My experiences have been wide. Starting my adventure into running my own business started quite early in my career and this afforded me to learn and refine as time has passed. But running a business isn’t just for anyone.
I started freelancing almost immediately into my web design career. Over a course or 6–7 years I built up a small client base and gradually increases my rates to reflect my knowledge base. Initially I would ask for guidance from friends as well as Google but with web design it’s easy to require certain skills from others that you may not have yet. My personal focus has always been design first and coding second. I’ve never been much for programming (PHP, etc) so I had to rely on others for that help.
I was fortunate enough to always be employed by different agencies around my area. If I had left one for an other, I wouldn’t be left between jobs for long at all.
Why move from freelancing?
It was time. Time for me to branch out and solidify a stronger client base. I was busy as a freelancer, and I was working full-time at agencies outside of that. But I wanted to grow my freelance business and thought perhaps by branding as a business rather than a single person, I would get more recognition and trust.
It worked…
Almost instantly I noticed a difference. I rebranded my freelancing as a business entity and added 2–3 services to what I can offer my clients. Within a couple short months I had quite a few referrals from past clients and had someone working with me to help keep them happy.
At the time, I still had a full-time position at an other agency but luckily I had the freedom there to manage my own business along side. They didn’t care too much about my side project, as long as I was transparent and not competing directly with them.
Within 7 months my client base had almost doubled with many more quotes pending. I thought to myself that if I was able to keep things moving this well with minimal effort as I’m working 9–5, then what would I be able to accomplish working solely for myself.
I took the plunge
I did it. 8 months into rebranding my freelance website design and development business into a fully branded agency I was able to quit my job. That was 5 years ago, I’ve got a team of about 12 people currently working all over the world for me building and branding small to large companies across the globe.
I couldn’t be happier.
But don’t mistake running your own business as easy. It’s not. It’s stressful and time consuming and not for everyone. There are many aspects of running your own business that you aren’t always aware of when you work for someone else.
Don’t forget
Experience is important. Not only in business but certainly the skills you need to provide your services to others.
I was fortunate to be able to start a business I had years to build and get better at. Take the time. Life is short, but don’t mistake that for a reason to rush and make detrimental errors in your business. Take the time to make mistakes and learn from them, that is where your experience will show.
