Rise of the Dinosaurs: Why Older Freelancers Are Thriving

"Now is the Time for Older Freelancer Consultants!"

I was told this just before landing a new long-term gig. I was surprised, considering most freelancers - especially those thousands of Full Stack Developer types - are complaining about having no gigs, no deals, no projects, and no work. But not me! My secret to get a gig? It involves being a "seasoned" consultant like myself, born in the mid-1970s and now comfortably over 50.

Hey Senior Dev! Remember to train the younger generation as well.

You see, if you're not a "senior" project/portfolio manager, senior consultant in some niche area, or well-connected with the people who decide on projects, you're basically part of the B-class leftover crowd. I only fit into the last category, but I'm not desperate enough to beg for projects from colleagues who've become real friends over the decades.

And, frankly, my financial situation is comfortable enough that I don't need to. Unlike those Digital Nomads in their early 30s to mid-40s who haven't amassed enough wealth and lack the common sense to save instead of blowing it all on shiny cars and hot beaches in Spain or South East Asia. They can keep telling themselves that money doesn't matter, but I'm not buying it.

If you're as seasoned as I am, you'll remember how Cobol developers were the hot ticket at the turn of the millennium when every bank and financial institution needed to move from dual-digit year numbers to four-digit ones. My deal was similar, but different. After working on some Java projects back in the day, I was also involved in Microsoft WebForms (ASPX, Visual Basic/C#, vanilla JavaScript, or jQuery - a pretty common stack back then). It was tricky programming before Angular and React took over all the JavaScript spaghetti.

The reason I landed the contract was my extensive proficiency in these old-school technologies, including some Asp.NET MVC programming.

The project team had interviewed several candidates, most of whom were younger than me. Given the ongoing developer market depression (or recession, or decimation), everyone was "enthusiastically" willing to study and learn technology that's been abandoned for 15 (!) years. They'd promise not to leave once the consulting/developer market picked up again, but I think they were just desperate to pay for their Starbucks / Tesla / "Live Love Laugh" lifestyle.

So, the team figured an old consultant like me would be a better choice - someone familiar with the tech, steady, and without mental health problems from digging out dead technology. And let's be real, not desperate to learning the latest new framework that re-invents the wheel for the 100th time.

Hey, fellow consultants of the 1990s! We're the new Cobol developers now! Go ahead, pick your project!"

Sometimes I just love to pair program with my team. However, sometimes it's difficult to focus at the office.