As we near the end of our discussion on entrepreneurship, it’s only natural that we look at the other side of the equation, which involves remaining an employee within your company. With the lack of objective definition it’s easy to become unhappy in the workplace. Everywhere you turn you see pieces on quitting your job and becoming self-employed. Today I wanted to look at some ways that you can become a happy employee and not worry about leaving your work any time soon.

Set an objective definition.

It could be the lack of goals or objective definition that’s holding you back from being happy as an employee. Do you have an end goal? Have you set short to medium term goals? Do you have a long term plan? I find with being an employee that you need to set goals for yourself because at the end of the day you work for ME Inc. Nobody will ever care about your financial situation as much as you do. The only way to secure a strong future financial situation is to set specific goals for yourself. Do you want to move into management in the future? Do you want to use your current employer has a reference for a dream job when you’re older? If you set some clear cut objectives you’ll find yourself more happy and motivated as an employee.

Try to work your way up the ranks.

Entrepreneurship is popular, but why isn’t intrapreneurship common? Rarely do we see pieces on moving up within a company and leading a team. You can easily become a leader in your company by undertaking challenging projects and motivating others. You’ll become much more happier as an employee once you see your peers are looking up to you and taking direction from you. If there’s a lack of growth opportunities in your current place of employment, it’s time that you switch to a new job so that you can experience what it feels like to be a happy employee once again.

Learn from others.

Whenever I start a new job or anything new in life my goal is to try to learn from others. At one point we will be a beginner at something and someone else out there will be at the advanced level. I find it to be exciting trying to go from beginner to advanced, in any area of life. This is the same as investing for beginners and getting started with your new life. When you start with your company you might just be the intern or hold some mundane job. The thrill comes in moving up the ranks and learning from others. Some will just complain and moan about their position. Those that are truly ambitious will do whatever they can to learn from others and improve their position.

Once you do everything you can to improve your experience at work you can try out some other ideas at home to ensure that you’ll remain a happy employee.

Work on side projects.

I suggest that you try to keep yourself busy with projects that inspire you. Your 9-5 job can be your source of income. Then when you get home you can work on your side business or projects around the house that you really want to get done. When you have money coming in, it becomes much easier to invest money in yourself and side hobbies. You can also become a much happier employee when you realize that your full-time job is allowing you to enjoy other areas of yourself.

Take care of yourself.

Finally you need to start taking proper care of yourself. Working out and eating well will make you feel happier overall. The reason that you hate your current job could be caused by something as simple as your poor eating habits or lack of proper rest. Don’t let these hold you back from enjoying your job.

At the end of the day I want to stress that being a happy employee is possible and realistic. Too many people are jumping on the self-employed bandwagon and bashing 9-5 jobs.

Where do you guys stand? Are you a happy employee or do you want to try out the world of self-employment?

If you enjoyed this piece then I strongly urge you to check out the other articles in this series:

Being a Freelancer Pros and Cons
Being An Employee Pros and Cons
How You Can Moonlight Your Way to Success
How-to Start Your First Business

(photo credit: working word)

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There are many written and unwritten working laws at your current job that are affecting you. You might be at the point where you’re sick of following working laws and are ready to branch off on your own. Instead of worrying about registering as self-employed for taxes and health coverage, you need to focus on making some money with your business idea. This is why we are here to help you get started.

If you’re looking for how to start your first business then this post is a rough guideline for what you can do starting right now!

Think of a business plan.

What will your business be? Will it be a service business or will you sell goods? You need to think of a business plan and get something in writing. Now don’t let this scare you away. I’ve put together business plans for school that were about 100 pages long. You don’t need to do this for your first small business. You just need to consider some of the following ideas in your business plan:

• Definition of business.
• Where will money come from?
• Short term business goals.
• Long term business goals.
• Risks involved.
• Competition.

Every business needs to have goals and to be aware of the competition. If you blindly walk into a business venture, you might walk out broke. I don’t want any of you guys going broke on me.

