Flying solo, earning less

[L-plater]

Hello,

I was wondering if anyone here was once employed and then decided to start their own business that they knew would actually give them less money? If so, what were the reasons you did that?

Cheers,
Rob

[mexham]

Hi Rob,

I sort of did it in a round about way.

I quit a well paying to job to do nothing first. I did have the intention though that after quiting that job I wouldn't ever work for anyone else again. I didn't have a business idea in mind, but was trading the stock market and involved in property, and was pretty open to business opportunities so just kind of knew something would come up.

Anyway, it was a big income drop (lots to none really) but I did it due to the fact I hated my job so much. Shift work and customer service where we were often treated like dirt by our customers. Also working far too many hours, left me too tired to do anything but sleep after work and on my days off. It just got to the point where it wasn't worth it and I wanted to have more of a life.

I Have to say I am much happier now and my life is more fulfilled than it ever was back then. I thought I would miss the money, but I got over that very quickly.

How about you? Are you in a position where you are looking at making the shift?

[ray_223]

Having a good income will not make you happy if you don't like your job.

Not having enough money to live on will make it impossible to be happy.

If you can fit somewhere between the two you should be very happy.

So you need to plan what is the minimum amount of money you need to live on and then find a way to earn that the most satisfying/fun way possible.

Good luck

[yourvirtualboard]

Ray has put it quite nicely - it really comes down to what you want out of life.

I left an executive position where my salary was dramatically more than I now earn but I'm so much more fulfilled doing what I do now and I have tailored my lifestyle to match what I earn to the point of being a profitable business as well. I can't put a value on getting up in the morning being happy to "go to work" and not be a slave to the corporate machine where success was measured in $$$ and market share. However I have to add there was a point in my life where this was paramount but as I get older my priorities have changed and for each person it would be different. You really have to look at your own motives for wanting to go out on your own and what rewards you might be looking for.

[L-plater]

mexham, Harry, thanks for sharing your interesting and encouraging stories. And Ray, very nice way of looking at it - I will keep this in mind when making my career choices.

I don't really hate the kind of work I do now and currently I have been working for the same company for a good few years. The company used to be a great place to work for but recently things have changed drastically and I'm looking to get out.

I've always wanted to run my own business since I was young(er), so while thinking of quitting my job I started to seriously consider about it, as an alternative to looking for another employment. But having to feed two people and maybe even a little one soon makes me worry if I make the wrong decision at the wrong time.

If anyone else would like to share their story on how they first decided to run their own business, I would love to hear it.

Cheers,
Rob

[ray_223]

Originally Posted by L-plater

I don't really hate the kind of work I do now and currently I have been working for the same company for a good few years. The company used to be a great place to work for but recently things have changed drastically and I'm looking to get out.

Hi Rob,

That was me exactly.
It took 3 years to finally quit my day job.
My wife helped alot over those years so our income now is at the same level as my full time job and will steadily increase (3 years of history says it will).
So, I now have a more fun/interestering "job" - the money is (or will soon be) a little better.
So put a plan in place - if you have no goal how do you know where you will end up?

[yourvirtualboard]

Originally Posted by L-plater

I don't really hate the kind of work I do now and currently I have been working for the same company for a good few years. The company used to be a great place to work for but recently things have changed drastically and I'm looking to get out.

Pretty much explains my situation as well, 10 years with a corporate multinational 9 extremely happy years and then change of majority shareholders with totally different principals and ideals - if you want to be safe and secure stay in paid employment, however if you have a dream and the drive and determination to succeed, you'll be surprised what a motivator having to feed two mouths with another on the way may be. I call that positive pressure and as always reward = effort; again from Ray put a plan in place and see how that fits with what you need out of life but be sure to be realistic with your assumptions (how long it may take and what funding you might need).

[Burgo]

Hahahaha I can relate to this and it has happened three times.

The best one was General Manager Sales and Marketing for a group of companies for 7 1/2 years. One day I asked God what I really should be doing and within a very short period of time I became a Cleaner.

The last 24 years have been an absolute ball.

Then from a cleaner I became a retired old bloke......try living on a pension.


I really think going from wealth to broke is all part of the process to fire up the passion for what you want to do, so that you become successful.

Thers an old story about these multi-millionares who before they became wealthy were either bankrupt or flat broke, so how did they work themselves out of the gutter, by passion and determination never to end up there again.

So pick yourself up, dust yourself off and develop the plan that takes you up up and away.


You can do it.................

[kbrookes]

I've covered this in a couple of other threads, but I was making good money with a client, developing & managing their entire online marketing campaign. 1.5million + pageviews a month and having a lot of fun.

But when my wife got pregnant I realised I could keep doing that and make decent money and never be around or take a massive hit, leave Sydney and rebuild our business from scratch. Which is what we're doing.

It's stressful - it's been harder than we anticipated and this time around the work's not as easy to find as it once was. But I'd rather fight to keep doing this and be around for my unborn son than make the big bucks and never see him.

[Blueedge]

Its called salary sacrifice...to your business and you hope that one day, when you're ready to sell it, you will reap the rewards. We don't take a huge salary from our company, just enough to pay the mortgage, buy the food, pay the bills and renovate when needed. We actually downsized to a smaller house with bigger external storage and office space........makes cleaning quicker and easier, the business can't "move" indoors as there isn't enough room and you really are forced out to work every day.

Managing on less really isn't that hard if you decide what your priorities are and how much you really need. I also belong to another forum that has heaps of cost cutting and super saver tips. It helps when trying to work out what you really can live on.

I was passionate about what I was doing before starting the company, 10 or so years on that passion has slightly waned although I just love selling and seeing the turnover increase. Lifestyle wise, it is very hard sometimes to take a break and your business can become very consuming. Booking time out in the diary is an absolute must for your sanity and the sanity of your family.