I chose to work for myself after losing my full time job to liquidation. Becoming a sole trader was something I’d considered doing somewhere off in the future. However, I was put in a position where I needed to think about the future of my career right away. I had the means to get started now instead of “some day”, so I decided to dive straight in.
Passion is really important when setting out on your own, so I am grateful to have such a clear intuition for my business. When you love what you do, you feel fulfilled. I encourage anyone with a passion to think about how they can turn it into a career. One way to do this is to work for yourself – here are my top reasons to take the plunge!
10 Reasons to Work for Yourself:
1. Choosing your working hours
9-5, Monday-Friday isn’t for everyone. As your own boss, you can choose to work whenever suits you and your business best. You don’t even have to have a set schedule, though it does tend to help. But if you work in or out of those scheduled hours, it doesn’t matter. As long as you are ticking things off, you’re golden.
2. Answering to yourself
You follow your own orders. You plan and shape the business, so all processes and systems make sense to you. You do need a lot of self-discipline to keep things moving, but when you’re passionate in your work, you may find it’s easier to stay motivated than working for someone else.
3. Earning a living with endless opportunities
When you run your own business, you can choose the products and services you offer. You could turn a hobby into a business or merge two fields you’re an expert in and make something new. You create your own earning opportunities and there is no limit to what you decide.
4. For online businesses, working from anywhere
You can travel to new countries, work from a new cafe every day, or get cozy in your home office. As long as your space is practical for you, you’re free to roam! Moving around can be refreshing. You may find yourself more productive in your local library than a standard office environment – either way, the choice is yours.
5. Fulfilling your passions
Whatever makes your heart sing, you can follow a path of joy. Work doesn’t have to be boring, make it your own! If you think about it, a huge portion of people are working their jobs just to pay the bills. So, if you have the opportunity, why not choose a career that leaves you without regret and full of fond memories when it’s time to retire?
6. Learning every day
When you are your entire staff, you have to fit multiple roles. Even if you work with a small team, there are many bases to cover. This means you learn how to do many new things and develop the skills you already have. Fostering a growth mindset, and a healthy dose of curiosity, will lead you to all kinds of fascinating and unexpected places.
7. Connecting with interesting people
There are some wonderful groups and communities out there for people running their own businesses. Learning from those who’ve been there before is absolutely invaluable. As is supporting other newbies and lending a hand as you grow together. There are many benefits to joining forces with other entrepreneurs and experts.
8. Helping others
You can share advice you gather along the way and use your business to provide helpful services, products, or resources. What you do can make a difference to individuals, fellow businesses, and even the larger community. If you can build a community of like-minded individuals within your niche, that is something very special.
9. Honing your craft
Whatever it is you do, you have the capability to become the best at it in your niche, city, country, or potentially even the world. As you learn new techniques and get more and more practice, you improve to new heights. Sometimes you may not even realise it, but I find that looking back on old work is a good way to see how far you have come.
10. Achieving more than you thought you could
It is super satisfying to know that you achieved all of this yourself. Through all the challenges, hurdles, and growth – in the end, your achievements are down to your hard work. It’s a great feeling to find that you can accomplish things you previously only dreamed of. You really can surprise yourself when you chase your passions.