Brand your business.

Branding is more than just registering as self-employed for tax purposes. Branding is difficult to define these days. It involves everything that you and your business does. From responding to comments to having an amazing blog logo. Branding is everything that you do and how you do it.

According to Escape From Cubicle Nation, branding your business/yourself involves the following:

1. Take a stand.
2. Make people feel.
3. Invoke trust.
4. Solve a problem.

If you can manage to do all four of the above, then you’ll build a strong brand around your business. Don’t stress because by default you should be doing all four in your every day life. You should take a stand by having a clear business philosophy. You should make people feel by conveying how passionate you are. In turn your customers will trust you if you over deliver always. In the end you’re bound to help others solve a problem.

Create a website.

You’re going to want to have a home base. If you plan on starting a pure blog then you’re clearly going to need a website (hosting, design, theme). I don’t have much to say on this part because I hate the behind the scenes website work. In the past I have outsourced this work so that I can focus on what I enjoy doing (writing articles and helping others). You might have to spend a few bucks here but it’s usually a one time upfront cost.

Find paying clients.

This should be step number one. For the sake of not throwing you off with your first business idea, I want you to get comfortable with everything before you start looking for clients. Once you have your business idea up and running you need to decide on how you will earn money and how you will find paying clients. Who will pay you for your services? Finding paying clients is the strongest litmus test for deciding if your business has any legs to stand on. As they say, “if you’re going to fail, then fail fast.” If you can find paying clients relatively quickly then you may be on to something with your business. If you can’t then it means you might have to tweak something or switch gears.

Think about funding.

How will you fund this new business venture? These days you can start any small business online for less than a $1,000 so the funding should be coming from your savings account. If you’re going to want to start a business with a physical location then you need to look into funding. I have personally not gone through this process myself so I can’t offer much assistance. I can recommend that you start off by trying out one of the common options for small business funding: bank loan, angel investor, or venture capitalist.

Work your butt off.

Sorry but this step is mandatory. Everything else is just a minor detail. I find that in life you get what you put in. If you’re lazy with your business, then your business will show. Customers and readers can tell when you’re lazy. No matter how many books are written on the being able to work a few hours weekly and generate passive income, you’re still going to have to hustle hard with your new business. It’s just the reality of life. If you’re not willing to work your butt off then you need to close this post right now and consider other options. The amazing part is that for the first time in your life you will enjoy working hard because you’ll be working on projects that you’re passionate about.

The post that inspired me originally was 7 steps to starting a business over at Investor Junkie. If you enjoyed this piece then I strongly urge you to check out the other articles in this series:

Being a Freelancer Pros and Cons
Being An Employee Pros and Cons
How You Can Moonlight Your Way to Success

I want to know what you think: what worries you about starting your first business?

(photo credit: certs)

If you’re anything like me, then you’re stuck in a situation where you enjoy both being an employee and a freelancer. I love the flexibility and sense of accomplishment that comes along with freelance work. Then on the other hand, I enjoy making new friends in the workplace and working with others toward a common goal. If you want to run your own business on the side, or if you want to start your business in the evenings while you transition off your full-time job, then this article is for you. You definitely need to learn how to master the art of moonlight.

What’s moonlighting in the first place? I searched the web for answers, but I couldn’t find one that I liked. Essentially moonlighting is real simple. It’s the idea of holding down an evening/night job while you already have a steady full-time 9-5 sort of gig. Easy to explain, difficult to perform.

Let’s talk about how you can moonlight your way to success and how you can become decent at moonlighting:

Turn your mind off at work.

If you’re at the point where you hate your job or you find your work to be totally redundant, then the best advice that I can give is to turn off your mind while at work and you save your creative energy for when you work on projects that excite you. This may sound like bad advice but it’s the truth. Instead of becoming frustrated at your job just focus your energy on your other projects. Getting upset won’t do you any good. You don’t want to be all frustrated when you get home later on to work on your freelance projects.

Take advantage of slow periods.

