Self employed, do you ever feel like just packing it in and getting a normal 9 to 5?

Legacy_user

For a guaranteed income each month

Right now I am considering packing in my business, I never get a day off and its really stressful at times

Opinion

Can you not take on someone to help?

Atidi

No .

InsideInsurance

If I went back to being an employee I would still be doing the same hours as I do now. It would remove the 3-6 month retendering for my own job but would reduce my income by 50% or more.

Ok, I'd get (more) holiday but it is partially my own fault that I dont take holiday as clearly could have more days on unpaid leave and still maintain a very healthy income but chose not to. At least at the moment the days I do take I can do whatever I want on them rather than worrying about budgets etc

Mistral001

I have often thought of going back to a salaried job, but wonder if any employer would have me as if I was an employer (I have been an employer myself in the past BTW) I would hesitate to employ someone who had been self-employed for as long as I have been (16 years).


Some of the questions perhaps the new employer would be asking themselves are: Will he fit in? Can he be moulded into the way we work and our ethos? Will he leave after a few months meaning that the recruitment fee we paid for him is wasted? Will he just soak up our expertise and then leave and become our competitor? Is he just too old?


In order to help the OP it depends on how long the OP has been self-employed. A short period of self employment might be a benefit to some employers as a self-employed will probably know how tough running a business can be and would be less likely to be a clock-watcher, but a long period might be a hindrance for reason given above.

Pennywise

Depends on what kind of self employment you are doing. Are you really your own boss, or are you "disguised" self employment in terms of your employer wanting workers on the cheap?

Assuming you are a business rather than a disguised employee, i.e. if you have a trade or profession, or selling a product/service rather than yourself as a wage slave, then it's in your power to change what you do, who you do it for, how you do it, to fit in with what you want out of life. Granted that takes time, but over a few years, you can turn yourself from being a busy fool to earning a decent income from a business that suits your lifestyle.

What you need is a plan. Start at where you are now, and end at where you want to be in, say, 5 years, and then change things, a bit at a time, to make it happen.

You need to sit back and think what your current problems are. Is it lack of decent work? Is it being too cheap? Are you doing work below your ability/qualification level? Does your work take too long because you don't have the right equipment? Are you inefficient because you are disorganised? Are your customers not paying you on time? When you are clear as to what is the problem, then you're half way to finding a solution.

It's common for "busy fools" to get so bogged down that they can't see the wood for the trees and don't see the elephant in the room.

captainhindsight_2

It all depends what your business is, there is no point running a business trying to sell something no body wants. As long as people want or need what you are doing/selling it should pay off.

Your earning potential being self employed is so much higher, starting and running any business is hard work but it pays off as long as your running a business that people want.

Opinion

I agree with InsideInsurance. My earning potential would drop through the floor if I went back to regular employment.

About three months ago I decided that I was on the road to burning out because I was under so much pressure and stress so I asked one of my part time staff to go full time, which they were more than happy to do. Slight pay cut for me but it has made my life much easier. In the next few days I'm going to ask another of my part time staff to go full time. Again, I'll have to take a slight pay cut but it will make things that bit easier and more enjoyable for me, and hopefully in the long run they'll more than pay for themselves.

Mistral001

Opinion wrote: »

To answer the question properly;

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I for one am pleased that there is someone here who can answer the question properly!

Opinion

Mistral001 wrote: »

I for one am pleased that there is someone here who can answer the question properly!

Sorry, didn't mean it like that- I meant actually answering the question as opposed to my first answer at the top of the thread. Will edit now!

paddyrg

If you *do* want to try out going back to 9-5, try temping for a month or two. You'll either feel reassured or claustrophobic, but if it is better for you, it'll also help you get back into employment as your 'last job' was as an employee.