encsteph
New Contributor
Hello all,
I write to you today for a couple of reasons: 1) To get everything down in writing (sometimes that helps me see the big picture) and 2) to maybe get some advice.
I am at a crossroads in my life and there are many, many options and it’s becoming pretty challenging to separate fact from wish fullness and logic from emotion.
I recently posted in the Fastlane area with a little bit about my background and what my plan is. Basically the short version is that my plan is to start an IT Services company that provides various services to the small business owners in my area. I will build that business up and use the proceeds to create cashflow via investments (property and paper assets).
To give you some more of the story, I was laid off back in mid-October and have been collecting unemployment while searching for a job. I took advantage of some of the free courses that they offer including one called “Follow your True Colors†which is a series of classes and homework intended to teach you what “color†personality you have and therefore what field or industry you would be best suited for.
It was actually a very interesting and insightful class and it made me think really hard, for the first time in awhile, about where I am in life, what I want out of life and my future. It also made me pick up Rich Dad, Poor Dad again. I read it several years ago and enjoyed but didn’t really get a whole lot out of it at the time. This time it completely changed who I am, what I want and where I am headed.
I have since finished Cashflow Quadrant and am partially through Guide to Investing and they are having as much impact on me as the first one did. I have come to realize that I am really, really tired of the rat race and want out desperately!!!!
During the investigation for the IT Service business and my continued job search (due to the unemployment requirements) I have realized that I have 5 different paths available to me and I am having a difficult time choosing the right path.
Before I lay out the various paths there is probably some personal information that you should have to get an idea of my entire picture. I am the proud father of two beautiful and awesome boys (9 and 11) as well as the husband of the best wife a man could ask for. We own a SFH, have about 6 grand in credit card debt, 1 car payment and very little cash reserves at the moment. We are a typical family in the rat race these days I guess. We are currently surviving on my unemployment check and my wife’s income. Before I got laid off I was making just under 6 figures a year.
So now on to the options:
I have tried writing out the pro’s and con’s of each and that has been limited help as none of the opportunities have a clear cut advantage over the others. I have also discussed this with my wife and had her list the pro’s and con’s of each as well. She had similar results in so far as none of them was a clear cut winner. The difference (which was completely expected) is that she leans much more toward the “secure†developer job or the manager job and the business’s and the RE Agent positions scare her because of the lack of financial reserves we have.
If you have read this far, I applaud you for your diligence!
If anybody has any comments or suggestions for me please don’t hesitate to respond…even if it’s something you think I might not want to hear. At this point any information would be helpful!!
Thanks in advance.
Eric
I write to you today for a couple of reasons: 1) To get everything down in writing (sometimes that helps me see the big picture) and 2) to maybe get some advice.
I am at a crossroads in my life and there are many, many options and it’s becoming pretty challenging to separate fact from wish fullness and logic from emotion.
I recently posted in the Fastlane area with a little bit about my background and what my plan is. Basically the short version is that my plan is to start an IT Services company that provides various services to the small business owners in my area. I will build that business up and use the proceeds to create cashflow via investments (property and paper assets).
To give you some more of the story, I was laid off back in mid-October and have been collecting unemployment while searching for a job. I took advantage of some of the free courses that they offer including one called “Follow your True Colors†which is a series of classes and homework intended to teach you what “color†personality you have and therefore what field or industry you would be best suited for.
It was actually a very interesting and insightful class and it made me think really hard, for the first time in awhile, about where I am in life, what I want out of life and my future. It also made me pick up Rich Dad, Poor Dad again. I read it several years ago and enjoyed but didn’t really get a whole lot out of it at the time. This time it completely changed who I am, what I want and where I am headed.
I have since finished Cashflow Quadrant and am partially through Guide to Investing and they are having as much impact on me as the first one did. I have come to realize that I am really, really tired of the rat race and want out desperately!!!!
During the investigation for the IT Service business and my continued job search (due to the unemployment requirements) I have realized that I have 5 different paths available to me and I am having a difficult time choosing the right path.
Before I lay out the various paths there is probably some personal information that you should have to get an idea of my entire picture. I am the proud father of two beautiful and awesome boys (9 and 11) as well as the husband of the best wife a man could ask for. We own a SFH, have about 6 grand in credit card debt, 1 car payment and very little cash reserves at the moment. We are a typical family in the rat race these days I guess. We are currently surviving on my unemployment check and my wife’s income. Before I got laid off I was making just under 6 figures a year.
So now on to the options:
- Get a “developer†job. I was a web developer and have been a web developer for awhile as well as being knowledgeable and experienced in just about all other major areas of IT. I have had several recruiters chasing me for regular or senior developer positions but haven’t really been too excited about them because most of the jobs are 45 to 60 minute commute each way, $5 - $10k decrease in salary and just plain boring to me.
- Get an IT Manager job. I have been contacted by a Career Development firm that will for a mere 5k “reinvent†me (resume, presentation, interview skills, negotiation skill, etc…) and basically guarantee me an executive position at $110k per year. The “basically guarantee†is because I pay half up front and if the job I accept is less then 110k I only pay $500 to them instead of the 2.5k. Before I realized I wanted out this is exactly what I wanted. I high paying job, lots of responsibility, lots of challenge, upward mobility, blah, blah, blah. Now I just see it as a detour away from my dreams and goals.
- SEA IT Biz. The NJ Dept. of Labor and the Unemployment people have a program called SEA where if accepted into the program they will teach you how to write a business plan, marketing plan, general accounting info, tax info and business formation. This is a 6 week, 60 hour program and once accepted you stop collecting unemployment and they pay you the same amount of your unemployment check but you don’t have to search for a job or anything like that. They don’t give you a loan or anything but the do help in other ways.
- Home IT Biz. I have also thought of starting my IT Services as above but without all the stringent requirements from SEA since I would be able to use all that time to build the business.
There is a plus here for both “versions†of the IT Services business: I have a client already. I will be doing some web redesign and e-commerce work as well as general network infrastructure redesign and upgrading for a friend’s business in the very near future. At a minimum we’re talking about 60 hours worth of work but if they accept my suggestions it would be more in the neighborhood of around 150 hours over a couple of month period of time.
- Real Estate Agent. I posted several messages to various discussion forums asking for any/all information about the NJ SEA program (just as I did here in the General Discussion area) and got a message from a broker to give him a call. I did and then I went to see him. We talked for a little while about SEA and then spent the next 2.5 hours talking about my becoming an agent in his brokerage. This gentleman has been in the business for 50 years, specializes in distressed property and mentors his agents and teaches them to develop relationships with their customers. This position/opportunity is probably the least logical due to the fact that it is commission based, the overall housing market is in the toilet and I don’t have a whole lot of financial reserves. It is also the position/opportunity that tugs at my heart strings the most. Real Estate is my passion and since I want to be a Real Estate Investor for the rest of my life being in the business and learning it from the inside seems to make the most sense to me. The idea of helping people buy a new home and/or get out from under a really lousy situation really appeals to me.
I have tried writing out the pro’s and con’s of each and that has been limited help as none of the opportunities have a clear cut advantage over the others. I have also discussed this with my wife and had her list the pro’s and con’s of each as well. She had similar results in so far as none of them was a clear cut winner. The difference (which was completely expected) is that she leans much more toward the “secure†developer job or the manager job and the business’s and the RE Agent positions scare her because of the lack of financial reserves we have.
If you have read this far, I applaud you for your diligence!
If anybody has any comments or suggestions for me please don’t hesitate to respond…even if it’s something you think I might not want to hear. At this point any information would be helpful!!
Thanks in advance.
Eric
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