When you have a slow time frame at work, a long commute home, or random spare time, I recommend that you take advantage of this time to work on some of your freelance projects. I often get some of my best writing done and random bursts of creativity when I got some time to kill. This down time is usually spent on doing absolutely nothing positive. Instead of just sitting around, bust out a pen and paper and get some writing done. Plan out your evening. Figure out your goals. Work on something new. Do whatever you want as long as you don’t remain idle for an extended period of time.

Take one evening just to yourself.

You need to prevent burnout. I’ve seen too many bloggers burnout. Actually, I’ve seen too many others burnout in general. I notice this at the gym all of the time. A new gym enthusiast will get their brand new membership and try coming every day. They go strong for a few weeks and then they burnout. Then they quit. I don’t want to see any of you guys quit or fail with your freelancing goals. If you want to be in this for the long run then you need to take some time off for yourself at least once a week. I’m 23 so I recommend a night of lots of beers. If you’re older you might enjoy an evening off to watch a movie or do something else completely relaxing. It’s up to you as long as you consciously avoid burnout.

Take care of yourself.

If you’re going to be working long-hour days then you need to take care of both your mind and your body. This doesn’t include drinking 2 Redbull’s a day and overdosing on sugar. Taking care of yourself means that you eat balanced meals and drink lots of water. You need to stay hydrated if you plan on going through long days. If you eat well throughout the day you’ll be surprised by how much energy you have. Much better than the small dose of energy and major crash that comes with a can of Redbull.

Wake up an hour earlier.

I find that we often estimate the power of an hour of productive work. In the evenings we’re often busy with checking email and going on Facebook. If you wake up an hour earlier while the rest of the world is still fast asleep, you can get a lot of writing done. I’ve done some of my best writing at 6 in the morning in the pitch black. I promise you that you’ll be impressed by how much you can get done in a day just by waking up an hour earlier every day. You may be tired at first but thinking about the progress of your new projects should definitely keep you going. Try it out for a week and see if it works for you. If not you can always just try staying up an hour later at night to be productive.

Moonlighting isn’t easy but it can be very fun and challenging. You might find that moonlighting is too stressful for you or you might conclude that it’s the busy life that keeps you going. I wish you the best of luck with your moonlighting. Before you leave today, I wanted to share the benefits of moonlighting with you guys:

Why Moonlight?

Financial benefit.

By moonlighting you ease into your own business. This is much easier on you financially then it is to just jump into things. You don’t have to worry about borrowing money from friends and family. Moonlighting gives you the time to save up money as you see if you have the right business idea to be making money. You can always build up a decent emergency fund so that you don’t have to worry about being homeless as a self-employed individual.

Pays off in the future.

You put in the work today and you will see the results down the road. It may not always be fun but when the day comes to go full time with your business you’ll be very happy that you put in the sacrifice. This will be the busiest time in your life but you will look back at it fondly in the future. You’ll be laughing at those sleepless nights when you find yourself in a successful position.

Check out the other posts in this series:

Being a Freelancer Pros and Cons
Being An Employee Pros and Cons

(photo credit: Koalazymonkey)

Last week we took a look at the positives and negatives of being an employee. When fed up with the 9-5 work schedule, one can easily become enamored with the idea of freelance work. Is freelance work always better than being an employee? Are you ready to deal with self-employed tax and health insurance for self-employed? Is freelance work better for your situation?

I’m here to help you make that decision a little easier. Let’s look in the pros of being a freelancer first:

Flexibility in your schedule.

As I type this it’s two in the morning. I mean sure I could have written this piece earlier in the day, but I just didn’t have the focus to pump out quality content earlier. The funny observation that I made recently is that I do my best writing in the middle of the night. I thought I was the only one until I find out that many writers out there can the bulk of their work done at random hours.

When you become a freelancer you create the opportunity to possess a completely flexible schedule. No longer do you have to adhere to a 9 AM sign in with little breathing room. You have the ability to work when you want from wherever you want. All you need for most freelance work is a laptop. You don’t have to worry about a set schedule or a tiny cubicle.

