WHAT’S THE POINT?
Spring is here and a young man’s fancy turns to quitting his job and being his own boss. For the young ladies, they dream of quitting their jobs and having more time on their hands... so they want to quit and be their own boss also.
This time of year breeds an urgency in one to get out of the office, to begin to play in the sand, to find a summer lover and enjoy the warm days ahead with a sandwich from Bay Cities on the beach.
As we head out to meet our CPAs and tax lawyers, we realize that we made a lot of money last year, that Uncle Sam is taking a huge chunk of it and that we don’t have the time to enjoy the money that we do get to keep.
The flowering of spring, the turning of the seasons motivates most of us to renew those January resolutions to lose weight, clean out the storage unit that we’ve been paying on for a year and haven’t visited once since we put that junk in there, and to take a look at our life and re-evaluate where we are professionally.
For the majority of us, spring and summer means bathing suits, barbecues and romance. That sense of vulnerability while strolling half-naked is soon to be upon us, and but for those so blessed as to be blissfully unaware of how they look in a bathing suit, there is a little voice in our heads that says, time to lose some weight, pick up a dumbbell (not a date, a dumbbell!) and tone up.
With this thought of renewal and fresh starts, comes the desire to clean up our personal lives. For some of us that means finally dumping that loser boyfriend, throwing in the towel on the marriage that was over two years ago, or quitting that dead-end job.
Some people choose to review their professional lives and see if there is room for improvement. This is the time when many are looking at their work and wanting to start a new business.
It is at this point that I get phone calls from people wanting to start a corporation, open a restaurant or quit their jobs and do what they are now doing, but for themselves. Invariably, I ask what the motivation for this sudden life-changing event is, and a surprisingly large number of times I get the response of “I want more time for me and my family.”
The false impression that being one’s own boss is a life of fishing and playing with the kids is singularly the most damaging lie that Madison Avenue has ever sold to the American public.
I know that the multi-level marketing companies like Amway and Avon paint the scenario to the frustrated worker that they can work from home and make $10,000 a month working part time. I’ve seen the franchisors’ pitches that buying a franchise from “Billy Joe’s Carpet Cleaners” is a “sure-fire” way to retire in 5 years.
The companies are relying on an age-old trick of comparing apples to staplers. The pitch starts out like this, “Wouldn’t it be great to retire in 10 years?” “Can you imagine how rich you’d be if you bought one of the first McDonald’s franchises?” That’s the bait. Dreams of riches and relaxation, as your business operates making you money. The hook is the McDonald’s franchise connection.
Everyone would like to own a McDonald’s. They print money. Problem is, they didn’t always. In the beginning, they were a risky idea, full of new markets and no history. Ray Kroc was able to convince people to invest in his company on a wing and a dream.
For most of those who invested in the beginning, they made millions. They put in large sums of money up front, worked twice as long and hard as they ever did before, and somewhere down the line they were able to retire and relax.
But that’s the problem that a frustrated, spring fever sufferer, wont see. They won’t see the 80-hour work weeks, the waking up in the middle of the night wondering how they are going to make payroll tomorrow.
A frustrated employee who dreams of beach days, fishing trips and drinks with little umbrellas in them doesn’t see the effort that the owner of a business puts in to make it a success.
That’s the downside of being your own boss. The good side, as I was reminded of while speaking with a neighbor business owner, is that being your own boss gets in your blood and you find it impossible to work for others.
I understand and relate to the desire to be my own boss. I started two companies for just that purpose. I still have the last note my last official boss wrote me framed in my office. My assistant and I had just made the company an extra $10 million, so we went out to celebrate, and for her one-year anniversary with the company. The note reads, “David, What did you and C*** have for lunch that cost $151.25 for 2 people? This is a bit excessive and please use better judgment next time. If you do have any doubt what you should spend please ask. For a 1-year anniversary, lunch for 2 you should of [sic] spent no more than $60.”
My resignation was on her desk the next week.
It’s hard to be your own boss, and as someone who has other people relying on him so they can make their mortgage payments, pay their babysitter, and put food on the table, it never gets easy, but you do get to avoid demeaning notes from your boss. (David Pisarra is a business development lawyer in the Santa Monica firm of Pisarra & Grist. He welcomes your questions and comments. He or 310/664-9969.)
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on March 21, 2006. Read the original PDF.