Embracing the Chill: Independent Contributor Culture at Work

Many of my friends outside of agencies are already familiar with the Independent Contributor (IC) employment model. It offers an alternative to the traditional career ladder, where your focus is on managing your own work output rather than the internal organization of the company.

There’s no formal career ladder in an IC role (if that makes sense). You’re responsible for managing your own projects. Companies value your experience and set your rate accordingly, but promotions aren’t a factor as there’s no defined “next step” beyond your current position. Here’s a great analogy to illustrate the difference between IC and traditional employment: imagine a company as an orchestra. Managers are the conductors, leading and coordinating the different sections. ICs are the musicians, each playing their instrument (their specific skill) to create beautiful music together (the overall company goals).

As I’ve entered my 30s, I’ve begun to realize that work inevitably becomes central to my life. Culturally, we often see work as part of our identity. It helps us pay the bills, provides social connections, and even acts as a qualification for finding a partner. But with the rise of the tech boom, the widening salary gap between industries, high lay-off rates, and the hyper-hustling culture where young people seem more ambitious than ever (think “Forbes Under 30” and “Retire Before 30”), I’m questioning what kind of work environment I actually want right now.

Why the Boss Fixation?

Why does everyone seem to want to be the boss? Sure, there’s an allure to the image of a boss as someone successful, wealthy, and loaded with authority. We all want to be on top. However, as I delve deeper, I wonder if we should also consider that sometimes, after you hike a mountain, the only way is go down? Traditional employment often values years of experience for someone to qualify as a manager. Now we see people taking shortcuts to these positions even at a younger age. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it’s becoming a new norm where the standardized career path is to reach managerial levels as soon as possible.

One of the main reasons for this is of course about higher salary comes with higher titles. But remember, a company’s hierarchy is always a pyramid, with fewer positions at the top. The question becomes: Is there an alternative way to increase income without necessarily after the titles?

IC vs. Traditional Employment: Key Differences

• Focus: ICs manage projects, while traditional employees manage an organization.
• Collaboration: ICs likely work independently (vertically) but collaborate with stakeholders and other teams (horizontally). Traditional employees manage teams and underlings.
• Skills: ICs typically require a specialized skill set as their main value proposition. Traditional employees are more like generalists, dealing with office politics, managing internal organizations, and developing their underlings.

The IC Appeal

When I explore the IC model, I’m excited because it seems to offer a new perspective on work. IC allows people to work to live, rather than live to work. You focus on the project because your skills are needed. Once the project is done, you get paid and can pursue other interests. No office politics, no drama — just real life. IC rewards people based on their actual performance — it literally comes down to whether projects are successful or not. Traditional employment, on the other hand, can reward people based on entirely different criteria, such as connections or favoritism. This can lead to bias and discourage people from using their actual skills, instead wasting time boasting about “intangible” power for the sake of management.

Yes, this might seem a bit generalized. There are surely downsides to the IC model as well. But at least as an alternative career option, shouldn’t we consider embracing the “chill vibe” of IC? Why is it that someone with eight years of experience as a strategic planner is seen as suspicious, while someone with three years who becomes a strategic planning manager is considered extraordinary? Why do we value titles so much when ultimately, what gets us paid is project completion, not managing people within an internal organization?