Although working for yourself is truly a blessing, the laptop lifestyle isn’t always as glamorous as it may seem. There are both good and bad sides of being a full time entrepreneur so I’m going to shed a little light on both sides of the spectrum. Now let’s hop right into what it’s really like to be a full time entrepreneur.
What It’s Really Like to be a Full Time Entrepreneur
Pros:
Working from home/anywhere you want
Being able to work from home is truly wonderful. I don’t have to get dressed in any uncomfortable work appropriate clothes day in and day out and can just roll into my home office in leggings and a t-shirt if I please.
As I type this post, I’m currently working in a coffee shop which is a nice change of pace from home sometimes. When I work from a coffee shop, I put on more appropriate clothing but am still able to remain comfortable. It’s nice to be able to get a little fresh air from time to time and get out of my house.
You can have flexible hours
Another obvious benefit of being self-employed is being able to set hours that work for you. Of course, you still need to be working pretty regularly, especially during your first year or so of business – but when you work is up to you.
I currently work from about 8:30-4:30 so I’m maintaining a fairly regular schedule but if I wanted to branch out and work different hours, I could totally do that too. Right now I do not have any other obligations that prevent me from working these hours, like a child, but it will definitely be nice to have this option in the future.
I also love having the option to go to the gym in the middle of the day when it’s less crowded. Of course, I will make up that time and work an extra hour into the evening but being able to do things in the middle of the day when everyone else is at work is so nice.
You get to do what you love
When I was working at my 9-5 I was not really doing what I loved. Although I was in the industry that I enjoy, I wasn’t able to have the creative freedom that I can now. What I was working on was determined by the company and not me.
Now if I don’t feel like a particular potential client and I would be a good fit, I do not have to take on the job because it would not be beneficial to either party.
Cons:
Can be a little lonely
Let’s face it, entrepreneurship is a little lonely. In a typical office setting, you have coworkers that you can communicate with throughout the day and when you work from home, you don’t really have that.
Sometimes I find myself talking to my puppy as if he’s a human. The days that I have client calls are probably some of my favorite because I get a little human interaction and don’t feel like I’m annoying my husband when all I want to do is talk after he gets home from a long day of work.
Clients expect you to always be on
Although I do have a welcome packet informing clients of my office hours, it doesn’t stop them from emailing at all hours of the night. I typically try to avoid my emails after 5 pm unless it’s something completely urgent out of respect to my own work-life balance.
Payment is more sporadic
If there was one good thing about working a typical 9-5 job it was knowing that I was going to get paid every two weeks like clockwork. As an entrepreneur, your payments aren’t always every two weeks and your overall monthly pay can change from month to month.
Never feeling like you can take a vacation
I haven’t really experienced this thus far because I have been working on my biz Monday through Friday since the beginning of the year but we will be going on a vacation mid-April so I’m curious to see how things will pan out. All I gotta say is thank god for social media schedulers because I can do the work in advance so that I won’t have to stress about it while I’m on my trip.
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Final Thoughts:
Have you ever thought about being a full time entrepreneur? What do you think you would enjoy about working for yourself? Please feel free to let me know down in the comments.
