I haven’t really blogged about this before, but approx. 1.5 years ago, I decided to quit my permanent job and start taking up only contract roles. I was a bit worried about this whole contracting thing, when I initially decided to take this route. I was concerned that what if I don’t get a project for an extended period of time etc and all those worries that any newbie would have. But it has been good so far.
I have been getting different roles throughout, not necessarily without a gap, though. My main skills are ColdFusion and Flex/AIR and out of the 3 contracts I have done in the past 1.5 years, one was purely ColdFusion, one was purely Flex and the third one was a mixture of both. It takes time to find contracts and there is almost always a little gap in when you finish one and start another one.
Coming to the reason of this post, I would like to announce that I have managed to setup my ltd company’s website . Yes, that’s the name – Ansh Consulting. I have tried to keep the website a simple and informational one. That’s how I like things to be – simple and straight forward. Feel free to have a look and feel free to do any constructive criticism as well. And without a question, feel free to send in any project queries that you would like to hire us for. No job too big or small.
#1 by jules on August 27, 2009 - 4:07 pm
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I had written you a long and nice criticism but WP said my message looked like spam. It was a lot that I wrote… Why do you check the contents for spam if you’re using reCaptcha?
#2 by Anuj Gakhar on August 27, 2009 - 4:18 pm
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Jules, sorry about the lost message you wrote. I do have anti-spam code in place and it has saved me from more than 20k+ spam messages till date. Not sure how yours got marked as spam?
Any chance of that message again though?
#3 by James White on August 27, 2009 - 4:41 pm
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Thanks for putting this up. I started contracting, but have not gone as far as starting a consulting firm. I have been contracting for a little over a year now. For me it has been a mixed bag. I like the money, but am not a fan of the lack of paid time off and sick days. I know that comes with the territory, but that part of the territory sucks. I hope things work out for you.
#4 by jules on August 27, 2009 - 11:17 pm
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I had a bunch of quotes (within double-quotes of course). I think that tripped the sensor. When I hit the back button the form was cleared ><
In short, I touched on using the words WE and US. Don't be afraid to let prospects know that you are not an over-priced high-overhead don't-have-time-for-small-clients web firm.
Using I, ME and MY are very intimate words. When you say YOU have/can deliver something, an instant connection is made with the prospect. It's a warm fuzzy.
Many of the people who contact me want that kind of relationship. They are tired (or even intimidated by the idea) of a full web firm.
#5 by Anuj Gakhar on August 28, 2009 - 7:48 am
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James, I know exactly what you are talking about. Not being able to take sicks and holidays. Thats something we have to live with, as a contractor. I have got used to it and dont feel bad about it anymore .
#6 by Anuj Gakhar on August 28, 2009 - 7:52 am
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Hi jules,
Thanks for posting again. I see what you mean. I have used the words “we” and “us” instad of “I” and “my” purely because I do have a couple of part-timers who can help me out if I can get more work than I can handle alone. But I understand what you are saying. And it totally makes sense.
#7 by jules on August 28, 2009 - 2:51 pm
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I’ve seen a lot of part time programmers, working on the side, use WE. And it just comes off as phony and perhaps weak. But in your case it’s legit, but not readily apparent on your site. Maybe some profile pics (or at least first names) would help.