The grass is always greener…
You might not realize it when daydreaming at your 9-5 about starting a small business, but there are a few things to miss when you’re gone. To an entrepreneur, it’s blasphemous to suggest that anything good can come from working for The Man; but going solo isn’t always the end-all be-all.
This entrepreneur is not discouraging you from starting your own business. I believe that independence is the only way to go; but it’s important to be smart about it. Instead of burning all bridges and jumping into the water on your own; take advantage of all the things that both working for yourself and someone else has to offer.
My way is to build low-maintenance, residual income-producing businesses that give me freedom over my time. I then take short-term jobs for the education, not the money.
The Rat Race
It’s easy to get stuck on the treadmill of working for money. There always seems to be a new expense to match every pay increase. The end result is continually choosing a job for the money instead of what you can learn from it.
If you can just use some of your spare time or money to create a low-maintenance business, you will eventually empower yourself in the workplace. You see, when you’re workin’ for The Man because of money; he has control over you. There’s pressure to agree with the boss, mind your p’s and q’s, and generally let the man screw you over.
Working for The Man and not needing his money is a whole different story. You’re doing him a favor. You’re not afraid of being fired. Your confidence shines through and tends to get you what you want.
The Rat Race Part Two
If you don’t know what you’re getting into, working for yourself can also be a drag. Starting a business is an easy way to get into mounds of debt. It’s always more expensive, more difficult, and less productive that you think it’s going to be at first. That’s just the nature of entrepreneurship.
Going it alone can be a lonely, humbling experience. I know several entrepreneurs, including myself, who have caught themselves actually missing their old jobs.
What it Takes to Go Big Time
If you’re like me, you want to go big time. You won’t be satisfied working for yourself if it means barely getting by in a teeny tiny small business that consumes all your time. You want to own something that’s world-class, but still gives you time freedom.
Most small businesses are just that: small. Think of the corner store, or the guy with a little website, or the gal with the consulting business. What separates the little guy from a world-class business?
Resources
Financial resources, technical resources, contacts, reputation, world-class minds, etc. These assets are built up through the gravity and legacy of an organization, and can’t just be thrown together. Big companies have resources, small businesses do not.
For example, you can’t just go out and start an aerospace company. If you’re starting with nothing you will never be able to assemble the team of experts, government contracts, and enormous financial reserves you would need to compete with Boeing and Airbus.
That being said, it would not be inconceivable (if you started at a young age) to start by building financial freedom with a low-maintenance business. This would allow you to take a new job every two years in every possible department of both Boeing and Airbus.
The foundation you would have created with your low-maintenance business would give you the freedom to only take the most interesting jobs; and the confidence that you would need for promotions.
Twenty or so years of this process and you could have a sound-enough understanding and complete-enough rolodex to solicit the funds to create your own aerospace company.
Extreme, but possible! I don’t have the patience, nor the desire to take on a challenge that big; but if a person could do that, they could do anything.
Movies
My desire is to make movies. It’s not aerospace, but the millions of dollars it takes to make a movie puts up quite a barrier to entry.
Fifteen years ago, a guy like Robert Rodriguez could donate his body to science for a few thousand bucks, run around with a camera, and cut together a movie with blood, sweat, and tears; but it’s not as easy today.
Plus,
-
1. it’s a whole lot easier to do if you have no debt and a low-maintenance business to live on in the process,
and
2. why not spend a few years volunteering under Rodriguez, Tarantino, or Linklater to learn from the best? No sense reinventing the wheel. Working a low-paid film job will teach you how movies are made and put you in touch with experts who will make your life a lot easier when it’s your turn.
Benefits of Working for The Man
Working for The Man is a tough gig, but don’t let it blind you from the benefits. (When I say “The Man,” I’m using the term loosely to include working for anyone other than yourself.)
Expertise
As entrepreneurs, we often think that we do everything on our own. Creative people who are talented can be lured into the illusion that they don’t need to learn any more.
In reality, there’s no one who knows it all. Organizations have money to hire experts. There is so much to learn from people who have spent their whole lives refining their skills in an industry. This kind of knowledge can be invaluable.
Proven Processes
You might have a million dollar idea, but there are just certain processes that tend to work better than others in each industry.
Processes are a boring subject for creative people, but vital to success. Spending some time in the industry of your interest can teach you best practices that will make your entrepreneurial life much easier.
Contacts
No one does it all alone. A great leader knows a little about everything, but finds a group of people who are experts in their field.
Working in your industry puts you in touch with those people. You can’t put a price on the bonds you can make while working in the field. Interviewing candidates for you team is no replacement for working side by side with them.
Camaraderie
One of the first things that I missed about old jobs when going solo was being around people. You forget how much friendly relationships add to your life.
