Are You Ready To Be Your Own Boss?

Almost everyone has a dream of someday being their own boss.

The thought of not having someone tell you how to do your job, and to be in complete control of your schedule is many people’s idea of the perfect employment situation. If you have been daydreaming about handing in your notice and starting out on your own, this article is for you.

Being your own boss is much more difficult than you probably realize. There is a certain personality better suited to it and others that would be a complete disaster.

There are skill sets that need to be known or learned, and a general business knowledge that again can be known or learned.

Traits Necessary to be Your Own Boss

Here is a general rundown of traits you need to be your own boss:

• Financially responsible – as your own boss, you’ll need to respect the boundaries between personal and business expenses, and be able to manage a budget.
• Organized – you’ll need to file tax reports and payments on time, manage orders, clients and emails and phone records.
• Focused – you’ll need to be able to put off doing fun things until your work is done, since you won’t have a boss keeping you on a time clock.
• Knowledgeable – you’ll need at least a minimum of business sense, and to understand key business terms.

Some of these traits can be learned, but others are inherent. If you’re still intent on being your own boss, read on.

Use Caution

As the following article looks at, you can still be your own boss, but include a safety net to protect your family and personal assets in the event of failure. Over half of new businesses go out of business within the first year.

There are some cautionary steps you can take to avoid being one of those statistics.

Among them:

• Open a franchise – Franchises are a great step for first time business owners. With the power of a franchise behind you, your business is much more likely to succeed. And you don’t only get the brand name when you buy into a franchise. You also get business consulting, the benefit of years of proven business practices, national marketing, and peer support. Basically, franchises allow you to be your own boss without forcing you to do it all alone.
• Keep your day job – Another way to minimize your risk as you go into business for yourself is to keep your day job until you’ve proven your business concept and have a stable foundation beneath you. That way, you’ll have a steady income and you’ll be able to pay the mortgage even if your business runs aground. It’s extremely difficult to keep your day job and start a new business. You’ll have to work nights and weekends for yourself. But the hard work will be worth it if you persevere.

If you truly yearn to be your own boss, you should strive toward it.

But there’s no need to do it in a risky, haphazard way.

About the Author: Kate Supino writes extensively about best business practices.