It’s always exciting when you first find out you landed the ‘big gig’ … it doesn’t take long before the edge that you had when you were brought on board for begins to dimenish.
What happens? I think it’s comfort zone … the money starts coming in like a paycheck and to ‘hunt’ for the next gig stops. You no longer HAVE to keep your skills at the top of your game in order to entice the next client. And before you know it – your toast!
And you not only have a paying gig, but you’ve dropped the ball on your game and have some serious catchup to do. It happens to contractors all the time, I thought I was past it … but it just happened to some degree. Luckily it was caught, acknowledged and straightened before being let go for the next SEO with cutting edge knowledge.
When you take a gig, don’t forget about all the things you are doing right now to keep your edge … now make sure they are a part of your routine moving forward. Don’t let go of your colleagues and friends in your industry, keep reading the blogs your read now and attending the conferences. The gig won’t last forever, it’s to your best interest to stay on your game my friend.
Remind yourself EVERY single morning that you are a contractor, the easiest person on the list to be let go and possibly the most expensive for your task. If you aren’t bringing value to the table every day, you are at risk. This is just the way it is for us … those that truly are genetically unemployable.
Got any other pieces of advice? Let me hear it in a comment ~ emily