More Good Advice on Being Self-Employed

We’ve been saying for some time that many, if not most, of the 2.6 million who lost their jobs in the United States last year are never going to go back to full-time employment (meaning they’d be working for someone else).

We know scores of people who either already have, or will soon, attempt to start up their own business, or at least to find a gig as a “free agent” (to borrow Dan Pink’s term).

However, it’s clearly easier to talk about becoming self-employed than it is to generate a living that way. There are lots of guidebooks and blogs out there you can turn to - I’ll catalog some of them shortly.

But in the meantime, there was a good if short piece in last Sunday’s New York Times: “Smoothing the Way to Self-Employment.” It’s basically a homespun set of ideas and advice from some who have gone before.

But don’t be naive about it either. As the article points out, the vast majority of people who set out to be their own boss don’t make it:

Fewer than half of all start-ups survive five years, and only 25 percent last 10 years, according to Ari Ginsberg, professor of management and organizations at the Stern School of Business at New York University. Moreover, a failed stint in self-employment is not exactly a plus for a résumé.

So if you’re thinking about hanging out your own shingle, good luck. But don’t depend on luck - be thoughtful, take it very seriously, and treat your startup venture just as seriously as you would a job someone else is paying you to do.