I worked at a consultancy that advertised some pretty high-brow ideals, in several disparate areas I care deeply about. But pretty quickly 75% of their revenue came from just two customers and ideals are a luxury you can’t afford in that kind of a situation. It became a body shop in all but name. Even a founder left shortly after I did.
I really struggled with the sense of betrayal from that and it’s a big data point in the “ask more questions” strategy I’m trying to cultivate.
You can’t fire a customer when they are your only customer. At the very least, no matter how things get on any contract, save some time an energy to keep courting new revenue from other sources. That’s a big part of the job, and one I don’t think we as developers have enough perspective on.
I really struggled with the sense of betrayal from that and it’s a big data point in the “ask more questions” strategy I’m trying to cultivate.
You can’t fire a customer when they are your only customer. At the very least, no matter how things get on any contract, save some time an energy to keep courting new revenue from other sources. That’s a big part of the job, and one I don’t think we as developers have enough perspective on.