| Author | Message | ||
     Thumper74 |
Do you stay with the good paying job, or go with the uncertainty of owning your own business? | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
You'll never work harder than you will when you work for yourself. That said, I wouldn't have it any other way. Been self employed (100% commission or 100% contract) for 20 years. You might fail. My business cratered with the market in 2009. I licked my wounds, retooled, and went back at it. The worst thing would be always wondering what might have happened if you took a chance on yourself. | ||
| Pwnzor |
Go for it. We need more small business owners. It's what makes America great. | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
You might fail either way. Companies can lay you off for being too well-paid or being just about to collect a nice retirement package these days. If the employer does lay you off, the choice would be made FOR you  | ||
| Blks1l |
I was forced into it 4 years ago, now I wish that it would have happened about 10-15 years ago. Though I am a small business with just myself and a partner, I don't know if I would want to be much larger. | ||
| Pwnzor |
Nate's got a point... I'm the boss where I work, but as with most things it can be a house of cards... I'm always looking at the horizon, what's coming down the road in case I need to make a change. I make sure my vendors and customers know who I am, what I do for them daily. I have to keep myself "on the market" for potential job change. As far as jobs go, I consider my position to be as solid as it can be. I'll be partial owner of this company in the next 18-24 months. BUT... one stroke of the pen from the Obysmal Dear Ruler and our profitability can be gone in a second. | ||
| Teeps |
Thumper74 Posted on Wednesday, March 18, 2015 - Do you stay with the good paying job, or go with the uncertainty of owning your own business? Even with more information about your situation, there is no way I can answer that question for you. 35 years ago I had the opportunity to open my own M/C repair shop. I had a wife, a mortgage & 2 car payments and, I had no credit. I could not take the chance on losing everything. So, that opportunity went unanswered. However, Honda dealership, then corporate has been good enough to me for the last 38 years. I hope your situation is more favorable, than mine. | ||
| Sifo |
I did very well for my self, mostly as a corporate employee. I did some consulting toward the end of that career too, kind of between being self employed and pure employee. Nothing wrong with it if it doesn't rub you the wrong way too much. The short story for me is that the local market really went down hill after 9-11-2001. I did some serious looking at starting my own business at the time. My wife was really against risking what we had saved to that point. She's far less risk tolerant that I am, so that became kind of a sticking point. Given the economic situation since then, that may have been for the best in my case. They always tell you to not try timing the market. I do agree with that. The market situation is always a risk. What works best for you is best answered by you and your family. My step father's son-in-law has built numerous businesses over the years, most of the very successful. It's in his DNA. He has passed many of his businesses to his kids after they got up and running with fairly poor results. Most of his kids don't have the same dedication and business sense. For him, it's the only way to go. Funny thing, my step father saw him as kind of a loser that couldn't keep a job and really didn't want his daughter to marry him. He turned out to be one of the most successful people that I've known. It's really hard to do that working for someone else. BTW, he was a high school dropout driving an oil delivery truck when he quit his job, got his own truck and started his own heating oil business. Since then, he's quite horizontally diversified in his businesses. I've got a brother-in-law that is pretty much the other end of the spectrum in owning his own business. That lasted less than a year, and I'm pretty sure that was only due to his partner, who restarted on his own and was successful, but died of a stroke in his early 40's. Life is hard to predict. | ||
| Thumper74 |
I'm 31, single. The only 'people' that depend on me are my two, maybe three dogs after this weekend. I don't think I would lose everything, I'm pretty marketable when it comes to jobs. If it doesn't work out, I have other things to fall back on. I love my bosses at my current job. They're understanding, amazing to work for and I've been fortunate with raises. I came to the realization that I'm working myself to death to make other people rich. If I'm going to work 50-70 hours a week, I would like to be doing it for myself. The potential plan would be for a transmission shop. I have the skills, I need the courage. And not one person has tried to talk me out of it yet. | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
I will say that working for yourself will require you to deal with things you are presently not dealing with. Tax planning will be an ever present issue. There will always be new Federal, state and local regulations you don't want and don't agree with that will obligate you to foot the bill. Cash flow will always be a problem. Employees will be an all new fresh hell. Insurance for property will be fun. Benefits for yourself and employees will tend to suck the life out of you. There won't be anyone else to call when problems arise. It will be you who gets the 2:00 am call from the alarm company. You will do more of what you don't want to do and what makes you money than doing what you love and what makes money. You will have to market yourself. If you build it, they won't necessarily come. You will do work that doesn't pay you anything. Often. If you are successful, your employees will view your success as "luck" and that you are "a member of the lucky sperm club" even though none of them were around when you worked like a dog and plowed money back into your company rather than paying yourself. You will be reviled as a "business owner" while countless non-productive succubus attempt to extract your very soul because they feel entitles to it. Still want to work for yourself? | ||
