Motivation: The First Step

Hello my friend. You found this blog, so I assume that there is already some motivating factor in your life that is begging for attention. Layoff, outsourcing and downsizing are all great motivators. Maybe the boss is a jerk, or your team is mediocre at best. Perhaps you have great ideas, even a million dollar idea, but cannot commit to turning the idea into reality due to fear.

It's okay to be afraid. Fear is a natural instinct that keeps us alive. However, fear can stifle your possibilities. The answer to fear is planning. Planning will get your company going, provide startup capital, and provide funding for your payroll and benefits (yes, now you need benefits that your employer once provided).

Why do it then? Why risk your regular paycheck in exchange for fear? The answer is freedom, and the ability to control your own destiny. It will be a lot of hard work, particularly at first, but the rewards are worth it. I have benefits, 401K, insurance against every risk imaginable, and I can go fishing tomorrow if I so choose because I work for myself. You currently have fears anyway, don't you? Fear of a supervisor, fear of a layoff, fear of not updating that TPS Report, etc.

Don't get me wrong about my views of the companies I work for. Some of them are really good enterprises; I’m just not a corporate person, and prefer my freedoms. They couldn't afford my salary anyway. ;)

In the next entry, I will delve into planning, and hopefully illustrate some things that you may not have yet thought about.

JMK