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On Being a Road Warrior with SQL Server

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On Being a Road Warrior with SQL Server:
Ralph wrote in with some thoughts and experiences on being a consultant in the world of SQL Server (actually, just about anywhere) –

"After reading Chris Shaw’s comments, I thought I’d toss a couple of points out.


When I was doing Road Warrior duty (aka Contracting), I was often asked by FTE’s about what it took to be a Road Warrior. My answer was, basically, as follow:

First, you have to memorize and learn to live by what I refer to as the Three Laws of Contracting:

1. Do what you are assigned to the best of your ability as quickly as possible, as efficiently as possible, and as correctly as possible . . . no matter what it is you are assigned unless it violates the law, your morals, or your ethics (in which case you have to make your own decision about how to handle the situation).

2. Track your time.

3. Bill same.

Second, you need to come to grips with the Good News and the Bad News about contracting. The Good News is that, no matter how bad things are, you are not there forever. The Bad News is that, no matter how good things are, you are not there forever.

Third, You need to realize that you are a Hired Gun. Just like in the old western movies, you have been hired to come in and address a problem that exists. That means that your inherent goal is to work yourself out of a job. Quite often, the FTE’s with whom you are working may see you as an intruder, an interloper, and a threat to their existence because the implications of your being there are that they couldn’t handle the problem. If you share your knowledge freely and are willing to work at fitting in with them (at least to the extent required to get the job done), you may calm those waters. If you do not, you may find yourself more and more isolated and you may find it harder and harder to get things done.

Fourth, if you have ever considered making your living playing Blackjack or Texas Hold ’em, you may be a good candidate for becoming a Road Warrior. If the idea that you may have to budget so that your 9 month contract’s income covers 12 months or your 12 month contract’s income covers 15 months causes your stomach to churn, then you are probably not a good candidate.

Finally, if your stomach churns a bit at the thought of being the new guy on a team on an extremely regular basis and you hate the thought of job interviews and you have an aversion to learning how to find new job locations (and, often, new apartments 😉 on a regular basis, then you may not want to consider the life of a Road Warrior."

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