Working for oneself can be very difficult, yet it can be very rewarding and fulfilling. But of course being accomplished at what you do has very little to do with luck. Most business owners will tell you that they planned and prepared themselves to get to that point of success.
While it may look like a bed of roses to outsiders, the fruits that are reaped or the flowers that bloom at the end of the day can only happen if the shop is opened each day. Unlike the person who works for someone, and doesn’t go to work, but will probably still get the same cheque at the end of the week, the business owner who doesn’t show up for work each day, will not make any money for those days. Even Oprah Winfrey has to show up and work each day in order to keep her millions rolling in. The minute she stops, the millions will begin to dwindle.
The part of being self-employed that usually wows individuals is the fact that there is no bureaucracy, there is no supervisor or timekeeper lording over you each day. Some self-employed persons say that being able to make their own schedule and plan their days around their needs, personality and strengths is perhaps the most satisfying aspect of being self-employed.
Of course the level of self-employment about which I speak is on a very small scale. Large businesses have as much if not more bureaucracy than some government agencies. But the point is really not so much about working for oneself in a small or large business, as it is in recognizing that to move ahead in any aspect of your life takes planning and having options.
Good planning and the execution of these plans will allow you to have more choices. And it is at this point that we should want to arrive. We should want to be able to have choices available to us. The more choices or options we have depends on how much planning we did for our futures.
We can sit and talk about owning our own business, but if we have not done anything to make this idea become a reality, then it will not happen. Some people sit and talk about wanting to have a nice “nest egg” for retirement, but if plans are not put into action before the age of sixty or sixty-five, you may only end up with rotten eggs.
Stop worrying about what someone else has or where someone is in his/her life. Examine where you are now and where you want to be tomorrow. What are you doing to secure your present state of being in order to secure your future?
It is utterly useless to mull over what you have not done yet with your life. Crying over what could have been or should have been is not productive and it does not bring you closer to achieving your goals.
Begin a new chapter in your life today and start laying that foundation that will give you options. Being able to “pick, choose and refuse” will give you the upper hand as you continue your quest to fulfill your purpose. The “freedom,” however elusive it may be, that comes from working for oneself, is only possible if the options are available to the individual.
Questions? Comments? Joye can be reached at greene1995@coralwave.com
