Is the thought of self employment running through your mind? Are you ready to leave the corporate world in the past and branch out on your own? If you find yourself leaning in this direction, it is imperative that you know exactly what you are getting into.
While there are many benefits of self employment, such as the ability to control your own destiny, there are a few details you may be overlooking.
Here are three things you may not be thinking about:
1. All the weight falls on your shoulders. When you work for a company, regardless of the size, you are not in charge of every last aspect of the business. Instead, you take care of your job and leave the rest to somebody else.
When you become a self employed professional, everything changes on day one. You are now responsible for every aspect of your business, from completing your primary tasks to accounting and much more.
2. It can be lonely. While it may sound like a good thing to escape the politics of an office, you will soon find that the life of a self employed professional can be quite lonely at times. There may be days or weeks at a time when you don’t connect with anybody in person for business reasons. Is this something you are comfortable with?
Tip: fight against this by networking with local professionals who are willing to meet up from time to time to discuss business (among other topics).
3. You will need a place to work. Most self employed professionals start out working at home, but even then you may be faced with a challenge in terms of where you setup shop. Do you have a dedicated space in your home that you can call an office? If not, are you able to set something up without delay?
These are the types of things you need to think about before you join the ranks of the self employed. If you are comfortable dealing with these details, among others, you may find yourself on the right path to big things soon enough.