Reply to: How you all got started?

[No2politics]

Wanted to work as a contractor from the time I was at Uni. Looking at the contracting jobs adverts on a Friday was the only thing that kept me in at the weekend to do my assigments.

Knew I would not get a contract role without experience, so I went to work for a consulting company from Uni. to get experience.

After a few years went contracting.

Similar to myself although I only discovered contracting when one did a stint and my permie place of work. Was studying for masters in spare time- money is a good motivator. Still tough when ur house mates are having BBQs outside and you have to revise.

But it paid off as they say

[SimonMac]

I was born a mermaid.

For years I sat on a rock in Docklands Harbour, combing my hair, watching IT contractors come and go into the shiny buildings. Oh, how I loved shiny things and I longed to join them, drinking champagne and eating caviar! But it seemed an impossible dream.

One day, a courier arrived from Helvetica and promised he could grant my wish. I could trade my fishy tail to work in IT. I could work in not one shiny building, but all of them! I jumped at the opportunity (and it's very difficult to jump when you haven't got legs), but it was a trap - I was destined to spend eternity inside a computer, writing characters to the screen at the beck and call of the user. You may have come across me - my name is Arial...

[SimonMac]

How do I become a tester?

I failed at everything else in life and someone told me I was qualified

[mudskipper]

A fishy tale

I was born a mermaid.

For years I sat on a rock in Docklands Harbour, combing my hair, watching IT contractors come and go into the shiny buildings. Oh, how I loved shiny things and I longed to join them, drinking champagne and eating caviar! But it seemed an impossible dream.

One day, a courier arrived from Helvetica and promised he could grant my wish. I could trade my fishy tail to work in IT. I could work in not one shiny building, but all of them! I jumped at the opportunity (and it's very difficult to jump when you haven't got legs), but it was a trap - I was destined to spend eternity inside a computer, writing characters to the screen at the beck and call of the user. You may have come across me - my name is Arial...

[alreadypacked]

Wanted to work as a contractor from the time I was at Uni. Looking at the contracting jobs adverts on a Friday was the only thing that kept me in at the weekend to do my assigments.

Knew I would not get a contract role without experience, so I went to work for a consulting company from Uni. to get experience.

After a few years went contracting.

[EternalOptimist]

I started out in the military. I was a low grade grunt till they discovered I was into scuba, so they sent me on a diving course, to learn how to set, find and defuse underwater explosive charges. My job was to stop the terrorists blowing up our ships.
When we were on land, we used sniffer dogs, mostly alsatians, and they were highly effective, so it occurred to me that they might have an underwater role. And thats how I got into design.
Fitting a dog with an underwater mask is a tough challenge beacause there are many different shaped dog faces but I was successful in the end and the British army underwater sniffer dog cadre was formed, with me as the commanding officer.

Most of our work was and is shrouded in secrecy but there was one operation that does not fall under the official secrets act and a very curious tale it is too. I was sent to the pacific to help out the Greenpeace ship 'Rainbow warrior' because they claimed they were about to be sabotaged. My faithful companion 'sniffers' found an explosive charge straight away, attached to the keel, it had the words 'Cette façon de' stencilled on it. The French!
I radioed back to London for instructions and I recieved a reply from Ted Heath(Martgaret Thatchers father) 'Leave it'
And so the French scored their biggest naval victory since Trafalgar.

It was after this that the army discovered I could use excel, so they transferred me into the 'cyber army corps'. but I cant talk about that.

[Old Greg]

The details of my life are quite inconsequential....

Very well, where do I begin?
My father was a relentlessly self-improving boulangerie owner from Belgium with low-grade narcolepsy and a penchant for buggery.
My mother was a 15-year-old French prostitute named Chloe with webbed feet.
My father would womanize; he would drink. He would make outrageous claims like he invented the question mark. Sometimes, he would accuse chestnuts of being lazy. The sort of general malaise that only the genius possesses and the insane lament...
My childhood was typical: summers in Rangoon... luge lessons... In the spring, we'd make meat helmets... When I was insolent I was placed in a burlap bag and beaten with reeds — pretty standard, really.
At the age of 12, I received my first scribe. At the age of 14, a Zoroastrian named Wilma ritualistically shaved my testicles — there really is nothing like a shorn scrotum — it's quite breathtaking... I suggest you try it.

[bless 'em all]

Worked in a call center when new software was deployed. I refused to use it because it was crap.

I was asked to put the problems in writing - turned out that was my first ever defect report.

Been breaking software for the past 15 years now. It never gets old.

[Doggy Styles]

By accident. Someone offered me a contracting job.

[vetran]

dragged way through low value poly sandwich course after doing virtually nothing for 3 6thform years, did a bit of PC stuff during work year, company asked me back after the course to work in lab, got job in IT dept - 2 of us....
Did everything PC in the place as they started to get introduced, started working for headoffice in brussels, lots of travel there, paris, atlanta, Italy (gets old quickly even in early 20's)
Company said job was going to brussels without me in it, do I want to move into shipping dept ?
er no, contract draughtsman said I should try contracting (this was 1993....) so started faxing my CV to agents in Freelance Informer.
Got support contract job 2x salary and had a no gap 10 year run. luck then ran out, support was/is dead, took a crap perm job for half last contract rate (very scary time) and took me 3 years to reinvent myself as SDM, lied, scratched, blagged my way into crap 'proper' SDM perm role and then into contract SDM role and never looked back. I am now a PM which I dont really like apart from the rate...

RanOutOfSpacesAndGrammar.

[BlueSharp]

Went through clearing to get into Uni and ended up doing a part computer science degree at a half decent uni; found my inner geek and went into a junior tech role when I graduated. Worked my way up the permie tree to Lead Dev/IT manager roles realised I could get paid more with less permie hassle and decided to go contracting as a dev.

[d000hg]

You boys getting ready for the next series of The Apprentice?

I'm a serial entrepreneur. As soon as one goes titsup I start another.

[lukemg]

dragged way through low value poly sandwich course after doing virtually nothing for 3 6thform years, did a bit of PC stuff during work year, company asked me back after the course to work in lab, got job in IT dept - 2 of us....
Did everything PC in the place as they started to get introduced, started working for headoffice in brussels, lots of travel there, paris, atlanta, Italy (gets old quickly even in early 20's)
Company said job was going to brussels without me in it, do I want to move into shipping dept ?
er no, contract draughtsman said I should try contracting (this was 1993....) so started faxing my CV to agents in Freelance Informer.
Got support contract job 2x salary and had a no gap 10 year run. luck then ran out, support was/is dead, took a crap perm job for half last contract rate (very scary time) and took me 3 years to reinvent myself as SDM, lied, scratched, blagged my way into crap 'proper' SDM perm role and then into contract SDM role and never looked back. I am now a PM which I dont really like apart from the rate...

[DirtyDog]

I was born a contractor. My first word was Invoice.

Mine was money.

Me daft old dear thought I was saying mummy.

You boys getting ready for the next series of The Apprentice?

[Doggy Styles]

Mine was money.

Me daft old dear thought I was saying mummy.

Mine was paddy. My daft old man... etc