Question.... (loan, insurance, internet business, sales)

[grammy164]

I was just talking to my daughter and, although she loves her job, she was talking about how she doesn't want to have to rely on it the rest of her life. She was talking about how she wished she could start her own business (doesn't know what it would be.)
Just wondering if anyone else has had these thoughts. Has anyone ever done it? Is she crazy to even think about it? What do you think?

[mariatherese]

i dont think thats crazy; i think its smart. with the economy the way it is, it would be a good idea to have something to fall back on, to be a bit more self-efficient. however, i would approach the idea with caution. it all depends on what she chooses to do. investing a lot of money into a business is no trivial matter of course.

for example, my goal is to become a freelance graphic designer. i can work with a design firm right now, build my own client base on the side, and eventually have enough work to where i can quit my day job and do freelance full time. i like the idea because no matter what happens, i can always find work on my own. i am not completely dependent on an employer for my income.

in other words, not all of my eggs are in one basket.

however, if your daughter wanted to, for instance, suddenly quit her day job and invest all of her money into a lollypop store, i would advise against it LOL. again, its the "all your eggs in one basket" thing. if she can find something like i did- my freelance option- that allows her to spread out her options slowly, that would be better. but as for suggestions... hmmmmm... i dont know... does she have any ideas?

[Racelady88]

I started a business at the beginning of this year. I hated being in a cubicle all day, and making barely enough to get by on. Now, I am an animal massage therapist. I work for myself, have almost no overhead, and set my own schedule. I also work part time at a vet's office.

On the flip side of this, my old neighbors decided to buy an existing business 2 years ago. The took out a HUGE home equity loan. The business failed in less than 6 months.

If your daughter is going to start a business, she needs to research, research, research before she commits.

[I LOVE NORTH CAROLINA]

Originally Posted by grammy164

I was just talking to my daughter and, although she loves her job, she was talking about how she doesn't want to have to rely on it the rest of her life. She was talking about how she wished she could start her own business (doesn't know what it would be.)
Just wondering if anyone else has had these thoughts. Has anyone ever done it? Is she crazy to even think about it? What do you think?

No she's not crazy, first I think she needs to figure out what she want to do then like others said do a LOT of research and be saving her money too. Some colleges offer business courses that might help too. I'm trying to start a photography business and it's not going as fast as I wish it was.

[grammy164]

Thanks guys. I think she'd just really like to get away from the pressure (they're always short handed) and the hours (sometimes holidays.) She's a dialysis technician. Mom would love to see her go back to school for her nursing degree, but I know how hard that would be for her right now (kids, home, bills, etc.). I think with that degree though, she could almost pick her own hours because there is such a demand and there are so many options.
Thanks for your answers.

[Rapture]

Hi Grammy,

SBA offers free counseling, that's a good place to start. If she goes to their web site in the area she lives, she can set up an appointment. I have managed businesses most of my career and a couple things I have learned:

1. do something you care about and enjoy.
2. location is extremely important.
3. a good business plan with plenty of research is vital.
4. be diversified so if one thing isn't working hopefully something else will.
5. have a good marketing plan.
6. hire people you can trust and treat them well.

Here's an idea, why doesn't she start an internet business while she still has her job? I don't know what it is she wants to do but internet sales have been steadily rising. An easy way to start is open an Ebay store, it's a lot less risk then a brick & mortar.

[MoMark]

Originally Posted by grammy164

I was just talking to my daughter and, although she loves her job, she was talking about how she doesn't want to have to rely on it the rest of her life. She was talking about how she wished she could start her own business (doesn't know what it would be.)
Just wondering if anyone else has had these thoughts. Has anyone ever done it? Is she crazy to even think about it? What do you think?

I haven't had any specifically about work as my career kind of found me and I just happened to love it! But, it sounds like she's just at the formative stage, not yet focused on a particular path or envisioned how it would look once she achieved it. I think she's got a lot of dreaming left to do to come up with an imagined snapshot of what it would look like and feel like to be doing a particular job. In the meantime, since she likes her job, the smartest most logical thing to do would be to start a savings fund for the dream. When your daughter can actually envision doing something specific and imagine herself going through the motions of that job and experience it as a well-developed fantasy, then she's about ready to give it a shot. That's just mho

[a1m1700]

Originally Posted by Evey

I started a business at the beginning of this year. I hated being in a cubicle all day, and making barely enough to get by on. Now, I am an animal massage therapist. I work for myself, have almost no overhead, and set my own schedule. I also work part time at a vet's office.

On the flip side of this, my old neighbors decided to buy an existing business 2 years ago. The took out a HUGE home equity loan. The business failed in less than 6 months.

If your daughter is going to start a business, she needs to research, research, research before she commits.

What do you have to do to be an animal massage therapist? Are their classes for that?

[Racelady88]

Originally Posted by a1m1700

What do you have to do to be an animal massage therapist? Are their classes for that?

There sure are. The school that I went to is in northern VA, but there are several. PM me if you would like more info.

[pixieshmoo]

Originally Posted by grammy164

Thanks guys. I think she'd just really like to get away from the pressure (they're always short handed) and the hours (sometimes holidays.) She's a dialysis technician. Mom would love to see her go back to school for her nursing degree, but I know how hard that would be for her right now (kids, home, bills, etc.). I think with that degree though, she could almost pick her own hours because there is such a demand and there are so many options.
Thanks for your answers.

I don't think it's crazy at all...more and more people are beginning to do that. The only "downside" to being self-employed is the absence of benefits, however, there are now many companies that provide health benefits and life insurance, etc. to small or private businesses and self-employed people. Someone in her field could probably do a lot. She may be able to do something directly regarding dialysis (I'm a big fan of helping people, my mom had to do dialysis for 2-1/2 years - kidney failure - before she passed away), she could go back to school for many different things, she could even do something such as opening a doctor (or dialysis) referral company, an on-call doctors' service (for when they're closed or out to lunch)...there are so many things in her field alone. I say she should go for it (but definitely have her do the research first). I'm soo totally for that and I wish her much luck with whatever she choses!!!!