One of the most rewarding things a woman can do, is to become self employed. Not only does it allow for unlimited freedom of time and schedule, but it also permits the possibility of limitless inflow of monies based on her individual needs or desire. There is also a risky side to this as far as her being responsible for every aspect of the business which may not all be parts of her educational repertoire, but will need to get done whether she hires someone or do it all herself. Then there is the monetary startup costs to consider that most businesses need in order to get up and running.
There is also the need to keep abreast of cash flow and have solid information based on previous market research as to when she will actually start making money in the business and getting past breaking even to profit making. Technology and the internet have made becoming an entrepreneur or business owner more viable today than ever before as vital information is easily and more readily available, and the onus of reaching potential clients – practically non-existent. With a great product or service, an effective marketing plan, and impeccable money management it is possible to become your own boss and have a successful business.
6 Things to Consider When Thinking About Transitioning From Employed To Self Employed
Getting from employment to self employment should not be done in one jump but rather by using a gradual transitional approach; unless, of course, you are either a) forced to do so, or b) independently wealthy. There are many things to consider when deciding whether or not you are ready for entrepreneurship, some of which are:
1. Viable Idea(s) for Product(s) and/or Service(s)
Whatever product or service you decide to offer, you need to ensure there is a market for it, and that the market is not already saturated with that product or service. This is where market research comes in and is very essential and will prevent you from venturing out in a market your product or service is not welcomed in, which will cause your business to ultimately fail. If you have a product of your own creation, you will also need to ascertain if that product is already out there in the marketplace in order to avoid getting sued for selling a product that is already trademarked. This is where trademarking check comes in.
Having a viable business idea may take some trial and error, but overall you need to start out with a workable idea that can be planned out through a business plan. A solid business plan is a necessity and if you feel the plan’s concept overwhelms you, the operation of the actual business may be far more overwhelming for you.
2. Startup Financial Costs – Bootstrapping or Loan
If you are planning to leave your 9-5 and head full time into business, you need to be sure your finances are in order to support your endeavors. Whether you will be bootstrapping or securing a loan, you’ll need to have enough cash in the bank to not only cover necessary business expenses but also to accommodate living expenses for several months, and possibly years, until your business pulls in a profit. As previously stated, if you do your market research, have a great product, and an effective marketing plan, you may be able to turnover a profit sooner – possibly within a few months. Don’t forget as an entrepreneur you’ll be responsible for paying relevant taxes in addition to other expenses.
You need to pre-plan how much you will need to have on hand to survive and grow the business until it becomes profitable – a back up plan in case success does not come in a timely manner. Many business models do not generate actual profits for the first few years of business, and is exactly why many people start a business while working part time to keep a steady income coming in.
3. Financial Planning for the Short and LongTerm Future
All the benefits you are possibly getting now as an employee, will not be available to you anymore! So ideally, you want to create a business plan that somewhat determines where the business should be headed and how money factors into that plan for the short as well as long term. Now that you will be responsible for yourself in all sense of the word “responsible”, you will now need to think about health care insurance and savings for retirement. Even if you are young when starting out now, you need to consider how you will save for the immediate future’s needs as well as the distant future. If you are married, you may be able to organize a plan using the employment benefits of your partner if he is working a 9-5 job, but it is essential to see the big picture when planning to start your journey of self-employment.You may want to put our business in motion while working your 9-5 in order to continue reaping the benefits of being an employee while seeking to become your own boss. Or if your company doesn’t offer much benefits but you need the income in place as you transition, you may seek to work in a part-time capacity at your same job if allowed, or choose to work a part-time job somewhere else. You may also choose to have a second job – part-time, to try and save enough money for the business startup. If you do plan on taking on the extra part-time job, make sure you consider that investment of time away from other people and things in your life – family, pets – as you work to manage two jobs.
4. The Time It Will Take To Get Your Business Up & Running & For Ongoing Operation
It is normal for a business in the startup phase to require a lot of time to get up and running. But depending on the type of business you are planning to start, you may need a lot more time to be a part of its day to day activity – ongoing, than you are now putting in to your 9-5. This means that you may have to sacrifice time with the people and things you love in order to not only pursue your new venture of business ownership or entrepreneurship, but also to maintain it. This is a BIG one that you should consider deeply!