You control your own income.

The amount of money you make depends totally on you. There’s no boss holding you down and no glass ceiling to deal with. The money you earn is all thanks to the your effort that you put into your projects. You can be totally ambitious and strive to make as much money as possible. On the other hand, you can relax and earn just enough money to pay the bills and be happy. Your income is dependent on you. For me that’s a good thing. For some it can be rather scary. Where do you stand?

No annoying co-workers.

I’m sure that everyone reading this has had to put up with annoying co-workers that make the day feel like it’s never going to end. When you venture off to become a freelancer you’ll no longer have to worry about this. The other beauty is that you can even work with your friends. If a few of you guys are freelancers then you can get together at a coffee shop to work away and crack jokes so that the day goes by quicker.

Now that we looked at the positives, we need to venture off into the negative side so that we paint a clear picture when it comes to being a freelancer:

Lack of focus.

When you work on your own you’re no longer confined to a cubicle, set schedule, or an angry boss. The buck stops with you. The biggest issue then becomes your focus. How focused are you? I thought that I was very focused until I realized how much time I waste on crap. The thing you need to understand right now is that more time does NOT equal more work all of the time. More focus equates to more work. If you’re not focused then you won’t get much work done at all. When you don’t get much work done you don’t earn much money. What will you do at this point? This is a major issue that all current and future freelancers need to address.

No vacation.

When you work for yourself you can’t just fill out a vacation request form and take off for two weeks while still getting paid. If you don’t work you don’t get paid. It’s really that simple. So if you think that life will be easier as a freelancer then please think again. There will be times where you absolutely enjoy your work and couldn’t imagine it any other way. Then there will be days where you just want to get away but you can’t because you risk losing a paying client.

Income uncertainty.

When you become a freelancer your income becomes totally uncertain. I mentioned earlier that you control your income. Yes you do. It’s just that your pay becomes irregular. Opportunities will come and go. Offers will dry up and clients will leave you. Your income will become more uncertain than ever before. Can you handle this income uncertainty?

Self-employed issues.

As a freelancer you’ll have to worry about self-employed tax and health insurance for self-employed. As an employee this is all taken care of for you. Now you will have to deal with these topics on your mind as you attempt to increase your freelance income.

What do you think being a freelancer now? Are you still going to try being a freelancer or is it not for you?

(photo credit: photo extremist)

There are clearly many benefits to becoming a full-time employee post-college and holding down a static schedule. There are also many setbacks to this traditional life. It all really depends on your unique perspective and what you value. We all have different values and expectations when it comes to earning a living. This is why I wanted to dissect the idea of being an employee once you graduate from college.

We will start off the discussion by looking at what are the positive of being an employee?

Static schedule.

When you work for a company as an employee you’re usually given a static schedule that you follow on a weekly basis for a very long time until some changes are made by your boss. The odd time you might have to stay at the office longer to finish up a project. Regardless, the schedule that you have as an employee is set for you by someone else. You don’t have to worry about time management, productivity, or late nights. You just show up to your company and do your work. What you get done in your 8 hours is the only work that you’ll have to do for the day.

Pay guarantee.

No job is ever guaranteed in this economy, but as an employee you’re guaranteed to get paid every time pay day comes around. This pay guarantee creates a sense of security and assurance for employees. Anyone with a family understands the importance of this steady pay as it gives you the ability to budget properly and to save for your various money goals. If you were to venture off on your own it would be more  challenging to budget since you’re never really sure of how much money you’ll earn during any given time period. With a static schedule you know exactly how much you’re going to earn every paycheck.

Ability to move up the ranks.

When you start off in one company after college you’re in a position where you can move up the ranks in your company. Barring office politics, if you work hard and put in the effort, you can easily increase your pay and your spot in the company. There’s no telling where you can end up after a few years of hard work and long hours.

