The tricks and tips to work with people whose values and work ethics align with yours
Undeniably, the shifting trend towards self-employment has proclaimed the chunk of solopreneurs and self-employed as the majority of the workforce population. Post-pandemic, projections have pointed to an expansion of this set of working professionals amidst the tidal wave of layoffs across various industries, especially in the tech sector.
The sway towards self-employment ditching the traditional working patterns is here to stay irrespective of the occasional challenges of managing their own businesses.
Immense Flexibility: The charm of a flexible lifestyle has allured the best minds to ditch the old-school workforce, start their work business ventures, and be on their toes to churn out the best from their enterprises.
Creative Freedom: The growing dissatisfaction, lack of work-life balance, and lurking insecurities among employees have pushed many to take the plunge and discover the earning potential—to rekindle the spirit of entrepreneurship.
Better Earning Potential: Definitely the scope to earn is greater in leaps and bounds than traditional employment where employees are yielding profits for the capitalist honchos. Such a work model sometimes translates to spending less—both in terms of money and personal resources.
Working as Freelancers
Those who are transitioning towards self-employment are being gradual and meticulous with the journey. Instead of ditching their bosses pronto, they are instead shifting to the freelance model to work in the existing capacity. This implies a tectonic shift in the contract as far as work hours, quantum of work, and salary are concerned which further allows for the time, liberty, and, of course, a security net required to chase personal dreams to earn a living.
Looking for Other Contracts
Seasoned freelancers are well-versed in the advantages of signing contracts with a host of other companies—a practice that allows a deeper insight into the preferred styles and patterns of work. While building something from scratch, the necessity of money and other resources far surpasses one’s expectations. The option to work for varied companies at different paces and choose one gig over the other till the business venture takes shape. This way of working also allows for networking and recommendations
Collecting Research and Intelligence
Market research might sound cliched but it is one viable way to asses market needs and competitors. This step includes:
Understanding customer needs
Finding niche markets
Create measures to lessen financial losses
Identify areas of challenges with the product or service that is on offer
This step can be juggled with contractual or freelance-based work.
Set a Partner to Buy-In
Besides the financial and time resources, another crucial element to ease the transition is the availability of a partner willing to buy in. A partner is indispensable to mapping financial needs, working hours, pre-requisites, marketing, and maintaining a work-life balance. Once the goals are set, a partner could pretty well anticipate the next move and set the projections.
Join a Community of Aspirants
Being in the loop with other aspiring entrepreneurs is all about exchanging insights and opinions while connecting with people from similar fields in a bid to know the nitty-gritty of working solo. This hobnobbing is pertinent during the business model development stage as practical suggestions for various aspects of building an empire could be attained. Be it revenue, inventory, investment, accountancy, research, and intelligence, the community would supply information that is more reliable and handy than textbook knowledge. A membership will grant some meaningful insights and constructive feedback, since venturing solo does not allow many opportunities for trial and error, to propel one towards the right path.
