Who has created their own job or own their own business?

Become a Stripper (like CHRIS4X4)

 

I have entertained the idea of a hydrodipping shop. My old man get his gates and metalwork powder coated but he has to use a business out of town. He has mentioned to me about wanting to start one himself. So one of my ideas, once he gets a bigger shop, is to get into powdercoating and hydro dipping.

 

I got my computer science degree and worked as a programmer for a while, and both me and some of the guys I worked with would get some side jobs. I then got laid off but got a good contract with the company I was laid off from (they realized they couldn't support the software without some help). That and referral business kept me busy enough for about a year and a half.

My kids were little, and I really only had to average 20 hours a week to make a really good living, so it was cool to work from home and get to spend more time with them at that age.

I subbed out work to a couple of other guys, and I figured that if I could get to the point where I could keep myself and 2 other guys busy I could start a real company. I have no desire to be a salesman and go drum up more work, so once the work started drying up I decided to get a job again. Which turned out to be a good thing a couple years later when my wife was diagnosed with breast cancer. The catastrophic coverage I was carrying may not have been enough to cover.

But, when I get those Social Security reports every year that show your earnings over time, I still wonder what I could have been able to do if I had actually tried. That was about 10 years ago, and I am just now getting to the point of making that kind of coin again.

Get a good accountant if you don't have a financial background and feel comfortable doing your books yourself.

 

My two cents...

If you are unsure of what kind of business you want to be in, then you should go and work for someone else doing something that interests you... then you can learn the business, learn some of the pros and cons from the inside, and make a MUCH more informed decision. Just starting a business doing something you have little to no experience in is either suicidel or just crazy enough to work.

I've been in the same industry for almost 20 years and I'm just about ready to start my own shop... and it still scares me to death!