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E Y O U R O W N O SS by Ruth arkellYou don't need a job to go to work, and you don'tself-employed , that is. Here is our guide for givingdown to business.Are you stuck in a dead-end job with littlehope of advancement or more interestingwork? Maybe - thanks to a corporate restructuring or dow nsizing - you've just losta job and aren't sure wh ere to turn in this bleakmarket. Or perhaps you ve decided that moretime at home - or at least, more flexible workhours - would allow you to give more time toyour children, parents or partner. The answeryou're looking for might just be self-employment. That could mean doing the workyou're now doing for your employer foryourself in other words, working on contractto a num ber of different clients. It could meanbecoming a freelancer, using skills andknowledge you've learned on the job. Or itcould mean starting up a com pletely new smallbusiness that serves a market you always knewwas there.If you're in a traditional sort of job in atraditional environment - let's say you're a bankteller, a nu rse, a secretary or a dental hy gienist- you may not think you can work withoutsomeone else to employ you. But you may bewrong.

Sheila, for example, worked as a bank tellerin a small rural branch. When the branchclosed and she lost her job, she launched anow-successful small business based on doingbanking for senior citizens. Or take Pam ela, anursing instructor at a hospital, who lost herjob when the hospital restructured. Initially,Pamela lost a lot of sleep (who wouldn't?).Then, she got to work networking witheveryone she k new in her field. The result herown private consultancy, in which she prov idesconsulting services in nursing instruction tofive different hospitals.True, it can feel scary to leave a regularpaycheque behind and launch yourself into self-employment. But in this turbulent economy,working for yourself can be more secure thanhaving an em ployer (who's going to slip you apink slip?).action2 1 \yourown. doc

need an employer to be employed -your job the h eave-ho and getting

And while you won't have a company pe nsionplan or dental benefits, you will have pe rsonalfreedom, greater flexibility when it comes tobalancing wo rk and family life, and a sense ofowne rship over your own destiny. Sound likewhat you're looking for? Read on.

3 PATHS TO SELFMPLOYMENT1 W orking on Con tractAfter 15 years working for a school board asan occupational therapist, Carol felt she neededa new cha llenge. Knowing that her provincialgovernment had recently decided to channelmore resources into community based healthprograms, she decided to leave her job andestablish a program to provide post-institutional support to psychiatric patients inthe local community. After completing thisyear-long contract, she was able to use it as aspringboard to o ther, similar, projects.

2 Going Freelance w ith Sk ills L earnedon the Job onnie worked in the advertisingdepartment of a community newspaper. When

the newspaper went out of business, Conniecould have launched a search for a similar jobin what she knew was a shrinking market.Instead, she decided to use her experience inadvertising, designing layouts, and printing, toget freelance work such as printing menus,developing logos for other small businessesand designing business ads for localrestaurants. Two years later, Connie makesmore than $1 50,000 per year providing a w iderange of print and advertising services to thefood industry.

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3 .tar t a New BusinessWhen Kathryn Brattengeier enteredmotherhood, she brought with her a career inmarketing that she soon put to good use.Frustrated by the overwhelming number ofkinds, brands, sizes and prices of diapers on themarket she got an idea for a brand-newbusiness one that would take the guessworkout of the diaper decision faced by new moms.Acco rdingly, she launched D iapers Direct, acomp any that delivers disposable diapers - inbulk and at good prices right to customersdoors. Today, her sales have reached $1million a year.

WHAT SORT OF SELF-BOSS WOULDI BE?Before you strike out solo, give some seriousconsideration to your strengths andweaknesses. Even if you don't have everythingit takes, you should have a good idea of whereyour weaknesses are so that you can work onthem - or get somebody to help you in thoseareas. Try our quiz to test your entrep otential:

hen it comes to organizing mytime in my current job, Ia) am go od at setting priorities and managingmy time so that things get doneb) frequently feel frazzled and disorganized,but always seem to get lots accomplishedc) never seem to have enough time to geteverything done2.he kind of w ork I do best involvesa) a lot of creativity and free flow of ideas andenergyb.) clearly identified respons ibilities, brokeninto tasks that can be neatly scheduledc) I really don't know3 .hen someone at work asks me todo a job that has just come up - onewith an immediate deadline, Ia) do it, and do it well- in fact, I love theadrenaline rushb) explain that it won't be possible - my timethis afternoon is already spoken forc) get flustered and panickyaction2 1 \yourown. doc hen it comes to working with otherpeople in a group, Ia) like to be the boss and am goo d atdelegatingb) like to share my ideas but don't care if I'min charge or notc) often feel shy about expressing my ideas,and end up playing a follower role5.hen I need a boost of confidence, Ia) remind myself that I have had manyachievements and am master of my owndestinyb) get out past projects I was really proud ofand revel in themc) solicit feedback on recent work from myboss or a colleague6 .hen things get tough, Ia) remain positive and act like a w innerb) lean on friends I can count on to give me apep talkc) find myself listening to people who po intout the risks and downsideshen I'm planning to make a majorpurchase, or invest in something, Ia) list the positives - all the ways in w hich I'llgainb) list the negatives - all the ways in w hich Icould stand to losec) don't really stop to think about the positivesor negatives8 hen I have tried to promote myself-say at places where I've beenemp loyed, Ia) kept an eye ou t for opportunities to letsuperiors know of my accomplishments,and to network w ith influential colleaguesb) often felt that I was running twice as fast asothers to get to the same place in the packc) never felt quite sure how to do itAW 83.A

