Millennium Marketing Research®
Tom Schori DBA Millennium Marketing Research®, 808 Ironwood, Normal IL 61761, 309-532-8466

So, you want to be your own boss. . .

By Thomas R. Schori, Ph.D., and Michael L. Garee, Principals,  Millennium Marketing Research, 808 E. Ironwood, Normal, IL 61761-5239. 

Do you, like so many workaday Americans, harbor someplace in the hidden recesses of your mind a dream that simply won’t die, a dream to someday escape "the rat race" and own and operate your own business? We did, and due to a fortuitous, totally unexpected set of circumstances, we were recently fortunate enough to have the opportunity to act upon that dream.

After having spent the majority of our adult working lives on the "corporate" side of the desk, we set about realizing our long-standing dream of starting our own marketing research business. The venture has proven to be both exhilarating and exciting. It’s also been anxiety producing, and, at times, even a little bit frightening. Certainly, it is not an experience for the faint of heart! Let us explain.

First, let’s get the "nasty" stuff out of the way by examining some of the anxiety-producing and "frightening" aspects that can await those who venture out on their own.

No matter how many "outside" suppliers you may have come into contact with while sitting on the "corporate" side of the desk, nothing short of becoming one yourself can ever genuinely prepare you for what it’s really like. Oh, certainly, you instinctively know the many advantages that can come with being "your own boss," e.g., you set the tone of the operation, set your own level of compensation, determine your own job title, work hours, etc. But, from the perspective of the "corporate" side of the desk, it’s quite easy to overlook some of the inherent disadvantages, e.g., you are responsible for every facet of the operation, from the most vital to the most mundane. No one is going to be there to remind you if you "drop the ball," and, if you don’t generate income-producing work on a regular basis, your "compensation level" indeed becomes a meaningless term.

A few "surprises" can await entrepreneurs, too. While in the corporate world you were viewed as an "expert" in this field or that because over the years you had adequately proven yourself. As a "brand new" supplier, to prospective new clients you are, well, "brand new"! That is, you can easily end up having to "prove" yourself all over again! Remember when you first entered the corporate world long ago, when the classic "catch-22" situation existed, i.e., you couldn’t get a job because you didn’t have any experience, but your couldn’t get any experience because you couldn’t get a job? Well, prepare yourself, because a permutation of the old "catch-22" can reappear when you launch your own business. Many prospective clients may be hesitant to contract for your services because you have no clients, and in order to get clients, some of these prospective clients must first contract for your services!

OK, enough of the "downside" to being your own boss.

If you’re in the corporate world you already know how bureaucratic some operations can quickly become¾and stay that way for years! You’ll be pleasantly surprised to learn that, at least early on, you simply won’t have the luxury of tolerating any level of bureaucracy. If you do, you soon will be closing your doors. The immediately urgent need to produce work that will produce a steady, reliable stream of income for the business will absolutely dictate that every system, every procedure must operate at peak efficiency. There just isn’t any room whatsoever for inefficiency of any kind, including, of course, the inherently cumbersome characteristics of a bureaucracy.

Come up with a new product idea, or a suggestion for a better, more profitable way of doing business in the corporate world and, usually (though, admittedly, not always) you will have to "clear" it with someone "above" you before your idea or suggestion can ever hope to become reality. When you are your own boss, however, you have to clear them with no one! (In our case we clear them with each other, but since we both think essentially along the same lines, i.e., if it’s a good idea or suggestion, "just do it!" that’s never been much of a problem.) What an exhilarating, freeing feeling! Want to make a change? Now? Do it! If it succeeds, great. If it doesn’t, make another change. Now! And keep doing it until something does work!

Not satisfied with the amount you’re earning in your own business? Simply look in the mirror to see the person who can change that, instead of having to appeal to some "higher up," as is the case in the corporate world.

Based on our experience in starting our own business, we have come up with a list of "do’s" and "don’t’s" that has helped us survive in the business; we think the list could also help others who aspire to being their own boss.

Do’s

  • Start (and keep!) your operation "lean and mean." That is, make a tight operating budget and stick to it.
  • Establish the most professional image you can. Immediately. That means having an office. That means having professionally designed stationery and business cards, and a brochure about your company. It means virtually anything and everything that will suggest permanency and commitment to the business. No one will want to work with a "shoe-string" operation.
  • Hire only as many employees as you absolutely need. Use independent contractors to provide services and expertise you can’t provide yourself.
  • Contact everybody you know, as well as everybody you’d like to know.
  • Start with enough capital (or credit) to see you through six to 12 months.
  • Dig in to your reservoir of skills, talents, knowledge and expertise¾and use them all 100%.
  • Keep your chin up! Remember, if starting and running a business were easy, everybody would be doing it.

Don’t’s

  • Expect to be an "instant hit." That’s very unlikely to happen.
  • Expect to make any money the first six months or so.
  • Waste time, energy and enthusiasm trying to cultivate clients that you’d dearly love to have but who obviously don’t want your services.
  • Try and operate the way you did in the corporate world. You may have had a sizable budget and staff there, but chances are, you won’t have either of those things in your own business, at least not immediately.
  • Lose your confidence.
  • Flinch.

Certainly, this list is by no means exhaustive, but it does contain some of the most important considerations we’ve learned since opening our own business.

As we said in the opening paragraph to this column, being one’s own boss definitely is not for the faint hearted among us. Any new venture is always a risk, and if you’re the type who is by nature risk-averse, you probably shouldn’t even consider starting your own business. On the other hand, if you enjoy a challenge, and you’re both emotionally and financially capable of taking a calculated risk, the rewards of being your own boss can be immeasurable. And, if you’re at all like us, you may soon wonder why in the world it ever took you as long as it did to get started on that quest!