Should you take contract work while you’re job searching for a regular full-time position?
There are plenty of good reasons to take a contract position, a few downsides, and one critical thing you should not miss.
Let’s dive in 👇🏼
It doesn’t take long for business leaders to ask themselves if they should consider contract work when the job search is still underway.
And if you’re a business leader, seeking a regular full-time role, you might be considering contract work while job searching.
In the last edition of the newsletter, I talked about how a one-sided thing does not exist so let’s look at the upsides and downsides of contract work.
First, the upsides (good reasons to accept a contract position)
👍🏼 Bring in the moo-lah.
This takes some of the pressure off of timing that is out of your control.
👍🏼 Use your noggin.
You want to stay sharp and keep your brain in tip-top shape and this is one good way to do that.
👍🏼 Boost your ego.
Shhh, you don’t have to talk about this one, it’ll be our secret. Even when you have a mutually agreed-to separation, there’s something about a new partnership, even if a temporary one, that feels good.
👍🏼 Acquire new skills.
While you’re most likely going to be hired to do something you do really well, there’s always new skills to learn and old skills to hone.
👍🏼 Meet new people.
The majority of business leaders I talk to have a very small network made up primarily of people they worked directly with including their vendors. This small circle is not ideal when you think about WHO is going to help you the most when you want to make a career move.
In a large-scale randomized experiment involving 20 million people whose findings were published in Science Magazine and a subsequent Harvard Business Review article, your immediate coworkers, close friends, and family were LEAST helpful.
So who was the most helpful?
“Our findings uncovered the relationship between the strength of the connection (as measured by the number of mutual connections prior to connecting) and the likelihood that a job seeker transitions to a new role within the organization of a connection.”
~Harvard Business Review
Next, the downsides (bad reasons to accept a contract position)
👎🏼 Impact on your time.
If you get into a new contract role, you’re going to go all in, and most likely, your job searching is going to take a back seat which becomes a real problem when contract work slows down (because most likely, it will).
Mitigate this risk with a practical job search strategy: How to Bust Out of the Candidate Pack.
👎🏼 Short-term outcomes.
If you’re reacting to short-term outcomes such as not getting interviews or receiving rejection emails, or, if you’ve been doing what you know to do to land your next role, but you aren’t getting any interviews, you most likely have a positioning problem.
Taking a contract position isn’t going to solve that particular problem.
It will only distract you for a short while and then you’ll be right back where you were (no interviews) only this time because it’s been a few months you’ve likely lost key positioning momentum.
We’re about 17 weeks away from the end of the year and roughly 12 weeks away from Thanksgiving. Typically, hiring slows way down at the end of the year.
You can mitigate this risk by zeroing in on your positioning. If you don’t know where to start, check out this edition of the Career Moves newsletter.
👎🏼 You have job search fatigue.
And, you may be feeling defeated. Accepting a contract position will not make these feelings go away.
It may distract you for a little while, but those feelings will be there, lingering in the shadows of your mind.
If you want something to change, but you aren’t sure where to start, read: How to Navigate Out of Mid-Career Fog (a path for doers)
One final note and yes, I saved the best for last.
A confused recruiter doesn’t call.
If you decide to take a contract position, make it crystal clear that you are doing so while job searching for your next full-time role.
It’s becoming increasingly common for business leaders to accept contract positions and there are many advantages that we’ve already discussed. However, when a recruiter or decision-maker lands on your LinkedIn profile, you don’t want them to pause and wonder if you are building a business or looking for a full-time position.
To avoid confusion use these clarifiers:
In the title section of your experience, use whatever title you prefer: consultant, contractor then add: “(while pursuing full-time opportunities)”
In the experience section do the same:
“Contracted as a XX while pursuing full-time opportunities”
Why do this?
To clearly state your priorities. And yes, it’s true, a confused recruiter won’t call.
The last word…
Before you accept a contract position, be sure you have these 3 things in place:
- A practical strategy for your job search
- A very clear positioning statement if a full-time role is your goal
- Someone to hold you accountable.
While there isn’t one right answer to navigating from now to next, there are effective and ineffective ways to get there faster.
Have a burning question or a high-stakes interview coming up? Schedule a complimentary coaching call and let’s chat about your unique situation.