Those of you who quit the day job and went solo...
Discussion
I want to hear your stories!
I am contemplating jacking in the day job in the new year but I have no idea what's really involved. All I know is, I have a part time business on the side that is demanding full time hours, a freelance job demanding more hours and a completely untapped revenue stream that at present, I don't have any time to exploit.
My reservations are that I have a wife on maternity leave from her job as a social worker (cushty little job, £18k a year for 3 days a week!) and two young children to support. No mortgage, no business debts other than a bit of loading on my personal credit card. All signs are there that the new year is as good as any a time to do this and the idea has been welcomed by family and actively encouraged by friends, but I don't know if I am being to hasty in wanting to go it alone. Clearly, there's never a 'right' time to do this. But I'm guessing there are certainly wrong ones.
So, over to the PH PBCD's, I'd love to hear how it went for you and what you'd do differently if you were to do it again!
I am contemplating jacking in the day job in the new year but I have no idea what's really involved. All I know is, I have a part time business on the side that is demanding full time hours, a freelance job demanding more hours and a completely untapped revenue stream that at present, I don't have any time to exploit.
My reservations are that I have a wife on maternity leave from her job as a social worker (cushty little job, £18k a year for 3 days a week!) and two young children to support. No mortgage, no business debts other than a bit of loading on my personal credit card. All signs are there that the new year is as good as any a time to do this and the idea has been welcomed by family and actively encouraged by friends, but I don't know if I am being to hasty in wanting to go it alone. Clearly, there's never a 'right' time to do this. But I'm guessing there are certainly wrong ones.
So, over to the PH PBCD's, I'd love to hear how it went for you and what you'd do differently if you were to do it again!
Kozy
Well done... you have got to the point of wanting to be your own man (business wise).. Though from your post it sounds like you are in a halfway house... with the part time stuff on the side.
I would thoroughly recommend taking the plunge.. It is absolutley the best feeling knowing you are investing in yourself everyday. It will not be easy and there will be some low points along the way, but with the right self belief one can get through those.
It is an old adage when you do bold things.. bold things happen... Just a hint at my story... I was a succesful board director... with all the chattels... but I was frustrated always making another man (My boss) very rich, through my actions. In a planned fashion... I threw averything up in the air... left the job, sold the Bath Townhouse, moved country...moved back... and now I could not be happier... My business is doing more than ok... but my overiding feeling is of fantastic freedom.
Just one or two pointers of advice though...
1. Make a good business plan.
2. Get a good accountant.. listen to them
3. Prepare your wife..
4. Have a separate place of work.. even if its garden shed..
5. Don't skimp on your initial Brand... do it properly.
Best of luck
A
Well done... you have got to the point of wanting to be your own man (business wise).. Though from your post it sounds like you are in a halfway house... with the part time stuff on the side.
I would thoroughly recommend taking the plunge.. It is absolutley the best feeling knowing you are investing in yourself everyday. It will not be easy and there will be some low points along the way, but with the right self belief one can get through those.
It is an old adage when you do bold things.. bold things happen... Just a hint at my story... I was a succesful board director... with all the chattels... but I was frustrated always making another man (My boss) very rich, through my actions. In a planned fashion... I threw averything up in the air... left the job, sold the Bath Townhouse, moved country...moved back... and now I could not be happier... My business is doing more than ok... but my overiding feeling is of fantastic freedom.
Just one or two pointers of advice though...
1. Make a good business plan.
2. Get a good accountant.. listen to them
3. Prepare your wife..
4. Have a separate place of work.. even if its garden shed..
5. Don't skimp on your initial Brand... do it properly.
Best of luck
A
I did this in 2003, it didn't work for me, I now appreciate going home and switching off, I nearly bankrupted us.
At the time my wife was on maternity leave as well, I didn't think it through, I'm also really s
t at running a small business, I also spent the next 5 years paying off debt.
Would I do it again, no not really, it just wasn't for me.
At the time my wife was on maternity leave as well, I didn't think it through, I'm also really s
t at running a small business, I also spent the next 5 years paying off debt.Would I do it again, no not really, it just wasn't for me.
Did it 11 years ago.
Was great fun for a while, didn't earn vast amounts of money though.
Then through hard work and perseverance the company grew, but with that comes a st load of stress and worry, and employees who often are nightmares for various reasons all on their own.
Financially rewarding, but very tiring and I have little spare time to speak of outside of the business, and I don't even take care of the day to day running, I just look after a department.
Of course this could be utterly different depending on your profession.
Was great fun for a while, didn't earn vast amounts of money though.
Then through hard work and perseverance the company grew, but with that comes a s
t load of stress and worry, and employees who often are nightmares for various reasons all on their own.Financially rewarding, but very tiring and I have little spare time to speak of outside of the business, and I don't even take care of the day to day running, I just look after a department.
Of course this could be utterly different depending on your profession.
I left a decent staff job ten years ago to take over the family firm, but since that was just me, my Dad and a secretary I think I am very self employed.
Nowadays its just me and a part time secretary.
I loathed it to begin with but had a transforming moment when I realised that I could buy whatever work vehicle I wanted (this is PH after all) I traded in the Passat estate I left the old life with and bought a Scooby WRX wagon.......then I was off.
I would never have had the cars I've had and experienced the life I have without being in charge of my own destiny. This year was the best ever and I have made a fortune, but its always feast or famine so try and treat those two imposters just the same. 2008 was frightening, there's no notice to work through or redundancy cheque, you're just plain out of work.
It's lonely at times and I think the single worst thing is probably not the lack of sick pay or holiday pay but that there are no "free days", you know a client invites you to a golf day, or you get a jolly on the company. The times when you think "And I'm getting paid for this as well!".
