Reply to: Budge up!

[Pogle]

I did not know you were from the promised land.... (albeit a rather wet one this morning)

or do you really mean Wilmslow?

Nope I'm North of the city - nowhere near Wilmslow.
Although i did once meet the CUK Wilmslow at one of the Manchester meets.

And i concur - it is pishing down this morning.... I blame the Tories

[original PM]

Pogle is on the bench
Just finished 22 months in London and looking forward to a bit of a rest.
Contract before this was 45 months with a 4 week gap in between, so not too fussed about finding my next contratct ... YET.

The sun is shining and the birds are singing up here in Manchester, I have a box set of Kurosawa Samurai films to watch and am writing a lit of all the chores i want to get done in the next few weeks.
Life is good!

I give it 4 weeks before I'm bored out of my mind and heading back down South though

I did not know you were from the promised land.... (albeit a rather wet one this morning)

or do you really mean Wilmslow?

[Pogle]

Approaching the dead zone end October to Feb / get in soon or prepare for winter fell

I've never really subscribed to the 'dead zone' theory and so I just looked over my CV and in the 9 years I've been contracting 63% of my contracts have started between November and February.
So it would appear to be a 'live zone' for me

[cojak]

Hey thanks.

Well I have been contracting for a while now, about 12 years.
But I do not have that thick skin perhaps as you say, possibly because I have never had a break in between contracts - apart from a few days, literally

Since I found the market to be crap these days, at least in my experience, I thought I should alert you in case you Did not know. As they say, every little helps, including a timely suggestion / alert. That was the intention of my tone, nothing else.

You do seem to be very seasoned contractor from what you say and your bench time from the past, etc., so you know what you are doing

So please do ignore my post ... My apologies.

Nope, you meant well.

[tarbera]

Budge up!

Approaching the dead zone end October to Feb / get in soon or prepare for winter fell

[norrahe]

Just bought my self a nice bottle of zubrowka, as it happens ....

I have about 5 bottles of different types in my freezer currently.

They are classified as mixing voddy, voddy and tonic voddy and of course martini voddy, might have got a tad into cocktails in the last couple of years

[Pogle]

Hey thanks.

Well I have been contracting for a while now, about 12 years.
But I do not have that thick skin perhaps as you say, possibly because I have never had a break in between contracts - apart from a few days, literally

Since I found the market to be crap these days, at least in my experience, I thought I should alert you in case you Did not know. As they say, every little helps, including a timely suggestion / alert. That was the intention of my tone, nothing else.

You do seem to be very seasoned contractor from what you say and your bench time from the past, etc., so you know what you are doing

So please do ignore my post ... My apologies.

Hmm now theres a big assumption!!
But seriously i hope the dry spell ends for you soon, and in the mean time enjoy your time off

[Pogle]

You've now got some time to work on your voddy and tonic drinking!

Just bought my self a nice bottle of zubrowka, as it happens ....

[norrahe]

You've now got some time to work on your voddy and tonic drinking!

[Milkyway]

Lacking thick skin indeed.

From the tone of your post I'm assuming you haven’t been doing this long have you?
Most of what agents say can be ignored apart from details about the interview they want you to go on or the start date.
You need a thick skin to be a contractor.
The longest I've spent on the bench is 8 months in 2008, I'm sorry you're finding it a bit quiet out there.
The market for my (niche) skill set is quite buoyant, but I can hold out for about 6 months if I need to and if the worst comes to the worst I could always get a permie job with a consultancy

Good luck!

Hey thanks.

Well I have been contracting for a while now, about 12 years.
But I do not have that thick skin perhaps as you say, possibly because I have never had a break in between contracts - apart from a few days, literally

Since I found the market to be crap these days, at least in my experience, I thought I should alert you in case you Did not know. As they say, every little helps, including a timely suggestion / alert. That was the intention of my tone, nothing else.

You do seem to be very seasoned contractor from what you say and your bench time from the past, etc., so you know what you are doing

So please do ignore my post ... My apologies.

[BrilloPad]

Careful when sitting down. You don't want to sit on that guinea pig.

[Pogle]

Yay. Take it easy m'dear

Hello Sweetie

[Pogle]

This is exactly how I thought in August... thought i had just finished a long contract and would take a week off, then start looking. Ever since then, it has been 6 weeks.

<SNIP>

Just keep your ears open for any new work right from now, that is all!

From the tone of your post I'm assuming you haven’t been doing this long have you?
Most of what agents say can be ignored apart from details about the interview they want you to go on or the start date.
You need a thick skin to be a contractor.
The longest I've spent on the bench is 8 months in 2008, I'm sorry you're finding it a bit quiet out there.
The market for my (niche) skill set is quite buoyant, but I can hold out for about 6 months if I need to and if the worst comes to the worst I could always get a permie job with a consultancy

Good luck!

[EternalOptimist]

This is exactly how I thought in August... thought i had just finished a long contract and would take a week off, then start looking. Ever since then, it has been 6 weeks.

20 calls so far, no interviews landed!
The market is horrible from what i have seen so far.

The agents are not being truthful too - Yesterday there was an agent who said a hot role was out there and discussed it with me, and said he was going to go back into a meeting right away, and in 35 minutes he will send me an email of the job spec.
Ever since that, Nothing!
It will be 35 hours in about few hours, and he is gone into "void"
He could have very well said nothing! Wonder why he said 35 minute, and he will be back

Not that i am depending on him only.. but its just that when they know the market is pants, the least they can do is to not give some silly assurances to send job spec etc. at least when they know they are never going to come back on that!

@OP - Not trying to scare you or spoil your holiday mood , but I don't want you too to be in the same position as I am now, in couple of weeks down the line, especially since it will be November time when you are planning to look for work again.

The agents are telling that if no contracts are signed off this month, don't expect anything to happen until early Feb 16

Just my 2 pence...

Anyway, forget about all that i said please, and do enjoy your holidays!
You deserve it, especially after a long contract!

Just keep your ears open for any new work right from now, that is all!

Err....
Good advice Milky Way. One thing always troubled me tho.
You know that fluff in yer belly button ?

Where does that come from ?

[EternalOptimist]

Pogle is on the bench
Just finished 22 months in London and looking forward to a bit of a rest.
Contract before this was 45 months with a 4 week gap in between, so not too fussed about finding my next contratct ... YET.

The sun is shining and the birds are singing up here in Manchester, I have a box set of Kurosawa Samurai films to watch and am writing a lit of all the chores i want to get done in the next few weeks.
Life is good!

I give it 4 weeks before I'm bored out of my mind and heading back down South though

Yay. Take it easy m'dear