The Only Man You Should Be Working For Is Yourself
I’m sure you’ve heard the saying ‘working for the man’ before. It is one that I think is a bit worn out, but one that I still use from time to time, usually jokingly. I work for someone else at my full time day job. The pay is good and it makes it hard for me to leave. But I know in my heart that the only man I want to work for is myself.
I don’t relish getting up and going to work on a schedule. I savor my freedom and independence, something that you must compromise on when you work for someone else. You have to ask for permission to do things. May I have a day off? Can I take two weeks vacation? Can I work from home? Plus they tell you how much vacation time or sick time you can have. I enjoy traveling and the 3 weeks per year I get is not enough for me. But I press on, for the security of the paycheck. Which in actuality isn’t that secure. They can fire you anytime they like.
My goal is to work for myself. To be my own boss. However there are some obstacles in the way that prevent me from doing this. I have a lot of debt and monthly bills, I haven’t built up a second income, I don’t have much in savings, and I’m not sure contracting in this job climate is worth the risk. So I’ve come up with a plan to make this a reality.
First is tackling my debt. My current plan should have me out of credit card debt in less than a year. Then I plan to either trade my car in on something less luxurious, or pay it off. That would take another year. There isn’t much I can do about my house. I would love to sell it and get something with a smaller monthly payment. But I’m just about underwater in my home value at this point. However with no car payment or credit card payments my monthly expenses will be greatly reduced.
Next is getting my second income to a point where I could lose my job and still have a good income to live off of. This is no small task I know, but one that is achievable with some hard work. Of course that is the hard part. Working a full time job then coming home and working a second one is not that entertaining. But I know it has to be done so I am going to hit it hard for the next year. It will also allow me to pay off my debt faster and get some money in the bank.
This plan should put me in a great position by April 2012. At which point I hope to quit my job and start working for myself. Being the scardy-cat that I am, I’ll also look for short term contracting work in my chosen profession. Keeping my skills sharp in case I need to go back to that.
I look forward to working for myself. I realize it is not for everyone, but you have to do what is right for you. I cherish my independence and plan on getting it back.