Being an employee isn’t that bad, is it? Well we must take a look at the negatives of being an employee before you can come up with your own conclusions:

Time consuming.

When you hold down a job as an employee you’re essentially committing at least 40 hours a week of your time to your employer. This 40 hours may not seem so bad, but think of all of the other time involved. You have to consider the time it takes you to commute to work and back home, time getting ready, rest needed, and any general preparation that you need to do before work. Once you factor all of this in you’ll realize that your job is very time consuming and life as an employee may not be right for you. This time consumption will interfere with the million other things that you’re going to want to do as a 20-something.

Energy drain.

One thing that I’ve noticed from my friends with full-time jobs is that they can be drained after a day of work. Too often do friends bail on me when it comes to an evening workout or just a meet up. Can you handle the energy drain that goes along with living the life of an employee with a static schedule? For some it’s simple, but for others work can be a major energy drain.

You won’t follow your passions.

The unfortunate aspect of a job with a static schedule is that you may never get to follow your passions. You won’t have to worry about life insurance, but you won’t be happy with your lack of time. Just the other day I was speaking with a friend that’s approaching the age of 40. He told me that his one regret is that he got stuck at a job in his 20s and he never got to follow his true passions. I don’t want this to happen to me or to any of you reading this. In this day and age we have no excuse to not follow our passions. The problem with becoming an employee right after college is that it’s easy to get stuck at your job and to get too comfortable. This comfort can take you away from the goals you set only a few years earlier.

There you guys have it. We have looked at the pros and cons of being an employee. How do you feel about being an employee? Are you more of an entrepreneur or an employee? Where do you see yourself in three years from now?

(photo credit: ambernectar 13)

Burned Out By Your Job? Test Yourself

You may have to do a burn out test to get to the root of your problem. There’s no need to jump ship if you can’t pinpoint what the problem. It’ll just happen again at your new job- figure out what’s wrong and you’ll be much happier with your next position.

• Am I challenged by my work? If you find that work is mundane and uninspiring, it’ll be hard for you to stay passionate about your work. Ask your boss if you can take on some challenging projects. If they give you some, that may solve your problem. If they refuse, then you probably should prepare your finances to getting a new job.
• Am I appreciated for the value I add to the company? No one wants to be ignored at work. Next time you speak with your manager point out how you’ve contributed to the company’s bottom line and she how he/she reacts. If your boss is belittling or dismissive of your hard work, then it’s time to move on.
• Do I get excited to come up with new ideas for my department and company? Does your company encourage feedback from everyone or do they only want to hear from certain people? Work should inspire you, not drain you of your time. Have an honest discussion with your manager to see if the company is the right place for you.

Looking at Your Options

What can you do once you realize you need to move on? Quitting right away might not be viable, but you can find a new job that can help you professionally and fulfill your personal goals. It’ll take work to achieve, but it’s definitely worth it.

• Stay in the industry, move to another company. Prepare and update your portfolio, resume, and get some cover letters ready.
• Keep the same position, but switch industries. You may love what you do, but you may be able to expand your network by shifting industries. Ask around and see if you have anyone working in a different industry that know of an opening for your position.
• Start a new career. If you have the talent and energy, you may want to change up your career and get out of your comfort zone. It’ll be hard work, but you may find it more fulfilling than just switching companies.
• Start a small business. Entrepreneurship can be a bumpy and profitable road. Do it right by preparing your finances and honing your business skills.

Which move is right for you? Only you can decide for yourself.

Thoughts on Being Burnt Out From Your Job

How did you know it was time to quite from your job? How long did it take for you to realize you were suffering burn out? How did you fix your problem?

Check out the whole series to get an idea of how to navigate your career. Please leave your thoughts and feedback in the comments section.

• How to Search for My First Job
• What Do I Do to Get My First Promotion?
• How to Evaluate My Salary
• Getting that Job- Resume and Phone Interview Tips
• Taxes – Preparing for the Season

Are you looking at a great job opportunity, but are reluctant to apply because of your resume? Are you nervous about doing a phone interview? You don’t have to be. With some effort you can increase your chances of getting a face to face interview and hopefully your dream job.

