> funding to economic departments to teach garabage
Really, have you read C Kochs book on MBM, it's REQUIRED reading for all employees of Koch Industries. An amateurish rehash of every mom and apple pie business school trope on squeezing the market that you have ever heard.
It is a perfect example of why citizens need a strong government in order to protect them from unrestrained capitalism, business is about competitive dollar victory, not social responsibility, and the Koch's are the epitome of what goes wrong when it isn't regulated by the will of the people.
In The E-myth Revisited, Michael Gerber paraphrased a quote from Gen. George Patton. It has stuck with me for many years after having read the book.
>The comfort zone makes cowards of us all.
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> I think the primary problem is that the business is "me" and I'm having a difficult time transitioning from a "freelancer" to a "business" in a way that still keeps me flush with reliable income.
Read The E-Myth Revisited.
The first chapter or so will resonate with you deeply as the whole book is about turning your business into an actual business that can function without you so you can get your life back.
I just read The E-Myth Revisited and I cannot recommend it enough for any entrepreneur. It talks about how to build a sustainable business.
You don't need a co-founder and you don't need investors.
Build an MVP in 3 months and see how it goes.
Do not make the mistake of wasting 3 years to build something no one wants. Do not give half to a co-founder for something you can handle in the beginning.
Also, subscribe to Valuetainment. It has phenomenal content on everything you'd need.
There's a good book on this called "The E Myth" that might help shed some light on this for you. It's not a huge long book, but it goes into the idea that running a business is entirely different than working in your field.
Also, try to keep in perspective your experience. If you fail, so what? You have a great opportunity here to try something. If it works then great! If not, you might go back to a 9-5 with a new appreciation for the simplicity of it all.
because everyone thinks their team problems are unique and really they're all just stale memes.
Not an affiliate link btw
Do you have any management experience? Do you know how to read and create financial statements? Do you know how to do sales/marketing? Do you have relationships with vendors?
I recommend getting a copy of The E-Myth Revisited. It will help you understand the systems that you would need to setup to form the basis for your enterprise. Borrow a copy from your local library.
Read "The E Myth." It's probably the single best thing you can do for yourself, and I would not start a bakery until you've done so. It's a fast and easy read. I own a small food business, and I'm following the book's principles because it would be a waste of time not to.
Amazon link (it's less than $10)
Self-employment is a tough racket — I've been doing this both part- and full-time for the past twenty years. Getting paid is almost as difficult as selling work... I sure do wish I had read The E-Myth twenty years ago. tl;dr: being a good technician (i.e. skilled at what you technically do) is only a third of the battle in running your own company successfully.
"Creative types need to get a 'real job' so that they don't really starve to death."
Myself, I'm a [now retired from] electrician whom is looking to switch careers =|
There is an amazing book called e-myth: why small businesses don’t work and how to succeed. A best friend bought it for me when I tried to launch my own business and it really illuminated all the unknown unknowns for me. You might be able to rent it for free on your reading app from your public library. I really encourage you to check it out.
These are certainly normal questions! I had a similar existential crisis in my MSK coursework, and could not square my 'science' hat and my 'PT' hat with some of the material they were teaching. Anything that was too dependent upon 'clinical wisdom' and not based on basic science/research was always really hard for my brain / way of thinking to hear.
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I have some general book/philosopher recommendations that you might like that touch on some of the ideas you've brought up.
The Tyranny of Metrics - A very fascinating book that gets into how our modern society/economy is obsessed with metrics, what they can and cannot tell you about the system/field that you're working in. They have some healthcare/medicine examples, but certainly relevant when we talk about PT and our quantitative/qualitative outcome measures.
Nicholas Maxwell - a philosopher who argues that there's a fundamental problem with modern science, which he identifies as the divergence of science and philosophy that he suggests started during the Enlightenment.
Read "The E Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Fail" https://smile.amazon.com/dp/0887307280/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_glt_fabc_ES01N8ABZP33E20TFBEZ
You'll learn a lot about running the business part of it and the team of people you'll need. It's about a bakery so you'll find a lot of parallels. Short easy read, do this right now before your start anything else.
The E-Myth Revisited is another great read for somebody thinking that being a good technician will translate into being a good owner (hint: not often true). Personally, I would not leave IBEW to run my own residential shop (did that for a few years — residential is boring and most customers think you're ripping them off).
