Mixing solo business with employment

Most of us reckon our solo business ought to provide all our work, career and financial needs. But rather than going it alone all the time, maybe there are benefits to mixing your business with part time employment.

You may well wonder, what on earth am I, the avowed soloist, doing saying that it may be time to go over to the other side?

Well, I've had a little bit of a foray into employed life recently. My adventure into job-land was precipitated by some very pedantic professional development requirements.

As you'd expect, it offered an eye-opener into how flexible and autonomous my solo business is. Unexpectedly, though, it also made me appreciate there are definite advantages for soloists considering a "job on the side".

Here are what I consider to be the main benefits:

Regular income

When was the last time you knew exactly what you were going to make in the month or three months ahead? When you know what's coming in, you can more confidently plan ahead rather than having "best outcome" plans and "bare bones" plans. No more being a slave to seasonal market trends..

On the Job Training

The range of work I've done in the job has meant that I've acquired a whole new set of skills and knowledge that I would never have come into contact with in my business. I've been able to see different systems in action and have seen what works and what doesn't.

Being responsible only for your job

While there are certainly performance expectations, I don't have to worry about getting new business, or curse when a client doesn't show up, or when the monthly company income doesn't come in on budget. I still get paid. I am responsible for the work I do and not the viability of the business.

Supervisory and Professional Support

When I don't know how to do something, I can get on the phone and ask someone who does. And whether it's a professional or administrative question, I know there is someone who can assist.

It's true that it's not all beer and skittles, though. There are some aspects of working in a job I don't like, such as the lack of autonomy, the set working hours and management practices that I may not agree with.

And sure, I don't want to do it forever, but it certainly hasn't been the soul-destroying experience I always envisaged "working for someone else" would be.

There have been benefits for my business as well. I see so many more opportunities to use my new skills and knowledge and new ways to develop my business. It also takes away that "desperately needing clients" attitude that I have to admit sneaks in when things get a bit quiet. I now approach things with "the clients will come" attitude.

I appreciate the flexibility that I have as a soloist. There's nothing like knowing you can start work an hour later or indeed, take the day off, because you manage your own workflow.

My experience has enabled me to look at my solo business with fresh eyes, because I got to see it from a different perspective every day. I haven't put all my eggs in one basket and am not so desperate that my solo business has to take on clients that I know aren't ideal.

The main thing I've learned from crossing over into the Dark Side is that I'm not a lesser business person when I work another job, and I'm not a lesser employee when I pursue my real passions outside of business hours.

Perhaps we need to get away from a "one right way" to be a business owner attitude, after all there are a multitude of opportunities to make a living...and a life...before us.

Well best go now. I have a full day at the "job" tomorrow: researching ways to improve my client database!

Just kidding.

• Published 30 July 07
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Business psychology (15) | Business values (16) | Social responsibility (6) | Work motivation (9) | Work styles (5) | Working alone (14)

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14 comments | Add your own 1 2 3 | Next» View all»

• "Perhaps we need to get away from a "one right way" to be a business owner attitude, after all there are a multitude of opportunities to make a living...and a life...before us."
  I think this advice could be very useful for a lot of people in many different aspects. Flexibility and open mindedness make life so much easier. Cassandra Goodwin - Zammit Marketing from Sydney

• Great article Trish. It shows it is possible to take the best bits of being employed and the best bits running your own business and creating a unique way of working that works for you. Having a couple of days a week guaranteed (either a part-time job or a retainer type arrangement) certainly can take the edge off financially by giving you a good base to start from each week. This is especially true for those starting out on the road to building up a full time client/customer base. Peter Crocker from Flying Solo | Read my articles

• Success comes down to one thing - achieving your own goals! Whether you are solo, an employee or a mix of both is irrelevant - its the ability to set and achieve your own goals that is everything. Go for it, Trish, and have a happy life! Grant Hyman from Sydney | Read my articles

• Mixing both employment and my own business proved to be a problem in my last job. Working 4.5 days a week - that's right, just half a day a week for my own clients - meant that my employer was suspicious of my request for two of HER days off for a free, and important, industry seminar. I suspect she refused because I had a business 'on the side'. The resulting conflict resulted in me leaving the job. Now I have a full-time thriving business while hers has actually collapsed. It can actually putting all your energy into one or the other. Glenn Watson from Sydney

• I often encourage people who are just starting out in my industry to take on part-time work to supplement their income whilst building up their businesses. It has a lot of benefits as you've outlined.
  On a couple of occasions I have returned to the workforce for small periods of time and it's done all sorts of things, mainly reinforcing that I like the flexibility and freedom I have as a business owner. And it is great to be able to get refreshed, develop new ideas and come back looking forward to my business. Kathie M. Thomas, A Clayton's Secretary from Melbourne, Australia

• I recently got a part time job (well the government made me because I'm a single parent). But what I realised in taking up work was just how isolated I had become working from home.
  I work with parents and children providing parenting courses, support and counselling and it could be quite intense sometimes and there would be weeks when I wouldn't leave the house apart from shopping and school pick ups.
  I felt like I came back to life dealing working in a cinema and dealing with the public in a different way to my own business. It's my 'no-brainer' job and I love it. Having the regular income has been so liberating instead of worrying about when the next client would come in, I need to be a bit more organised as I have less time which is a challenge but I really enjoy the diversity.
  The other thing is that it has taken the pressure off the intensity of 'making my business work', I don't feel so frantic about getting it all happening financially.
  Cheers Clare Christie from Perth Australia

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