Get yourself a business plan that makes sense and go for it. If you don't then you will always have that nagging regret thinking "What if?............"
Nowadays its just me and a part time secretary.
I loathed it to begin with but had a transforming moment when I realised that I could buy whatever work vehicle I wanted (this is PH after all) I traded in the Passat estate I left the old life with and bought a Scooby WRX wagon.......then I was off.
I would never have had the cars I've had and experienced the life I have without being in charge of my own destiny. This year was the best ever and I have made a fortune, but its always feast or famine so try and treat those two imposters just the same. 2008 was frightening, there's no notice to work through or redundancy cheque, you're just plain out of work.
It's lonely at times and I think the single worst thing is probably not the lack of sick pay or holiday pay but that there are no "free days", you know a client invites you to a golf day, or you get a jolly on the company. The times when you think "And I'm getting paid for this as well!".
Get yourself a business plan that makes sense and go for it. If you don't then you will always have that nagging regret thinking "What if?............"
I did it for over 25 years, enjoyed it mostly, and am now back working for a wage.
The downsides of self employment include :
Chasing clients for payment.
Irregular income, so you need to keep money aside for lean periods.
No paid leave, so the temptation is to keep working rather than take a much-needed holiday.
No sick pay, so even a bad dose of flu can hurt you financially
Contractors are the first to be let go in a downturn.
If you work from home, it is hard to switch off ("I'll just finish this...")
Managing the business / tax financial side.
The upsides include :
Flexible hours
Work from home (for some jobs)
Higher gross pay (if contracting)
More autonomy
I enjoyed it, but am also enjoying the lower stress levels since I rejoined the salaried workforce.
The downsides of self employment include :
Chasing clients for payment.
Irregular income, so you need to keep money aside for lean periods.
No paid leave, so the temptation is to keep working rather than take a much-needed holiday.
No sick pay, so even a bad dose of flu can hurt you financially
Contractors are the first to be let go in a downturn.
If you work from home, it is hard to switch off ("I'll just finish this...")
Managing the business / tax financial side.
The upsides include :
Flexible hours
Work from home (for some jobs)
Higher gross pay (if contracting)
More autonomy
I enjoyed it, but am also enjoying the lower stress levels since I rejoined the salaried workforce.
Did it 11 years ago. I've had some years when I almost went under, the recession was particularly difficult. Then again, this year will be a record for me & I've just taken a Porsche out of it, albeit a 2nd hand one, so swings & roundabouts.
It's lonely often, there's no one to palm hard decisions off on, you have to be a self starter every day, realise that there are no guarantees, some customers will knock you, some will be great, most will be average, but whatever they might be, you have to go & find them & don't expect them to stick by you - if you want loyalty, buy a dog.
The rewards can be great, but so can the penalties if it goes wrong. You have to have the right motivation, I've known people justify striking out because they don't like their boss. Resigning fixes that, it doesn't give you an income for life. You have to want it in order to achieve it. It may seem exciting, but work is work & it needs doing.
One last word, always pay your accountant & the Government on time. Everyone else is negotiable.
It's lonely often, there's no one to palm hard decisions off on, you have to be a self starter every day, realise that there are no guarantees, some customers will knock you, some will be great, most will be average, but whatever they might be, you have to go & find them & don't expect them to stick by you - if you want loyalty, buy a dog.
The rewards can be great, but so can the penalties if it goes wrong. You have to have the right motivation, I've known people justify striking out because they don't like their boss. Resigning fixes that, it doesn't give you an income for life. You have to want it in order to achieve it. It may seem exciting, but work is work & it needs doing.
One last word, always pay your accountant & the Government on time. Everyone else is negotiable.
berlintaxi said:
Kozy said:
I am contemplating jacking in the day job in the new year but I have no idea what's really involved.
Neither did I when I made the move 5 years ago, best decision I ever made, Plenty of places to get advice from, banks, HMRC and any half decent accountant.Quit my job about 6 months ago to join the wife with her business. The plan was 6 months in the gestation and was to offer a wider selection of services to her clients in a rapidly growing sector. Anyway, 2 months in and she gets offered a permanent role with a client that was too good to miss. Business plan went out the window and had to regroup and start again - but so far its working, including now providing services back into my previous employer.
Advice? Do it, but use your networks and make lots of friends!
Advice? Do it, but use your networks and make lots of friends!
What would you say you'd need to have in place before leaving work?
Rather than things like business accounts, accountants etc, I'm talking about things like the amount of money in the bank, business contracts, established income, that sort of thing.
Obviously leaving a safe job with no money in the bank, no contracts and really nothing but an idea is probably not the wisest move, though no doubt some people probably do that.
With a family to support though, I want to make sure I'm not jumping in at the deep end before finding out I can't swim!
Rather than things like business accounts, accountants etc, I'm talking about things like the amount of money in the bank, business contracts, established income, that sort of thing.
Obviously leaving a safe job with no money in the bank, no contracts and really nothing but an idea is probably not the wisest move, though no doubt some people probably do that.
With a family to support though, I want to make sure I'm not jumping in at the deep end before finding out I can't swim!
Abagnale said:
markcoznottz said:
I would say don't take advice of anyone.
Really? I think that's appalling advice itself.markcoznottz said:
Abagnale said:
markcoznottz said:
I would say don't take advice of anyone.
Really? I think that's appalling advice itself.
markcoznottz said:
Most people offering 'advice' have a vested interest. The net is your friend, but it's freely available so it's a level playing field. At some point the op has to do his own thing and make decisions, ultimately the market will decide.
What vested interest am I, or any other posters on this thread, supposed to have?The OP asked for people's experience; some of us have been there and done that, and are giving our views.
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