Resume Tips to Help You Shine

It doesn’t take much to get your resume noticed.

1. Match your resume to the job. Your resume should not look the same for every job you apply to. Try to tailor it to the position you’re applying for. If you include an objective, make it a perfect match for the job opening.
2. Choose your words carefully. Clarity can have a huge impact when someone is reading your resume. Do you come off as a leader or does your job description reflect that you merely did what was required?
3. Include concrete numbers with your resume. Be as accurate as possible when including results of your work. Did you improve customer sales or did you improve customer sales by 23% in 3 months?
4. Prioritize your accomplishments. Put your best first. Don’t have the recruiter wade halfway through your resume to find out that you helped developed a new metric for the department. Redesign your resume to highlight your best moments.
5. Always include a cover letter for every resume you submit. Your cover letter is your chance to explain your resume in the best light and why you’re the perfect candidate for the position. Sending a generic cover letter is a waste of time for everyone.

Should You Use a CV Services?

I mentioned CV services before, depending on what you need they can be a good investment. However, if you have access to your university’s career center you may find what you need for free.

Phone Interview Tips

Your resume stood out and now you’re schedule for a phone interview. If you want to ace your next phone interview, here are some tips you can use:

1. Be completely focused. Treat your phone interview like a face to face one. Don’t do a phone interview in a busy location. Find a quiet spot with no distractions so you can give you complete attention to the interviewer.
2. Have the right paperwork by you. Put your best foot forward – have your resume, notes about the company, and some prepared interview questions ready.
3. Don’t eat food or chew gum! It seems like common sense, but I’ve spoken to people who think it’s ok to chew on gum while speaking on the phone. It’s distracting and can leave a bad impression with the interviewer.
4. Remember to smile while on the phone. It’ll help you come across as friendly to the person on the other line and it can help you to relax a bit.

Thoughts on Interview Tips

What’s been your best interview so far? What have you found to be helpful for you to focus while on your phone interview?

Building your finances is continuous. As you work your way by cutting expenses, you look at different ways you can increase your income. It becomes fun, as you realize that you have more control that you thought with money. Take for instance your job. Some people feel like they are stuck, waiting to get a raise. You, though, have started to develop the confidence to reach for more. You decide you want to increase your net worth and a raise may be the way to go. How do you know if you’re getting paid fairly for your work? When you should you consider looking at other opportunities? Is there some net income calculator that can spit out a definitive answer?

There are ways to figure out for yourself if you should ask for a raise or seek more compensation at another company.

Look at Net Income and Work From There

After taxes, health insurance, retirement, and other expenses are taken out, see what your monthly net pay is for your job. It may not be enough and you may be tempted to hurt yourself in the long term by cutting out some necessary expenses.

For example, some people pass on health insurance or 401(k) participation that their job offer because their net pay after taxes is too low to cover their monthly budget. Instead you should think about being at a job where you can cover your bills and have something set aside for your health and retirement.

Compare Your Salary

Don’t just wonder if you’re making about average for your position. Find out by using resources such as Payscale.com. It’s a handy tool that allows you to research what others are getting paid for similar positions. You can narrow it and see average salaries based on location, education, and type of company. Taking the guesswork out, helps you evaluate your salary more objectively.

Look at Other Companies

Once you discovered what average pay is for your industry and position, it’s time to see how other employees like (or dislike their job). It may not be worth the extra pay to be stress out and overworked. One site I recommend for looking around is Glassdoors.com. Besides giving salaries for certain jobs, you can also get inside reviews from people who work or have worked at these companies.

If you decide that moving to another company is not for you, then review some tips on getting a promotion. It can help boost your confidence as you take a more active role with your finances.

Thoughts on Evaluating Salary

How did you know when it was time to ask for a raise? When did you realize it was better to move on? What tools did you use?