Success on your own terms

Have you determined your own definition of success? If you have, that to me is the first step toward success. Defining your own success can be more challenging than following a cookie-cutter path. However, it's also more rewarding.

You will need to develop your own roadmap to defining success for yourself. I have developed some principles that help guide me as I continue on my journey. There are two dominant principles that keep me focused.

The first principle: To thine own self be true. Translated, this means forgetting about keeping up with the Joneses. The truth is, no one knows what the Joneses are doing or how well the Joneses are doing. We all know the saying; the grass looks greener on the other side. It may look greener because we may be wearing "rose-color" glasses. The same may be true of the Joneses. They may look successful, but are they? If you gauge your success by the successful appearance of others, you may be heading down the wrong path. Instead of looking outside yourself, what you first need to do is go inward and search your heart and soul. You yourself have the ability to determine what things are important in your life. Once you have done that, you are on your way to defining success.

The second principle: acknowledge that there is no such thing as having it all. I don’t know when we first were told that we could have it all and many of us are still trying. You’ll kill yourself attempting to achieve an impossible goal. Life is about setting priorities and making choices based on your belief system.

Success on my own terms means doing the work I love, enjoying life, meeting new people, pursuing new goals and committing myself to causes…most of all it means being true to myself, for this is the only life I have and I want to have it my way.

by LILLIAN LAMBERT

Being Self-employed

For a lot of people, the words self employed conjure up an image of
relaxing on a comfy sofa, tapping away at a laptop, of lazy late morning
lie 'ins, and the chance to escape the daily grind of the nine to five.
Whilst this might be the case for a very lucky minority, for most self
employed people, working life is far from the romantic notion dreamed up
by a wishful few. In fact, being self employed usually means working
longer hours for less cash than your weekday working friends. So why do
a brave few subject themselves to the worry and working demands of being
self employed?

* The chance to do what you love. For many self employed people, their
choice of work directly relates to what they love and what they're best
at. Finding it difficult to motivate yourself to get up for another day
of database entry? When your work is also your passion getting into bed
might just prove to be harder than getting out of it in the morning.

* The chance to get involved in every element of business. Thinking
about self employment because you can't stand working with others?….
Think again. Being self employed means taking responsibility for all
your business's functions. In many cases you'll be your own marketing
department, your most important sales representative and your best
receptionist and secretary, all at the same time. Sounds like hard work
right? Definitely. But the chance to run a business exactly the way you
want is a powerful motivator for most self employees.

* The lure of success. Whilst it's fair to say that salaries can be
excellent at the top end of individual professions, those who are
successfully self employed consider the personal rewards, and sense of
achievement, to be far greater than that of working for someone else.
After all, you've achieved without the safety net that a large company
provides, a considerable feat.

* Flexibility. Chances are you won't be starting work at ten and
finishing in time for a mid afternoon nap, at least not to start. After
all, a wiser man than myself once said, 'you only get out what you put
in'. But being self employed offers you greater flexibility than the
rigidity of the 9 to 5, Monday to Friday, existence. Whether you work
better early in the morning or late at night, you manage your own
schedule and hours. For people with other commitments; single parents
for example, self employment can mean a much better harmony between the
workplace and home.

* Support. No longer does self employed doesn't mean 'on your own'.
These days there are literally hundreds of organisations that exist
solely to assist the self employed and small businesses. Whether you
need a financial boost to start up your company, advice on who to pitch
to for new contracts, or even just someone to talk through an idea with,
there are numerous support channels out there to aid you and your ventures.

Being self employed isn't for everyone. It requires drive and
determination, and there is a degree of risk involved that proves too
much for some. But the rewards of succeeding as your own boss can be
staggering, both financially and in terms of personal development. After
all, ask a self employed person if they would ever return to the strains
of working for someone else, and chances are the answer will be a
resounding no.

Want to work for yourself?

Thinking about self employment because you can't stand working with
others?…. Think again. Being self employed means taking responsibility for all your business's functions. In many cases you'll be your own marketing department, your most important sales
representative and your best receptionist and secretary, all at the same
time. Oh yes, and there's being the accountant, HR advisor, legal
representative, cleaner, buyer and a few more to boot. Sounds like hard
work right? Definitely. But the chance to run a business exactly the way
you want is a powerful motivator for most self employees.

Upsides and Downsides

Many people think and dream of starting their own business and it's important to think about the downsides as well as the upsides

The Upsides

* If you start a business and it really takes off, you can end up with a massive salary, much more than you can earn in a regular job. Growing a company and making money from it can be lots of fun, and you get to do your own thing.
* There can be a real sense of personal freedom. If it all goes well, there is a great sense of achievement that you can't get anywhere else.

The Downsides

* Many businesses fail in their first year. If you have run your own business, having to go back to a corporate job can be miserable and you might never feel like you fit in there again. It is financially risky setting up on your own - you could lose everything you have, including your friends.
* This is not for somebody who likes working a regular nine-to-five job; expect to be working evenings and weekends most of the time. A seventy-hour working week is not unusual.

Getting some professional help on starting your own business is always important as the right advisors can help significantly reduce your chances of failure

Becoming an Entrepreneur

For most people being forced to clean up their desks, pack their belongings and say goodbye to the company to which they devoted so much energy, passion and time isn't easy. The frustration, anger and disappointment remain for a long time.

But, instead of staying immersed in despair, more and more people who have currently been made redundant are turning all these negative feelings into something positive and rewarding - they are starting their own businesses and making money for themselves!

starters

just testing to get the structure sorted