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> Maybe it's because I've been freelancing for so long. But EVERY time I
> approach a client about a potential project, my main objective in the
> proposal is to answer EXACTLY that question: why they should hire me
> instead of someone else.
>
> I can't see why an interview for a permanent position is that different
> from a proposal for a contract. Of course you're trying to convince TPTB
> that you are a better solution to their problem than the next guy in the
> room or the last gal that was there.
I think there's a difference between trying to convince the interviewer that
you're willing to play the games necessary to be part of the team as a permanent
employee and convincing the interviewer that you have the stuff necessary to do
the job he/she needs done better/faster than any other candidate. The former
tactic is one I might use if I were after a permanent job; the latter is the one
I use as a contractor.
One of the reasons I chose to become a contractor many years ago was because I
no longer wanted to play the head games ill-prepared interviewers use when
looking for permanent employees. As a candidate, you have to jump through the
hoops each of the other team members think are an appropriate way to judge
whether you'll fit their version of team membership. Many of these 'hoops' are
pretty silly, in my experience, and involve interpersonal judgments made by
people who wouldn't recognize a team skill if it swatted them in the face.
Interviewing as a contractor, however, usually removes many peripheral items
from the table, such as stock options and medical plans and other goodies. It
usually requires the interviewer to focus on what's important, such as your
ability to use the tools, follow the styles, come up to speed quickly, get
information from a variety of sources, and deliver on time. The rest of the
interviewing game, such as "Where do you see yourself in five years?" or "What's
your biggest weakness?", is irrelevant. (I'll grant that "How do you get along
with difficult engineers?" is relevant.)
And by the way, one of my stock answers to "Where do you see yourself in five
years?" is "Probably doing much the same thing - contracting - and traveling
around the world more than the 8 weeks/year I do now."
Elna Tymes
Los Trancos Systems
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