5. The Scalability and Survivability of the Business
Are you planning to have a business to last for your lifetime only or are you planning on having it continue on through generations? If the latter, who will run the business over the long haul in the years to come? This should be included in the business plan as well as be considered when deriving the type of business structure – Sole Proprietorship, LLC, or Corporation. Also, in the short-term and everyday running of the business, can the business function without your active involvement or you being present? What if you become ill or have an emergency and needs to get away, is there someone in place to keep the business functional until you are able to return? How will the business be setup to accommodate growth?
6. Coordinating a Departure Point
Your final departure from your job should be carefully thought out and crafted so that everything work in your favor – the way you want them to, enabling you a smooth transitioning. Not many employers will be appreciative of your perceived moonlighting and as such, may be apt to terminate your services and thus your reliable income source before you are at that point where you are ready to let go and move on. Because of this, you want to be very discreet. However, what goes around comes around, so you shouldn’t try to leave them hanging – especially if you’re in a position that is necessary for the functionality of the business.
You want to figure in 2 to 3 weeks or maybe a month into your departure plan, where you will notify your employer of your plans to leave after you have reached that point you set, then give them that allotted timeframe to possibly recruit someone and have you facilitate a smooth transition from you to that new employee. Never burn bridges even though you’ve already crossed them!
Self-employment takes dedication and effort – if you plan for success. There are many more opportunities today for those who want to work independently and earn a living doing something they genuinely enjoy. With the right amount of planning and attention to details, especially the financial ones, you can find a new career and a new way of life. So, it is quite possible and a true treasure to be your own boss instead of being bossed, but in order to ensure you have a business that is successful and sustainable and will be around for the long haul, you must bear all the above-mentioned in mind prior to leaving your job, and do so in a gradual transitional manner rather than one huge jump.
Many people have taken the “sink or swim” approach to becoming self employed, but we do not recommend it here at My Blooming Biz. Weigh the pros and cons of handling all aspects of the business and the entrepreneurial life before making the commitment.
Here’s to weighing the pros and cons and making the decision that is right for you 🍷
With love, gratitude, and empowered attitude,
This is so informative for me right now! I’m fairly young and a recent college grad, and I don’t want to have a 9-5 forever – I would love to travel and work on blogging as well! And I would also like to own a real business that will allow me to be flexible with my time and not trap me in a building. I’m still figuring out what I like and trying to make my passions a reality 🙂 and coming to your Design Your Dream Lifestyle Boston 2018 event in July will definitely help me in my process as your Lifestyle Designing Workbook has already started.
You ladies rock, and I can’t wait to see you!
Best decision I ever made! And I really didn’t think long and hard about it. I knew I wanted to follow my passion and there wasn’t a question as to whether it would work or not. I knew it was totally dependent n me. So far, so good, but there were days in the early stages when I did get lonely. I’ve now learned how to keep busy and social and not commit myself to a desk. Thanks to laptop and the Internet, I even work in the park 🙂
Hey Kadienne, good for you! Congrats! Yes, we are absolutely blessed with technology and the Internet, and that freedom that comes with being your own boss also allows you to work whenever, wherever. So grateful!
Great points. I have a side hustle that I thought about doing full time when I first started, but I realized then that it would not be my cup of tea. I often dream about being self-employed but I think the grass isn’t always greener on the other side. I focus on the flexibility of being my own boss, but there are downsides of being self-employed as well. Of course if you are prepared and have a plan things will go better, but self-employment is really not for everyone, and we must know ourselves and what we are capable of as individuals.
Also, my job is extra hard to leave because of all the benefits like health insurance, pension, steady pay, etc. and, I have yet to find a business I could start that could come close to replacing my salary.
Indeed Janice, self employment is not for everyone, and it’s a good thing when one can know him or herself and be honest about who they are, and how they are. To thine own self be true!