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3. Get acquainted with your province'sconsumer protection laws (these fall under thejurisdiction of your consumer and com mercialrelations or consumer and corporate affairsministry and federal advertising regulations(the territory of Industry Canada's MarketPractices branch)WINNINGTRATEGIESORWORKING ON YOUR OWNNo matter what your new business is, certainguidelines apply to contractors and smallbusiness people. Generally, people who aresuccessful working on their own: Know their priorities, and apply them totheir work every day Plan ahead Stay organized Keep com mitments. Satisfying customers -on time and on budget - is what makes orbreaks any business Stay up-to-date on their markets. What doyour customers want?s anybody elsesupplying it? Network.esides knowing yourcustomers, you also need to know yourcompetition, be awa re of potential suppliers ofgoods and services you need, and stay abreastof trends and innovations in your field. Thebest ways to do this are to join industry orprofessional organizations and to subscribe toindustry newsletters and trade publicationsrelated to your field. You might also find ituseful to join organizations of womenentrepreneurs - for example, WomenEntrepreneurs of Canada or the CanadianAssociation of Women Executives andEntrepreneurs - which have regular meetings,offer seminars, and provide networkingopportunities. Check your white pages forchapters in your city.

A FEW WORDS TO THE WISE1 Remem ber that i t takes t ime to get startedContrary to what those guys on infomercialssay, you can't become a millionaire overnight2 Don t overbook yourself People justgetting started are often tempted to take onevery single job that walks through the door.But if you take on more than you can do, youwon't be able to deliver.ou'll end upworking, panic-stricken, around the clock, andyour business will suffer in the end. Isn t thatjust what this self-employment thing isn't allabout.3 Get help i f you need i t Not everybody's aborn accountant - so find a good one foryourself. Don't have time to file and keep youroffice organized? Try the services of atemporary secretary a few hours a week. Ifyou have insurance or legal contracts makesure you consult an insurance agent or lawyer.4 Learn as much as you can about running asm all business Obviously, we can't tell youeverything you need to know on these pages.Try a comm unity college course on starting asmall business.heck out governmentprograms aimed at supporting home-basedbusinesses. Have a look at a few good bo oks.Home inc.: The Canadian Home-BasedBusiness Guide, by Douglas and Diana LynnGray (M cGraw-Hill Ryerson, $22 .95)1,001 businesses You Can Start at Home, byDaryl Hall (John Wiley & Sons, $2 0.95)How to Start, Run, and Stay In Business, byGregory and Patricia Kishel (John Wiley &Sons, $18.50)

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SCORINGIf you answered a) to six or more of theabove questions, you are a w ell-organized self-starter. You know yourself - and the kind ofwork you like to do - thoroughly, and havemany of the qualities that make for successfulentrepreneurship: leadership skills, self-confidence, and the ability to set goals and stayon track. One thing you should be aware of,though, is that self-employment often meansunexpected curveballs from clients andsuppliers; you m ay have to learn a little moreflexibility.

If you answered six or more of the abovequestions with b) , you also could besuccessful on your own, particularly withperseverance. You may have a tendency to putlimits on yourself; to wander off focus, or to berather vague in setting your goals - and theseare tendencies you may have to w ork on if youreally want to build your business. On theother hand, you may be more interested in thefreewheeling lifestyle self-employment canoffer than you are in becoming rich, and sinceyou shou ld be able to make a living, there's noreason why you shouldn't have fun at the sametime.

If you had six or more c) answers, itdoesn't necessarily follow that you shouldn't trystriking out solo - just that before you d o, youmay w ant to give some m ore thought to yourgoals, work styles and habits, and managementskills.

GETTING STARTED ON YOUR OWNSuccessful self-employment never just

happens. It takes careful planning, goal-setting and strategizing. Here are a few basicsteps toward getting established: Develop a mark eting plan While this maysound com plicated, it really involves answ eringjust a few simple questions:1. Who are my customers? In other words,who do you expect will buy your service orproduct?2. ow will I connect with thosecustomers? For some kinds of freelance orcontract work you may already know manypotential customers from having worked in thea c t io n 2 1 \ y o u r o w n d o c

field. In that case, make a list of networkingcontacts and plan how you ll approach them(with a letter? a phone call? an invitation tolunch?). If you will need to sell to manypeople you don't now know , decide how you'llreach them - for example through flyers,notices in comp any newsletters or commu nitynewspapers, posters, or other ad vertising.3. Who is my competition? Who else isoffering a product or service similar to yours,and how can yours be better or offer more tocustomers?4. For what price should I sell my serviceor product? This will be determined by w hatit costs you to make your service available, theprice others are selling similar services for, andthe price you believe customers will pay.5. Are there any organizations I shouldjoin or publications to which I shouldsubscribe that are related to my business?These are essential to helping you stay on topof trends and buying h abits in your business,and to networking with potential customersand suppliers. Draw up a financial plan1. First, estim ate your start-up costs - do youneed to buy a computer and/or fax machine? Aseparate phone line? Will you need specialinsurance?2. Next, estimate ongoing expenses (forsupplies, travel, long-distance phone calls, etc.)3. Calculate - as closely as you can - howmany p rojects you will have to take on or howmuch product you will have to sell, to meetyour expenses. Remember that you may notmake m uch for the first few m onths, so. Determ ine the point at which you plan (orhope) to break even5. Establish good credit rating so that you w illqualify for a loan if you need o ne

L iving with the law1. Make sure you understand any federal,provincial and mu nicipal regulations and taxstructures relating to your business2. Investigate (at your city hall or town office)whether your w ork requires any special permitsor licences, and w hether it is governed by anystandardized codes of ethics

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