Starting a Business

I'm considering starting my own business. With today's job market in the current economy I just don't feel confident in my job security and I've grown tired of the corporate environment. What are some of the advantages or disadvantages of starting my own business and how do I know it's the right time?

Advantages and disadvantages of owning your own business

You have grown tired of commuting to a job where you sit in a cubicle and do someone else's bidding. You think you've got a better idea, you can build a better mousetrap, you know you have the knack for being in the right place at the right time, and so you're thinking of self-employment. But how do you determine if this is a pipe dream or an idea worth pursuing?

Can you handle it?
Whether you're running your own business or working as an independent contractor, you'll soon realize that working for yourself isn't just another job, it's a way of life. Are you someone who likes the 9 to 5 routine and collecting regular paychecks? When you're self-employed, you must be willing to make sacrifices for the sake of the job. You're going to work long hours, which means that you won't have as much time as you used to for family or leisure activities. And if the cash flow becomes a trickle, you're going to be the last one to get paid.

Can you get along well with all types of people? Being self-employed is all about managing relationships -- with your clients or customers, suppliers, perhaps with your employees, certainly with your family, and probably with your banker, lawyer and accountant, too. If you're the type who wants to be alone to do the few things that you're good at, and you should do that -- for someone else.

Are you a disciplined self-starter? Being self-employed means that you're your own boss. There may be days when you have to make yourself sit at your desk instead of going for a long lunch, or (especially if you worked out of your home) place business calls instead of reading the newspaper. Finally, do you enjoy wearing many hats? Spitting on your line of work, you may be involved in handling marketing and sales duties, financial planning and accounting responsibilities, administrative and personnel management chores -- or all of the above.

Your dream comes true

Think about how great it will feel to get paid to do what you love to do anyway. If you're working for yourself, chances are you'll be doing the work that you enjoy. You get to pick who you work for or with, and in most cases you work with your customers or clients directly -- no go-betweens muddying the waters. As a result, you may have days when it hardly feels as if you're working at all. Such harmony between your working life in the rest of your life is what attracted you to self-employment in the first place. Being your own boss means that you'll be in control of all decisions affecting your work life. You'll decide on your business plan, your quality assurance procedures, your pricing and marketing strategies -- everything. Once you have established the business you'll have job security; you can't be fired for doing things your way. As you perform a variety of tasks related to your work, your new skills will broaden your abilities. Consider working conditions and business location. If you're working out of your home, your startup costs may be reduced. It will also experience a lower operating cost; after all, you'll be paying for the rent and utilities anyway. If the location of your work is an important (perhaps you're a freelance writer or a consultant), you can live wherever you want. At any rate, if you work at home, you'll greatly reduce your daily commuting time and expenses. If all goes well and you're making money, chances are you can make more than you did working for someone else. And since you're working for yourself, you may not have to share the proceeds with anyone else. The fruits of your labor will be yours, because you own the vineyard.

On the other hand...
When you're self-employed, particularly if you are starting your own business, you may have to take on a substantial financial risk. If you need to raise additional money to get started, you may need a cosigner or collateral (such as your home) for a long period depending on how much or little work you can line up, you may find that your cash flow varies from a flawed to a trickle. You'll need cash back up so you can pay bills while you're waiting for your business to come in or waiting to be paid for completed work. Since you'll have to pay your own creditors first you may at times have to eat cereal instead of steak.

Because you're working for yourself, you're going to have to take care of everything yourself, from figuring out your taxes to watering the office plants. You probably need some new skills, such as book keeping and filing quarterly taxes. You can learn to do these things yourself -- many software programs are designed just for this market -- or or you can leverage your life focus membership which has the experts at hand along with all of the tools and resources to create a business that will have lasting results.

The bottom line If you worked long and hard, can tolerate risk and stress, cope well with potential disaster and failure, and work well alone and with others, and perhaps self-employment is right for you. Regardless of your self-employment dreams, be certain that you have all of the proper planning, small business experts, tools, and proper mindset -- all of which is offered in your life focus Wealth Advantage Membership.