Favorite Company
How would you like to create a work life that allows you to be
with your kind of people, in the right environment, doing work
you love? Easy. Add solo entrepreneur to your resume.
You might be saying to yourself, "I am so busy now, why would I
want to start a business on top of everything else I am doing?"
Here is my short list of reasons:
1) You are already in business: You, Inc. is your business. You
trade your precious time for money now. Because the world is
changing, your business may be more vulnerable than you realize.
At any time, You, Inc. can be downsized, right sized, demoted,
promoted, restructured, transferred, boss leaves, boss stays or
any combination of changes that you have no control over but
have the potential to make your life miserable.
2) Work Life Balance: Most of us did not start working with the
idea that our free time could be so compromised by work demands
or that our flexibility constrained to the degree it is with
many jobs.
3) Portability: If you choose the right business, you can do it
anywhere. This means that you can travel, go on vacation when
you want or let your kids sign up for afterschool classes they
are interested in without you dreading transportation issues.
Arrange your schedule your way without having to ask permission
from your boss or fretting about the example you are setting for
your employees. Ah, I smell freedom in the air.
Sound good....wait there is more.
4) How about extra cash? When You, Inc. is your only business,
the only extra cash you can come up with comes in the form of
promotions, job change, performance reviews or maybe bonuses.
Cost of living is a thing of the past for most employees, so
what are you to do when you have extra expenses either self
induced or unexpected? When you are an entrepreneur, you just
crank up your business a notch. If you built it correctly, you
will have multiple streams of income that may be tapped when
cash flow becomes a problem for You, Inc.
5) Options: A good reason to start a second business is to
broaden your choices, minimize your vulnerability and reduce
your risk by keeping your options diversified. Many studies have
shown that people who are the unhappiest at work have been
employees who have the least control over their work. The
thought has always been that these are lower level employees,
but I find that even high level employees find themselves in
situations where they feel like they don't have effective
control over their work, causing a significant degree of
discomfort. When you work as a solo entrepreneur, your work is
always appreciated, you never have to care what mood the boss is
in, the politics of the work place match yours perfectly, and
you have the best office in the joint.