Whether it’s saying hi to the receptionist every morning or chit-chatting with a co-worker when you’re supposed to be working; people are the most meaningful aspect of any job.
Your Turn
It takes a little patience and humility to put in your time for someone else before going it on your own. It’s a mistake to make the leap too early, but it’s also a mistake to never take it at all.
Be smart with your strategy and reap the benefits of both working for yourself and The Man by building low-maintenance businesses and taking jobs for the education, not the money.
it’s always worth working alone and feeling the sense of fulfillment. When you work for yourself, you get to enjoy the results your hard work!
– Jack Leak
I could not agree more, Steve that working for yourself is the higher path of life. Working for a corporation is allowing others to leverage your contributions and steal your wealth. True wealth comes from creativity in the human mind not the almighty dollar. I have some more tips on my blog about working for yourself.
[…] writing about the benefits of working for The Man even when you are self-employed, Brian Lee at Genuis Types puts into words an opinion I have held dear: Working for The Man and not […]
Brian,
I work for the man and I get all the benefits you describe. I also have worked for myself. I had one business I hated to work on just like I’ve had jobs I hate. I keep this job becuase I like it and I’m learning while my wife is building a business. I get the best of both worlds.
“Working for The Man and not needing his money is a whole different story.”
I really can’t agree with you more. Right now I am working for a company, in a 9-5 job. I see all these miserable employees unhappy about their salaries and wanting more.
For me, I am not really bothered about salary, as I have alternative passive income coming in elsewhere. It makes me feel i am an observer looking at the bigger picture.
Hey Brain,
I don’t think you give yourself enough credit. This is a great post and worth more than a $1 tip.
I’d encourage you to change your tip jar amount so that you can accelerate your movement towards your dreams of making a movie.
All the best and keep up the good work!
Stephen Martile
http://www.stephenmartile.com
Wow, that’s a really great compliment! Thank you.
brian,
i use your blog as a model for my own blog – yours is a truly impressive one that has earned every right to a significant readership. i enjoy all yours posts, especially “what i would have told myself if i were 18” because i am still young and it’s great to hear the advice such as taking your time and not rushing the idea of “finding” oneself. and i think it’s simply novel that you mixed working for yourself AND “the man” to optimize one’s life financially. amazing, practical, and highly readable content. keep it up and stay in touch on the blogosphere!
Wow…your observations about what it takes to make entrepreneurship work are keen.
One strategy every entrepreneur can learn from this is learning how to take those organizational relationships and transform them into a signficantly performing business.
Too often new entrepreneurs try to go it alone.
But there is tremendous value in building relationships with an organizational team of people who intimately know you and can vouch for the magic you bring to the table.
Thanks for such an eye-opening post!
Great comments, guys. This post has attracted some very intelligent discussion.
I may have found the best of both worlds! Well, at the best of “working for the man” world…
In July of this year, I accepted a new job with one of the BIG computer makers. I’m a field consultant in a very specialized area of IT, and I work from home. My job is such that I work about 1-2, maybe 3, jobs per week, and most jobs only last 1 day. If I have to travel, that might add an extra 1/2 or full day once in a while.
I never thought I would LOVE working from home so much. I also thought I would hate the travel. Truth is, I actually enjoy it. It’s mostly local, so I can drive, and it gives me time to think, listen to audio books, etc.
My wife likes it because we see each other WAY more now than we ever did when I worked a 9-5. It’s like being my own boss. With the exception of my scheduled jobs (at customer sites), I set my own schedule and work when I want. My wife is on 3rd shift, so I do all my admin stuff at night and spend more time with her during the day when she’s not sleeping.
I’m still searching for the passive income that can replace my full-time job, but so far it hasn’t come. For now, my website and investments are the only two places I’m focusing attention. Maybe that’s really all I need to do….
Great article. It’s a great refresher for those who may be going through a lull and need a pick-me-up!
I like that you shared your personal goal of making movies – I too am working towards that.
I however, wanted to turn my attention to the meat of the article – that working for the man isn’t a bad thing. Especially if you the know the man has something great to teach.
I think a hangup is that I know too few good men. I’d love to work a company filled with vibrant minds and proven processes, if only I could find one that suited me well enough.
Often I entertain the fantasy of dropping out of school and working a simple job involving simple physical labor, just so I can leave work mentally and think about my own projects.
Anyway, nice post.
You say that it’s not as easy today to do what Robert Rodriguez did. It seems to me, that it’s a lot easier (cheap digital cameras, cheap editing software).
What parts of making a movie on the cheap are harder now than then?
More competition. Everyone is making their own movies now, but fewer seem to be getting picked up like back in the indie glory days.