. Once they return to historic levels a lot of people are going to be utterly screwed especially landlords

[MarillionFan]

It's also down to how effective you are at marketing your value proposition, whether as a permie or a contractor, which includes an element of negotiation. No different to what a company has to do when selling any other type of good or service.

WHS

Contracting gave me the ability to have a great disposal income and the flexibility. When I went permie (done it twice from contract) in both cases I negotiated a perm salary equivalent equal to my contractor takehome but both with shares in the company. The first time there was no financial upside, this time is different and I now take home twice after tax as I did as a contractor. But it will all down to negotiation.