Going solo!
OK, so I can at long last officially announce what a few of you have known for a while (and some more of you have guessed). Today I went in to my day-job and gave them my notice to terminate my employment with them as of 1st February 2009. From that date onward, I will be a full-time freelance.
You’d be forgiven for thinking I’m quite insane; hell knows I’ve thought it a number of times in the last few months as I’ve considered my options, and the economic outlook at a global scale hasn’t helped dispel that feeling. Leaving the safety of a regular (and very enjoyable) job for the white-water rapids of full self-employment? And doing so at the gates of what is being described as the biggest recession in nearly a century? I must need my head examined.
And yet… and yet. The last three months have been progressively more crazy; as more work has arrived, I’ve run up against the one limit I can’t hack or work around – the limit of hours in each day. Sure, it’s nice to be earning more than you need, but you can miss having a life beyond it. Something had to give.
So I’ve put in my notice – which was rather tough to do, considering I only found out today that our director died of cancer over the holidays – and I’m making the mad leap. This is why I’m not drinking this year: I need to be financially flexible, I need to be healthy, and I need to be productive. I’ve done my budgeting; it’ll be tight at first, but I can survive if I cut back on crap I don’t need.
And what I’ll lose in income I’ll gain in time – time to create, time to enjoy. I want to be able to play guitar every day without watching the clock; I want to be able to write for an hour a day without staying up an hour later than I should to do so; I want to be able to read books for my own satisfaction, as well as for review.
So that’s what I’m gonna do. I’m going to work, and create, and think. I’m going to pare away the junk and clutter in my life and in my head; I’m going to Viridianise myself. I’m going to stop dreaming about the life I’ve always wanted, and I’m going to chase it down with a big pointy stick.
So, welcome to my new life. Doesn’t look too different right now, does it? But who knows what’s just around the corner…
Thanks for listening. 
PS – Many thanks also to all the people who’ve said supportive, encouraging or – in some cases – derogatory things (yes, that means you, Norris), or who’ve sent me work or helped me learn stuff. I owe you one, so make sure you call it in some day.
[image courtesy Dazzie D]
License
This work is published under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 England & Wales License.
January 5th, 2009 at 10:23 pm
The best of British luck to you, sir! You have the courage to pursue the life you want when so many of us only dream about it.
January 5th, 2009 at 10:31 pm
Congratulations on making that leap.
For what it’s worth I think you’re going to do well. Best of luck.
January 5th, 2009 at 10:34 pm
I’ve got a Wordpress/website redesign I’ll throw your way sometime in Feb, if that helps. Good luck, and keep us in the loop! – I need a lifestyle model to build on, and this one looks all kinds of shiny.
January 5th, 2009 at 10:36 pm
Excellent! Good luck!
January 5th, 2009 at 10:36 pm
Good on ya man. Best of luck!
January 5th, 2009 at 10:38 pm
Good for you!
Scary though they were, my freelance days were among the happiest of my working life.
Enjoy them.
January 5th, 2009 at 10:50 pm
As I tweeted, top drawer, sir!
Cheers
Ian
January 5th, 2009 at 10:54 pm
Congratulations for your decision! For what it is worth, I did the same thing 4 years ago. At that moment, it seemed crazy and terrifying, but I can assure you that I am much better now. I am sure you did the right thing and you will NOT regret it. Nevermind if it seems crazy right now.
I wish you all the best and never regret your decision.
January 5th, 2009 at 11:03 pm
What, are you crazy? I had hoped so. Good luck! I bet you’ll always look back at this as the best thing you ever did for yourself.
January 5th, 2009 at 11:13 pm
Congratulations on taking the plunge, I’m sure you won’t regret it. Does this mean Aeroplane Attack are soon to be in full assault mode?
January 6th, 2009 at 1:59 am
Woah, and congratulations, good sir. Massive kudos coming your way!
January 6th, 2009 at 3:43 am
welcome to the world of selling crap to idiots for absurd sums of money, i salute you sir!
January 6th, 2009 at 6:26 am
Ah, I wondered if it was that, given our correspondence before. Good luck.
January 6th, 2009 at 8:09 am
Good luck! And well done for following that path…
January 6th, 2009 at 8:20 am
Many congrats on dropping out of the rat-race and into the freelance mill-race. Enjoy the ride!
January 6th, 2009 at 10:13 am
Good luck to you dude, I wish I had the ability to do that. Unfortunately my bills and debt payments are just too high at the moment to afford earning less than I do even for a month
I know another guy who recently when solo, a different area of work (he’s a web developer), but he might have some tips for you, http://echohelloworld.com/ .
January 6th, 2009 at 6:21 pm
Massive good vibes to you for future!
January 6th, 2009 at 7:37 pm
As tweeted, congrats, courage, strength and success!
While I’ve never gone freelance, I did have a habit of looking for a new job just when the economy plunged, and have always succeeded (so far).
In other words: it’s more important to make a decision from the heart, rather than make a calculated one.
Best of luck, and I’ll see what I can do to help.
January 6th, 2009 at 8:06 pm
Add mine to the pile of congratulatory notes. I’ll be sure to send you a Curry Of Victory, as soon as someone invents curryofvictoryhomedelivery.com.
January 6th, 2009 at 8:18 pm
Congrats Paul! Sounds like you’ve got a plan and the wherewithal to see it through. I just have to say, though:
>>I want to be able to read books for my own satisfaction, as well as for review.
Dude, there are NEVER enough hours in the day.
January 6th, 2009 at 11:49 pm
Thanks James!
And congratulations, Paul. I wish I’d had the ability to choose whether I stayed at my job, or braved the new and scary world of self-employment. I’m nearly 2 months into /my/ new company (:D) and I really like it. The drastically reduced commute is just one of the great benefits!
If you like, I’d like to talk to you about your plans – I’m still really new to this, and two heads are better than one!
@Karen: too true, I work 8 hours a day, and it always seems to turn very quickly into a whole day gone. Even though I have 2 hours extra a day, just by not driving to and from work!
January 9th, 2009 at 9:05 pm
I somehow missed this earlier this week — so best of luck, and be aware that I find myself strangely envious!
January 10th, 2009 at 9:56 am
Best of luck with this… can’t have been an easy decision but I think your reasoning sounds, er sound.