Why owning your own business is so much better
Not everyone thinks the same way I do, but this is the way I thought when I was an employee: every dollar I made was an exchange for a part of my life. That meant saving a few dollars here and there was important. It was worth getting upset if I was over charged $100 because that was almost a whole day of my life gone.
As a business owner and entrepreneur I see things very differently now. First, I enjoy what I am doing. A day of work is something to look forward to. That alone makes all of the difference. The second reason is that I see money differently too. I’ve realised just how wasteful obsessing over money is. The time spent counting every last penny and accounting for every dollar spent could be put to use doing something that not only earns many multiples of that back but also has a positive impact on other people’s lives.
The turning point for me came a few years back when reading The Motley Fool. I was looking for a way to live the lifestyle I wanted on my small income and still have money to invest. I was browsing through a section on their forums called something like living cheap. After reading posts about pinching pennies by eating dirt cheap meals (that were incredibly unbalanced, which I know because my mom was a nutritionist) I realised just how lame and backwords these ideas were.
Now there is nothing wrong with careful spending to finance the start up of your business or sleeping on the kitchen floor of a studio apartment for a year or two in the early stages of entrepreneurship, but nickle and diming for 30 years of your life in order to live semi-comfortably after you retire is simply a waste of your life.
I do this because I want to do it. I like going to bed knowing that I am making money as I sleep. Its even better when I realise how much of a pain in the ass earning a measly couple of dollars took before all of this. Even better in the web publishing business is knowing how many thousands and thousands of people are seeing your work every single day.
So why would I want to work for someone else?
I agree 100%. I have never worked for anyone else in my life, but I know people that do (of course), and I know people that work for themselves. The one’s who work for themselves have more free time, set their own schedule, and usually make more money.
Many people would likely like to work for themselves but they don’t have the determination and dedication to the goal to make it happen. Also. risks have to be taken and giving up the ’safety’ of a ‘well paying’ job is crazy-talk to some.
Comment by Joe — March 2, 2006 @ 8:04 am
Why make it if you can’t enjoy spending it?
Comment by Chris Beasley — March 2, 2006 @ 9:54 am
One thing I learned quickly is just how “safe” an employeed job is. Most entrepreneurs can make a pretty fair assesment of where their businesses are headed, where as being employeed things can be looking better than ever and bam you are laid off.
Comment by Andrew — March 2, 2006 @ 7:52 pm
I think you should spell check more. As you yourself have said ‘ first impressions count’. I am unlikely to class someone as a guru if their spelling is poor.
Comment by Chris — October 26, 2006 @ 10:14 am
I am working for myself now and yes, ‘the job’ is no longer a chore. It is fun.
Comment by Chris — October 26, 2006 @ 10:16 am