Well, after 16 months of trying to get Overpass up and running as an outsourcing company, Iâm going back to contracting.
Itâs been fun. Iâve met a lot of great developers, been to China a few times to meet with software companies, and have worked on projects for small companies here and there. But my skills as a salesman are terribleâand I hate cold-calling more than anything. So, itâs time to change direction and get back to doing what I do well.
Even while trying to run my own software business, Iâve continued to codeâlearning technologies like Silverlight and NHibernate. The nice thing about taking time off from contracting is that you get to build the skills you want to have, instead of the skills people will hire you for. Iâm my own DIY project and I can never stop learning the new skills.
Getting back to contracting is a big relief to me. Selling myself (as a developer) has never been difficult, but selling the skills of other developers is tough.
On Monday I start a new contract in Basingstoke. Iâm very excited about it. My main goal while looking for a contract was to stay out of London. Londonâs a great place but I want to get familiar with more of England. If I can stay away from the crowded trains and tubes, all the better. Iâm starting a four-month contract with a company that looks like it will be a lot of fun. It also gives me the chance to work from home a few days a week.
Itâs a good solid coding jobâno offshoring at all. Also, no mentoring, no team leading, and no budgeting. Itâs going to be great.
Overpass will continue to be a company, but it will be a company of one.
Is this a failure? Um. . . not yet.
Iâm thirty-eightâI probably havenât even reached this lifeâs half-way point. Iâm looking forward to the future and am very optimistic about it. Seven years ago, I was a permanent employee for a tiny company in Reading. Thirteen years ago, I was a substitute teacher in Missouri and became a qualified to teach high school. Twenty years ago, I was a soldier learning to speak Chinese. Who knows what the future will bring?