from great contract to dull contract

[contractor79]

have you ever gone from a great contract where everyone loves you, you love them, you love the work, plenty of talent to check out, the birds are singing for you each morning as you hop and skip into work etc...

...into a contract where you don't really like them, the work, the place, the coffee from the coffee machine, the canteen, the location, the weather, and no decent birds around... oh my it's not easy to take is it?

how do you cope with this? do you just pretend you love it and bag the rate whilst you search for the next dream gig?

[SantaClaus]

have you ever gone from a great contract where everyone loves you, you love them, you love the work, plenty of talent to check out, the birds are singing for you each morning as you hop and skip into work etc...

...into a contract where you don't really like them, the work, the place, the coffee from the coffee machine, the canteen, the location, the weather, and no decent birds around... oh my it's not easy to take is it?

how do you cope with this? do you just pretend you love it and bag the rate whilst you search for the next dream gig?

Sounds exactly like the contract I took at a well known bank that turned into a maintenance and support role. I stuck it out for the bags of money until the boredom was killing me. Then I gave it all up for plan B.

[gingerjedi]

I don't know what you mean? I've only ever had one great contract as the other 5 were all crap. I've never really enjoyed working though, it just gets in the way of the other things I want to do.

[suityou01]

have you ever gone from a great contract where everyone loves you, you love them, you love the work, plenty of talent to check out, the birds are singing for you each morning as you hop and skip into work etc...

...into a contract where you don't really like them, the work, the place, the coffee from the coffee machine, the canteen, the location, the weather, and no decent birds around... oh my it's not easy to take is it?

how do you cope with this? do you just pretend you love it and bag the rate whilst you search for the next dream gig?

Hey dude long time no post. Yes I have had this. I can only relate what I have learned, and this may just be for me so please take with a pinch of salt.
When you start, and all is good, you get on as people that is just how it is. Essentially you as people get on. Remember that, it will be useful later.

Then as you get to know each other, cracks start to form. Usually for me this happens when you show people up. As a contractor you will outshine your colleagues, most probably, there are some exceptions. It is not deliberate, you just try and work as best you can and do the best job you can. Try and pay attention to the culture.

For example, do they rush to leave at 4:30? Ie they hate their job and you just didn't notice. Are there lots of posters on the wall encouraging the employees to be company people? That means they have a high turnover of staff and are trying to increase retention.

Keep your radar on, and don't be so eager to please. Try and look at the people you work with and work out what motivates them. Are they out of their depth? Are they bored? Are they looking to move?

Don't take things personally and try to keep away from the front line of decision making. You can still put ideas across but from a more rear guard position. When you do this people feel less threatened. You can always prepare public opinion first, chuck an idea across the table over lunch, see peoples reactions and then three weeks later put it across formally in a meeting. They have heard the idea before so will be less resistant, and will have had time to chew it over. Slowly slowly catchy monkey.

In a weeks time the coffee won't seem so bad and the birds will start chirping again.

[NotAllThere]

...
how do you cope with this?...

Start taking LSD. Everything becomes much more interesting then.

[bobhope]

I don't know what you mean? I've only ever had one great contract as the other 5 were all crap. I've never really enjoyed working though, it just gets in the way of the other things I want to do.

I never understood why other people were so eager to stay late at work. Personally, I've got a 101 things better / more important to be doing.

[Francko]

I never understood why other people were so eager to stay late at work. Personally, I've got a 101 things better / more important to be doing.

Did you write a book about it? Now it's 102.

[BrilloPad]

Sounds exactly like the contract I took at a well known bank that turned into a maintenance and support role. I stuck it out for the bags of money until the boredom was killing me. Then I gave it all up for plan B.

WHS. Interestringly it is the same bank!

[swamp]

Definitely in a type II (dull) contract at the moment.

All work is dull in a certain way, but I'd say only a few projects I've been on have been decent greenfield developments, and even then they have often been scuppered by management incompetence or similar.

Most of my career has been a fiasco of sorts. I'm just used to it now.

[moorfield]

how do you cope with this?

Next time you visit trap 2 take a stopwatch and a calculator with you. You'll feel better afterwards.