A Personal Story of a Risk Taken

Taking a Risk – Making the Decision to Quit

A few years ago I got a job working in a small company working supply chain for a few of their big clients. While I enjoyed the job itself, the office wasn’t a good fit for me. Talking with others who had been there longer confirmed my fears and I decided to quit.

While my husband and I work hard at keeping our living expenses on one income, it was risky because we were still new to the area and he had just became permanent with his job.

Investing in Myself

While seeking out a similar position at another company, I wanted to see if I could develop or enhance my employabilty with some work on the side.

Freelance Skills For Income

I wasn’t planning on starting a new career, but I had some skills that would be helpful for businesses. The two biggest pluses  of working while hunting for a job are:

1. you keep your skills fresh for when you do find that job you want and
2. you’re keeping your income stream alive while job hunting

Of course finding clients and projects is easier said than done. There are several ways someone can get the word out:

• Send out an email to everyone in your address book, announcing what you do, where you are and what you can offer
• Keep an eye on online job boards
• Check out Craigslist for your city

I got my start by helping out a friend with his web design business. His clients needed content for their sites, but they didn’t have any experience writing online and gaining traffic. Since I had blogged for a bit, I provided content while my friend designed and redesigned their sites. It allowed him to offer turn key services for customers and I had a new income stream.

From that one side project I started a working for myself and I’m now self-employed. It wasn’t a straight shot, but just taking that risk and quitting led me to finding (paying) work that I love.

Investing Risks of Starting a Business

The biggest challenge when it comes to starting the business is making it profitable as you build it. Risking your time and financial investments on a new business is stressful. It’s all boils down to your return on investment – whether it’s the money you invest or the time you put into the business.

• Will this investment directly help me cut expenses or increase income?
• How soon can I get a return on this investment?
•  Is there a way I can decrease my investment and get the same return or invest this and reduce the risk?

You have to honestly examine the numbers and see if you need to adjust course with your business. This applies to investing capital into technology for your venture or deciding what demographic to serve with your new e-book.

Thoughts on Investing