| Strokizator |
If you have skills that are in demand then you should do well. The problems come when you want to expand and go looking for the next "James Lane"; some guy who is just like you were 5 years ago. Good luck finding someone with the same level of knowledge and work ethic as you. Take on just one employee and your costs go up. Worker's comp and laws dealing with things like handicapped restrooms and other stuff that costs money but does nothing. My neighbor "retired" and now builds $60K race engines for clients across the nation. Hey, every one of those needs a transmission and people who are into racing like to spend money. Might be something there and it's better than marketing to people who don't have any money in the first place, don't really want to pay you, but need their car fixed for cheap. To paraphrase Thomas Murphy, former head of GM, you are not in the business of repairing transmissions, you're in the business of making money. There's nothing wrong with that. If you want less money and fewer headaches then stay where you are now. (Message edited by strokizator on March 18, 2015) | ||
| Fresnobuell |
How much do you value your free time? There is more to life than money and work. I have friends who are so busy they can't get out to golf even occasionally. Do you want to wake up at 50 and realize all you have done is work your whole life? Work is NOT fun. That's why they call it work. Being a small business owner has MANY pitfalls as mentioned above, however there are many times I wish I worked for myself.... | ||
| Sifo |
I don't think I would lose everything, I'm pretty marketable when it comes to jobs. If it doesn't work out, I have other things to fall back on. One thing that I guarantee you. Even if you "fail", you will be more marketable than now. Nice points by Ft_bstrd. Sure sounds like he's been there. Not sure of your business plan, but what I was looking into some years back, I could make profitable working by myself pretty easily. One downside of that though was very limited ability to grow. On that model, to grow, I had to work more hours. Nothing wrong with that, but it has real limits. As soon as I wanted to add employees, the whole model changed and it would take about 10-12 people to be profitable. Everything in between was red ink. Some time later I had the opportunity to talk to someone who had recently retired from doing that same business. He confirmed that I was pretty much dead on with my estimates of profitability. The good part is that adding employees after the first dozen would see the profit line increase in a way that would be impossible working by myself. I'm guessing that a transmission shop may have a similar curve, but exact numbers are likely to be quite different. | ||
| Ezblast |
Consider the outlay, and the overhead when making such a decision. At your point - I would stick with your current position and enjoy the OT. Advice from an accountant. EZ | ||
| Cycleaddict |
it is far better to have tried & failed than to have done nothing & succeded. go for the self - employed only if you are a self starter, & have the drive to accomplish your goals.you will have to be able to think outside of the box often. be honest and never compromise your standards for money. you also gotta figure out WHY you go to work ,for me its not for the money its for what the money can do for me .all work and no play makes jack a dull boy ! | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
What, within the confines of ethics, are you willing to do to succeed? This will ultimately be your answer and guide stone for determining how you want to proceed from here. If you are willing to do anything, ANYTHING to succeed, you have a chance. That said, the bar for what is considered exemplary service and quality workmanship is appallingly low. It won't be what you have a passion to do that will be difficult. That comes from your soul, and every minute that you spend doing that seems to pass without notice, effortlessly. It's all the stuff you have to put up with that allows you to do the stuff you love that is hard. | ||
| Brentx1 |
+1 with everything Ft_bstrd has said. | ||
| Johnnylunchbox |
Thumper74, there is probably not as much unknown in this variable as you think. You know yourself, you know your skills, and if you're committed to providing a decent customer service experience people will flock to you. Love the work, do a good job, be smart about money (personally and professionally), be nice to customers, and you will succeed. I am appalled at some of the customer service I witness on a daily basis. I always tell my wife that as a bare minimum we only need to be half as bad as the next guy to succeed in our businesses. | ||
| Doz |
Depends on the business OR how you make yourself different than all the other transmission shops. One guy here in CT specializes in Allison trans and heavy equipment work (excavators, cement trucks) and has a thriving business. Most other car tranny shops are dime a dozen and compete themselves down to the level of a lee miles or equivalent. |
