Thanks again for this article as it insprired me to start blogging and do research on SEO ideas etc. I will be following Brazen and staying in touch.

Dwane
http://www.howtovids.net

With all the economic insecurity, you can’t rely on a company for your financial and career security–you’ve got to stop depending on others and start relying on yourself. While that might sound daunting, it actually gives you much more freedom. You can create your own day-job at a company or non-profit, or you can create your own business, which most times, gives you a lot more latitude to decide what you want to do, how much you earn, where and when you work, etc.

After being frustrated with my corporate day job–and worried that layoffs were imminent–I started my own consulting business in January 2007 while working full-time (and with 2 kids, so I didn’t have a ton of time to devote to it).  I gradually built up a list of a few dozen clients, so that I have a steady workload and income. I’ve got more flexibility and financial security than I ever had at any of my day jobs. The financial security comes from having multiple clients who pay me, rather than relying on a single employer for my income.

Since I started my consulting business, I’ve QUADRUPLED my former day-job salary.

It’s truly been life-changing, and has completely changed my worldview; I’m no longer dependent on a single employer, and I continually see new business opportunities.

That’s not to say that starting your own business is easy–it’s not–but with persistence and smart choices along the way, I truly believe that anyone can change their future and become more financially secure by creating their own business. I’ve seen it happen for me, as well as a number of people around me. Maybe the hardest steps are the first ones you take, since it can seem scary. But as long as you keep taking actions–no matter how small–they’ll snowball and will start moving you to a new place.

I talk more about the mental barriers, doubts, fears, etc. of starting and/or growing a business on my blog (http://www.StartMyConsultingBusiness.com). Although I emphasize consulting, the ideas really apply to any business.

Greg Miliates
http://www.StartMyConsultingBusiness.com

It doesn’t cost anything but time to do a pro-active project to show potential clients or employers your potential worth.

I have had success gaining constant freelance work that lasted a year doing exactly this. I found a company (actually two) that interested me, picked up the phone and asked to speak with the . I then pitched my expertise and how they could use my services (in this case marketing) and then charge the work out at a premium fee to their clients.

Over coffee, we discussed it and I pitched that I was willing to do a discrete project for free. They took me up on it.

At the time I couldn’t afford internet access so I had to do the project work in the local library, but in a few days delivered a report they loved.

Over the next year I built significant experience that has helped me gain my own (better paying) direct clients and one company even insisted on paying more per hour.

I’ve just made a similar pitch to one of the biggest names in Advertising and have met their senior team members to decide which project to progress so they too can see my work. Boldness works.

Please don’t give up – I am sure you have loads you can offer! All you need to do is show them what you’ve got (ok, that was a little pollyanna, but its meant well)

cable ties

On health insurance: I’m working on a post on that, too! I’m in the process of transitioning now, and I’ve found http://www.ehealthinsurance.com/ to be helpful — particularly calling their agents and asking for a hand in choosing a plan. I’ve also used my state’s low-income insurance plan in the past when I qualified — It doesn’t hurt to check on whether your state has one.

The cost of health insurance is a real barrier to self-employment, though. Interested to see what other folks think.

Thanks for chiming in!

To avoid a long essay here, I’ll stick with what I believe is a core problem: we are trained to think in terms of acquiring skills that will make our labor expensive, that will command a high wage. That might still work for an independent contractor who works 40-hour-a-week gigs that happen not to be on payroll.

A business owner must think in terms of profit, not wage. I know that I used to think in terms of positioning and promoting myself to command a premium hourly rate. The ultimate result of that, when successful, is creating a break-even business with a single overpaid employee. You can’t hire anyone else. You can’t sell the business. And if other people compete on price, you’re screwed.

Once I displaced the ego around being “worth” $X per hour or “worth” a certain salary, I began to think in terms of providing services that are valuable and affordable (sometimes even actually cheap,) but are quick for me to deliver or that I can hire someone else to deliver. An example: think of how your job actually works. In an 8-hour day, the batch of work that you or your team produces serves many customers at once. When you think like a business owner, you try to replicate that, not get paid more for the specific job tasks.

Where to start! Full disclosure: I am a long time Recruiter and Business Owner.

I do agree with you. As a nation, we have been launched into panic mode. Jobs are not as plentiful as they once were (think 90’s…and I believe we can get back there if we do it right). I wrote a piece I Hired Me for Forbes.com and on my own blog that spoke to taking back our drive, passion and initiative and making our own opportunities. http://www.empowerme.org/index.php/2011/06/01/tough-hired/ Also did a radio show about it. I believe when things get tough, you SHOULD hire yourself out….if you have skills (or products) that make you valuable.

Here’s the thing. Not everyone is meant to be an entrepreneur or even an independent contractor. Neither is something you can just jump into and expect to be uber-successful out the gate. There’s a lot of misleading information out there about using the Internet to make your riches and social media to spread your message. The problem with that is people are using the wrong. A lot of these so called experts are telling people jump on the Internet, start a business, make lots of money, 750 million customers are waiting on you on Facebook and there is no responsibility behind these words. No, everyone can’t leverage the Internet to make their own way. Some can, most can’t.

The focus needs to be on emphasizing your current true skills and figuring a way to harness those skills and talents into a viable business or freelance opportunity. People need to be educated to do this not coaxed into it with flashy copy and empty promises. I can’t put the blame completely on these people who are selling the dream. Everyone should be doing their research and due diligence.

Back to the job creation/loss argument. I have to disagree about it being a total disappointment. The media is reporting NO NEW JOBS. That doesn’t mean there weren’t ANY new jobs. We broke even, which mean there were people hired and there were people fired and it balanced out. I can see if there were really NO new jobs created or NO people hired, but that simply isn’t true. The media would like you to get sucked into the chicken little act. I admit, it is disappointing to not have made much progress. But let’s not act like there was NO progress at all. We broke even.

Now what to do about it? First, stop waiting on Washington to create jobs. Stop hinging hope on the tech and energy sectors to create new jobs by themselves. There are tons of other industries out there. Make sure your skills are transferable to other industries. Open your mind to learning new skills. Apply with smaller companies and stop being heavily dependent on the big businesses who are major employers in your town. Everyone else and their momma are applying there.

If you have a solid business idea, don’t treat it as a side hustle or something to do until you get a real job. Entrepreneurship is no joke. It takes commitment and dedication, but most of all hard work.Represent and package yourself professionally so that people will take you seriously.

I have hope for small business, the economy and the jobs market. Clear your heads and buckle down for some hard work to make it happen.

Or you could always raise money through Kickstarter if you have something in which people wouldn’t mind throwing money at to get you going.

Cool article! Becoming an entrepreneur isn’t for everyone, but it’s definitely fantastic if you’ve got the right passion and skills.