I’ve learned the hard way over the last six years: founding a business is not always easier

I’ve learned the hard way over the last six years: founding a business is not always easier (or better) than working as a W-2 employee. Whether you’re a solopreneur (or startup founder, or anything else), there are challenges. 😉

I often remind clients that every path to making money has bonuses and gremlins. Every choice comes with some gremlins, and it’s up to me to decide which gremlins I want.

What does W-2 with a single employer give me? Maybe a solid salary, health insurance, and other such benefits. But if that one job goes away, I now have zero dollars and zero benefits. Whereas a business owner with multiple clients, if I lose one client, I still have all the rest of my clients.

On the flip side. Does running my own business mean I get to spend most of my time doing the work that I love? Sort of. Like any job, there are a whole bunch of things I have to do that are not my primary responsibility. In a W-2 job that might be admin or navigating complex conversations with colleagues or bureaucracy. In running my own business that might be marketing and sales or overseeing finances.

In each situation I get to do the work that I enjoy or love, but I also have to do things I don’t necessarily enjoy or love. And sometimes that involves things I actively dislike or can’t do terribly well. 😬

It's up to me to figure out if I’d rather spend that large chunk of me time (that I’m not getting to do my favorite parts of the work) doing the things that are required of me as an employee. Or if I’d rather be doing the things that are required to run a successful business.

At this point in my career and life, I’ve decided that running my own business is the right combination of doing work I love plus doing things I don’t love. Will that shift at some point again? Possibly. But for now I’m happy where I am.

What about you? Do you ever wonder if the “grass is greener” on the other side of the W-2 / self-employed fence?