Do both. Take a small contract and manage your new business. Find out how much hands on you need to run the bakery. Can you be the manager ? or do you gotta be the janitor and baker too
Before you buy the bakery go read
The E-myth. It will teach you to avoid the pitfalls of being a small owner operator business
The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It https://www.amazon.ca/dp/0887307280/
Oh boy where to start? I can ramble for hours about my personal do’s & don’ts, but of course every situation is different. I would say my number one advice to someone going in business for themselves is to build a BUSINESS not a JOB. I made that mistake & had to correct it 5 years in. I’m still dealing with the pains of customers coming in and only wanting to talk to ME. I would advise reading The E Myth (link below), it changes my perspective and helped me transition my store from a “job” to a “business”.
The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It https://www.amazon.com/dp/0887307280/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_MGNCHJRBNPHTAB64QCVM
Founders at Work is a great book to show how many different routes there are.
Ok, as you think of features, put them on a list. Use something like Trello so you can organise them.
Once you have you list of features, start to make note of the things that take the most time for you. Those should be the things you outsource or automate first.
When I say automate, you may be able to look into "no code" solutions like IFTTT and different actions that trigger based on things you do. i.e. when I get a WhatsApp message, add a new line to spreadsheet a. etc
I can recommend this book for your stage of business:
Welcome to the club — read "The E-Myth" (not for discouragement, but to be realistic about going beyond TECHNICIAN roles — you are now an accountant and salesman, too).
Carry "change order" forms right behind your invoices, and always have the client sign it for ANY change. Don't underbid yourself just to get work — if a scheduling conflict occurs, which prevents you from working productively, BILL THE G.C. for it.
Your first employee will be the most difficult decision you ever make — don't let it be a family member. Don't employ or work for family — or if you do, set realistic expectations and MAKE A CONTRACT.
PAY YOUR TAXES. Get insurance. Don't leave your tools on a jobsite EVER.
If you own your own business, thinking about doing it, or if you work for a business that seems like it runs like shit… read this. https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280
For the reasons you just described, I think it's important to definitely have a "point of contact" [not yourself] for your company, the person that handles scheduling and billing and irate customers [perhaps a good marital partner might fulfill one or both or all of these roles].
At the end of the day, if you end up doing individual contracts with random clients, daily, you will get burnt out from "trying to wear too many hats." If you want to run your own trade company, or really any company, I always recommend getting at least a decade of experience (ideally in a junior role) and reading this book. tl;dr: if you the perfect technician, you are only a third of the way to running a successful business.
Buy this book (The E-Myth Revisited): https://www.amazon.com/dp/0887307280?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details
Read it. Study it. If you want less stress and pressure, then starting a business is the opposite of what you want to do. UNLESS.... you start it with the right ideas and structure from the get go. Don't quit to build yourself another job for less pay and more responsibilities.
this is a common manager problem, it seems, and i would recommend this book. it is very short but basically it says a manager should manage, not do the work. delegate to your employees, and develop them to be self sufficient, only coming to you with ideas to choose from rather than "i don't know what to do." if you are doing the work of all your employees of course you will be burned out.
If you haven’t already, highly recommend this book to put the phrase into perspective.
The one Minute Manager Meets the Monkey: https://www.amazon.com/One-Minute-Manager-Meets-Monkey/dp/0688103804
I recommend this podcast episode:
https://fs.blog/knowledge-project-podcast/derek-sivers/
And this book:
https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280
Both related to this matter.
https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280
Read / listen to this then, if still want to own a business, do the stuff others have said here.
I found this book super helpful for such difficult conversations.
Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Most https://www.amazon.ca/dp/0143118447/ref=cm_sw_r_awdo_24A4643GNTA55SBMBC22
I found this book super helpful for such difficult conversations
Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Most https://www.amazon.ca/dp/0143118447/ref=cm_sw_r_awdo_24A4643GNTA55SBMBC22
Think of it as two domains: what you and how you say it.
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What you say
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How you say it
It sounds like you've accumulated quite a bit of "monkeys" during your time at this company. Agreeing with what others said, learn to say No, and start getting others on board with your thoughts. Get people who can do parts of your job to just... Do that task. Not sure how interested you would be in reading a book, but I would recommend a (maybe) 30 min read The One Minute Manager Meets The Monkey . It is a phenomenal book on better understanding what steps you can take to make sure people who can do parts of your job, will do parts of your job (that really should be their job).