February is a month of love and winners.

February 14th is Valentine’s Day, the day we recognise and spoil our loved ones. February is also about celebrating winners; the Super bowl took place on 5th February and the Oscars take place on 26th February.

We thought it would be timely to post our article on why people love contracting and how they made it a successful career for them.

Contracting is not suited to everybody, it can be unpredictable, you might be offered several contracts at once, or, you might be without a contract for months. This unpredictability can put some people off taking a contract role. They like the feel of security that a permanent role gives and they feel a sense of comfort from the fact they will receive a monthly wage.

For those who embrace the contracting lifestyle, they can enjoy:

• the ability to decide what projects they work on, when and where
• the variety of projects they can choose from
• the variety of people they get to work with
• the ability to learn new skills from other contractors
• the option to work hard for a period of time and then take an extended period of leave
• having control over their career
• the potential to earn good money
• not having to deal with office politics

If you are thinking of becoming a contractor, our website has a wealth of information that explains the best way to set yourself up as a contractor.

We asked a number of contractors what they did to make contracting a successful career route for them. This is what they told us:

Do what you say you would do, and then some
Fulfil everything the client asked for in the brief and then add a little extra in.

Charge what you think your service is worth
By charging too little you are undermining your expertise, and if you over charge, the client may not be able to afford you.

Make an effort to fit into the team
You will probably be working alongside permanent members of staff and maybe other contractors. You do not want to alienate yourself from these people. This could be noticed by the client and work against you when it comes to contract renewal.

Show the client that your services are adding value
Let the client know what you are doing and the results you are achieving.

Market yourself 
As a contractor you have to think of yourself as a business and market yourself as one. Think about creating a website for your contracting business, have a presence on social media or even create your own blog where you write about things that are happening in your industry.

Network
In person at relevant industry events and online as well.

Enjoy what you do
If you are not enjoying it, don’t do it. How happy you are in your role will show through in the quality of your work.

If you are thinking of entering the contracting world for the first time and are looking for advice on what is the best route for you, give our team a call on 020 8952 2234 and they will be delighted to discuss this with you.