To Be Or Not To Be…Your Own Boss

You’re ready. At least, you think you are. You know what you want to do. At least, you think you do. You’re passionate, independent, motivated, organized. It feels right, but what if all goes wrong? Those two wonderful children of yours aren’t going to put themselves through college.

Should you or shouldn’t you quit your day job and start your own business?

It’s a question more and more Americans are asking themselves. The allure of the so-called “company man” is gone, and the appetite for autonomy is on the rise. According to a recent NPR story, 800,000 Americans walk out of their cubicles and start their own businesses every year. Not everybody is doing it of course, just enough people to populate a city the size of Charlotte, N.C.

The question is what’s holding you back?

The NPR report recounts the story of Dave Selden, who turned a love affair with beer into a company, 33 Books, that sells pocket-sized tasting notebooks not just for beer but for cheese, hot sauce, cigars, and other “self-indulgences.” Selden’s company has been growing steadily since 2009, but it wasn’t until three years ago that he finally, reluctantly, quit his day job.

Selden advises taking it slowly, but two other entrepreneurs profiled in the NPR story, Brian and Maggie Harlow, whose Signarama franchise provides businesses with everything from refrigerator magnets to storefront signs, advocate rolling up your sleeves and going all in. “If we kept depending on secondary income from somewhere else,” Brian says, “we would never push hard enough on this.”

There you have it: Two inspiring small business success stories, zero consensus about the best way to start your own.

What’s a restless, entrepreneurial-minded cubicle-dweller to do?

Should I Stay or Should I Go?

Everybody knows launching a business can be an intimidating process. Fortunately, there is no shortage of resources available to help you decide whether or not you’re ready to make the leap. The U.S. Small Business Association offers 20 questions budding entrepreneurs should ask themselves before starting their own businesses. Forbes proscribes 10 reality checks you’d be wise to weigh your resolve against. Entrepreneur proposes 50 signs you should look for to confirm your enterprising nature, though it doesn’t specify how many of these traits you need to exhibit in order to ensure your success.

If there’s one thing each of these surveys shares in common, it’s that you have to do what’s right for you. (You already knew that.) Here are five additional factors all three surveys agree every entrepreneur should be aware of before they give their notices.

• Do you have a Big Idea? Is there a market for it? Is that market large and growing or is the space overly crowded?  Most importantly: Do you believe in your idea enough to put your own money behind it?

• Are you ready for a major lifestyle change? If you go your own way, the days of clocking in and clocking out are over. The days of juggling multiple roles and working ’round the clock are just beginning. Be realistic about the time commitment.

• Are you good with people? It’s one thing to be independent-minded, but every entrepreneur will eventually need to tap the expertise of others in order to succeed. It pays to a people person with solid management skills.

• Are you motivated by the right impulses? You should have a burning desire to blaze a trail and create something new, not simply get away from your current boss. If you’re simply fed up with the status quo, or eager to get out of your existing role with the company, don’t start a business. Schedule an appointment with HR.

• Can you take the heat? Ultimately, there is way to ensure your success. Appetite for risk is a big part of the equation. If there’s one thing every business owner have in common, it’s that the buck stops with them.

Conclusion:  

People love to talk about disruption these days, but they usually aren’t talking about their careers. “Going it alone” is by definition a hugely disruptive experience. It can also be a hugely satisfying one. Set your own hours. Control your own destiny. Contribute to the lifeblood of a dynamic local economy. What’s not to love?

More and more people believe the risk involved is absolutely worth it. The Harvard Business Review reports the number of “independent workers” in the economy is expected to increase from about 17 million in 2013 to 23 million by 2017. The number could easily swell to 30+ million in the next decade, accounting for 50 percent of the workforce, up from 35-40 percent currently.

Skeptics may point out that many of these people were laid off from their jobs and had no choice but to go it alone, but the HBR report makes it clear that the majority of these newly minted “independents” made the transition willingly. Many are self-employed, or one-man operations, like Dave Selden, but others run small businesses with employees of their own, like the Harlow’s.

Are we witnessing “The Rise of the New Economy” or a mere blip in the landscape of American working life? Time will tell. The NPR article concludes by suggesting “passion for what you do” is the criterion against which all others should be judged. That may be true, but the best advice may be not to waffle with your decision. If you’re not ready to be “all in,” you may not be quite ready period. You have to be willing to go for it.

The world is a hyper competitive place, and it’s only going to get more so. If you decide to start a small business with anything less than 100 percent commitment,  one thing is certain: You won’t last long.

On the other hand, nothing ventured, nothing gained. Who knows? Your small business may just end up being the next big thing.