10 Reasons why you should work for yourself

my guitars
Yes it’s another one of those ‘quit your job’ type articles but the reason I write so many of them is because working for yourself is just so goddamn awesome.

I quit my job to become a guitar teacher and for the first time I can genuinely say that I am succeeding at it. That is, I have enough students now that the pressure is off and I can relax a little.

Not to mention that thus far nobody has ran away screaming, so I must be doing something right.

To be honest I could have come up with 50 reasons for this article but that would just be silly, so here are the top 10 reasons why you should work for yourself!

1. You can do anything you want

The beauty of finally quitting your job and going it alone is that you can do anything you want.

Seriously, you’re no longer bound by the restrictions your previous job gave you. There are no limitations, nothing to stop you from finally pursuing your passion and doing something that you genuinely enjoy.

Everybody reading this now has one particular skill set or ability that they can do better than anyone they know. Or maybe you have discovered a gap in the market for something and you have a great idea of how to fill it. There is absolutely nothing stopping you from giving it a go. There is no such thing as failure either – If it doesn’t come off you can have a go at something else.

There are no rules.

2. Nobody can tell you what to do

Possibly the single most annoying aspect of working for someone else is that you have to do what they say. I mean that is fine if your boss is cool but if they are passive aggressive sociopaths then you’re pretty much out of luck.

There is nothing worse than having one of those meddling, nit-picking managers who just won’t leave you alone to get on with it. Watching over you like a hawk and then wondering why your productivity and morale have dropped to an all-time low.

If you’re working for yourself then YOU get to decide what work you do and you don’t have to deal with anyone treating you like a child either.

3. There is no one to hold you back

If you currently work as part of a team then you will almost certainly have been in a situation where someone isn’t pulling their weight, and as such your work load has increased as a result.

It’s annoying isn’t it?

What’s more, they usually end up getting away with it too.

A team is only as strong as its weakest component and the beauty of being your own boss is that you don’t have to worry about these people as you are in control of everything. Further down the line if you’re lucky enough to have employees, you have sole control over the type of person that works for you.

4. You can pick and choose your hours

Fancy going on holiday next month but there are no holiday slots available? Do you want to take today off work because you are feeling unwell but can’t handle the stress of phoning in sick? Do you need to knock off an hour early to pick your sick child up from school?

Usually if you are in conventional employment then you are given a set amount of hours and these will be written out weeks in advance. Wouldn’t it be nice to decide what days you work? Hell yes, it’s one of the biggest perks of being self-employed.

Not only that but it frees up more time for you to indulge in whatever you like.

5. Every day is a school day

Not literally, not unless you are teaching obviously.

From the first day of self-employment onwards, every day is a learning curve and you will go through many ups and downs along the way. You will make mistakes – It’s inevitable. But it’s how you learn from your mistakes that will dictate how your business turns out in the long run.

The skills you will learn include;

  • How to manage your finances
  • How to plan and prioritise
  • Dealing with setbacks
  • Managing your own productivity levels
  • How to deal with success
  • How to deal with failure

That last one is the biggie. You will have many mini failures, especially during the first year such as clients cancelling their orders or students dropping out and maybe you will even miss a golden business opportunity; but it’s important treat these mini failures as feedback and assess what you could have done better.

You can only improve by doing this.

6. You’ll make all your friends and colleagues jealous

When you decide to make that big leap, everyone, and I mean everyone will be jealous of you for doing so. Some haters will try to bring you down and others will appear to be indifferent but deep inside they are just resentful of the fact that you are on your way to living the dream.

This can be quite satisfying especially if you are currently working in a negative environment. Knowing that those who used to criticise and put you down are still stuck at their desk while you have the balls to pursue your passion.

7. You get to stick it to your former boss

Remember that annoying, borderline sociopathic manager from above? THE most satisfying day of you working life is when you get the opportunity to stroll into their office and hand them that little envelope informing them of your decision to leave.

It’s beautiful – especially when they don’t see it coming.

8. You have unlimited earning potential

One of the major burdens of your current job is that you probably have a limit on the amount of money you can earn. It won’t matter how much effort you put in or how above and beyond the call of duty you go, your salary is set at a fixed amount.

Of course you may have bonuses and every now and then a little pay rise but we’re only talking a small percentage here.

When you are your own boss you are responsible for you own salary and that means you can set it to whatever you like. Obviously you need to earn the money first, but that’s the best part, you are in charge of your earning potential.

This brings me to…

9. It’s all on you

If you succeed then it’s all on you.

If you fail then it’s all on you.

10. Sense of achievement

Every little victory that you have on this journey will feel better and more rewarding than the previous.

From handing in your notice, setting up your website/equipment, getting your first client, receiving that first paycheque to finally reaching and surpassing your previous salary; it just gets better and better.

Building something out of nothing will be one of the most rewarding experiences you will ever have.

 Image: The tools I take to work

About Jamie

Jamie is a guitar teacher and writer who hates the typical 9-5 existence. After quitting his job to enter the world of guitar tuition, he created this blog to document his thoughts and struggles as he takes on societies norms armed with nothing more than his cheeky wit and undeniable charm - Give his Facebook page a like, add him on Twitter or follow his Google+ page and he will repay you with even more awesome words!

Speak Your Mind

*

CommentLuv badge