It’s easy to let a ‘thing’ stand in the way of you reaching your goal (or goals). Maybe you want to go out on your own and you want to save $10K before you make that leap.
Maybe you want to complete one more $5K project before you make the leap.
Maybe you work super hard while the kids are young and will spend time with them when they’re just a bit older.
None of those things are bad. In fact, they’re all good. Building a solid base of savings before you go out on your own is critical for building a stable business.
Having a number of clients lined up before you make the leap to running your own business is just plain smart.
When the kids are little they may not notice your absence quite as much, so putting in a year or two of extra hard work to set a solid foundation may be just the thing you need to do.
[Tweet “I’m sure the kids won’t notice just one more year of you working too much”]
The problem is that many people don’t stick to their milestones. Some people reach that $10K target, but one thing comes up, and suddenly $15K is the new milestone they need to reach.
Or, that $5K client was okay but not amazing, so they’re chasing after one more amazing client before taking that next big step in their business.
Or, the kids are only 5 and 7 — I’ll take some time off next year.
There will always be one more thing. Make sure that you choose the proper thing.
photo credit: 38463026@N04 cc
4 responses to “There is always one more thing”
Insightful post today, Curtis. People don’t realize that time moves much faster than they think it does. It is very easy to wake up one day and several years have gone by without taking any action on the goal you had in mind.
That said, timing and risk do play a huge factor. Sometimes you have to do what is right for your family, especially if you have small children. I will never diss someone who takes a safe a predictable position to provide stability for those who depend on them. But, it is easy to simply stay put there. And starting a business requires more effort than being an employee.
I’m not sure I could have taken the path I did (in web development) previous to when I actually started down that road. Maybe I could have started earlier…but there wasn’t anyone around me (back then) to really give me that idea yet.
All things happen in the right time…if you want it enough and are willing to work towards a goal.
People first. Money second.
Yeah I’d never want to say anything negative about someone that chooses a path that supports their family. As long as they don’t find the work morally wrong.
At least in the web industry, it seems like there is enough work out there to be able to find something that is morally congruent with your personal compass, no matter who you are. That’s really the audience for this post, but the idea applies to every industry.
I think we take for granted the amount of relative freedom we are afforded being able to make a living creating things in Photoshop, code, or with our words. When I say freedom, I mean financial (if you work really hard and everything falls into place).
I agree that responsibility comes before aspirations, but the idea of taking the safe and cautious path keeps many people from ever pursuing their dreams, and that’s a shame.
Yes it is a shame, but so many people want to talk about the ‘dream’ without doing the work.
I have a friend that wanted to see which of us could get on our own first. I did it and 6 years later he’s still talking about his plans.
He just enjoys the talking really.