Once I have firmed up my SAP skills would it be better to stay an employee or consult for twice the money?
Asked by NSN
I left my regular fulltime job as computer programmer 25 yrs ago when my first child was born. I wanted to work part-time so I set myself up as a consultant and have contracted my time out since then. Two years ago I was trained in SAP and when my contract expired I went ahead and accepted a fulltime position. My goal was to firm up my SAP skills and then consider going back to contracting since the money is so much better - (I took a $100,000 pay cut to take fulltime regular job). But the additional problem is that I am now 50 yrs old - maybe it would be smarter to stay as a employee - I don't look my age but age is going to become an issue with employers - even getting jobs as consultant will be harder now. So should I keep my regular full time job - or is SAP so hot that I can get any job I want and might as well get the great consultant money while I can?

Best Answer:
Consulting is a great thing if you can diversify your clients (don't rely on just one) and don't mind working as a collector here and there. I enjoyed it, but I didn't like that lack of stability. However, it sounds as though you're set up better than I was. Also, employers don't like to hire older people because they retire. Consultants or 1099 employees are different. The company does not care quite as much about age because you are just a consultant, not a true employee. People consult beyond 65 all the time.