Those tips are truly timeless when dealing with a transition from job to own biz. I remember when I made the decision and later backtracked, because I thought I had it together but I didn’t! Two shots, nothing. Third shot a hit!
Wish I had these tips when I was transitioning, but I’ll share it and hope that others will share it as well so that people who are thinking about transitioning from their job to full time biz owner or even in the process, can have them to apply.
It’s definitely about knowing when the right time is to quit your job. I’d been wanting to go freelance for a year or so before I actually did, but instead I kept hopping from one job to the next because I thought it would be safer. It got to the stage where I thought ‘going freelance’ was just a dream that I might be able to do 10 years down the line, but then my boyfriend got offered a job in Spain and, well, I took the plunge. It’s hella scary to start with, but I’m so, so glad I did it.
If you’ve got the right mindset there’s money to be made everywhere! I love being self-employed – definitely the most rewarding decision I’ve ever made, too 🙂
Thank you for this post, it was very encouraging. I am wrapping up two years of teaching in Korea and am in the process of figuring out what is next. I have also had numerous jobs in the past that made me cringe, and I don’t want to go back to that.
It is such a scary thing to live without the “normal” reliables, but that is what I want. Thank you for the great advice!
I recently quit my job because it was draining my energy out and I didn’t enjoy it no more… Starting my travel blog and developing it was my N1 passion. I have no 9-5 job for 2 months now and I’m still trying to figure out what am I going to do with my life, what should I do to make a living, because earning enough from a blog isn’t quite realistic… I will continue to search myself for my place in the world. I’m confident it will be revealed. Loving this post and blog! Keep up the great work!
– All the best, Maria
Maria, I can’t believe how many people I know who put up with a job they hate without doing anything about it. I was a serial job hater, too, before I quit in May 2014, and the toughest thing for me was to convince myself that I could figure out a way to make it work. Keep looking into what you want to do and I guarantee you will find it and it will work for you. It’s all about trial and error when it comes to entrepreneurship and running a biz. We just have to keep at it to find out what works best. 🙂
4 years and counting after quitting my job, I may be far from a fairytale ending, but I am SO HAPPY now that I’m calling all the shots. I no longer dread the day when I wake up in the morning! My bills are all paid on time and I’m investing and setting money aside for my future – something I couldn’t do with any of my jobs. Best decision EVER!
Love you guys 🙂 Love reading your posts!
Oooh you ladies are so inspiring! I am working hard to try get my blog more awesome and into freelance writing so that I can work and travel, I love reading these enlightening posts. It helps me know that what I’m doing is on the right path, that what I want to do is possible! So thank you for this post, I know it helps a lot of people including myself!
Great post! I recently have gone full time freelance to be a travel journalist and it is definitely both freeing and stressful as I learn to make dollars stretch, am constantly hitting the ground running to find paying assignments while also maintaining my blog. I actually just picked up a temporary office job to accrue some more money in savings before traveling for a month to Europe next summer. At the end of the day it really is about passion and drive to make your dreams a reality.
Cheers!
Nikki
One cannot become wealthy from a regular job alone, heck some people barely breaking even with their job alone – let alone save and invest, but if you supplement that job with your own hustle (or leave that job to focus on your own rolls), then you have a higher probability of accumulating wealth.
Earn. Invest. Reinvest. Wealth.
Those are 6 amazing tips Team MBB! I totally agree, don’t jump ship until you have these all figured out. I know quite a few people who jumped ship without proper planning and as you can imagine, it didn’t go too well for them. As with achieving anything else, we have to plan extensively., and in this particular instance – do our due diligence and research.
Accumulating wealth is not an overnight thing! It takes work, some good strategies, and tenacity.
Those are valid tips indeed! Very helpful.
Just gotta make sure enough money is in the cash flow till to sustain the biz until it can sustain itself. And a lot of times, this variable is unknown, so there has to be a limit on how much cash you will deplete before evaluating and making changes. Gotta have a solid biz plan, with tried and proven market research too. Starting a biz is always a risk but with the right homework prior to starting, anyone can be successful transitioning from employed to self-employed.