Your day-job is your first investor. Don’t Quit… Yet

As budding entrepreneurs when we start a new business, we obsess over every detail. We feel an adrenaline rush with every sale and we often look at our day job as a disruptor on the journey to fulfilling our dreams. I would challenge you to view your day job as your first investor. Research published in The Academy of Management Journal shows that entrepreneurs who kept their day jobs while starting their business were 33% more likely to be successful that those that jump directly into full-time entrepreneurship.

But my business is different

So, you discovered that you have a talent in voiceover or in another business. That’s fantastic! Your business is no different than any of the other start-ups that we have read about it, like Toms Shoes who went from a $625 million company to being taken over by its creditors. Your early success does not mean you should quit your day-job and examples like Toms, demonstrate how quickly businesses rise and fall.

Want to be your own boss?

Often, I hear people say they want to have their own business because they want to be their own boss. News flash, if you go into business for yourself, you will discover that you continuously work for someone else and they are the boss. Every client that hires you to deliver a product or use your service acts as your boss for that project or transaction. Always consider the facts before your quit a good job. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, about 45% of new businesses fail within the first 5 years.

Are you building a business or just creating yourself a JOB?

The “day-job” gives us an opportunity to spread our wings and learn the basics of business. The job teaches you how to navigate complex issues, how to provide customer service and the direct deposit always shows up on time. When working as an entrepreneur you manage every aspect of the business. There is no phone to pick up and say “let me transfer you to our customer service department.” You are the customer service department. When the customer doesn’t pay on time, you get to be the controller. After you add up the time you spend to get the paycheck you dreamed of, you may discover your hourly rate dropped significantly.

What am I suggesting?

I am saying don’t quit your day job, yet. Wait until you have enough money in the bank to manage your expenses for at least a year and don’t forget about insurance and taxes. Make sure the money saved covers you in the event of a sickness or an economic downturn.

Make your decision to leave your career based on facts, not emotions.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics states that 20% of U.S. small businesses fail within the first year, 50% fail within the first 5 years and only about 33% of those businesses survive to see their 10 year birthday.

I am not being all doom and gloom. I firmly support small business endeavors. In the “resignation” era I am suggesting that we hold on to that resignation letter a bit longer. Don’t push send just yet. Give yourself time to grow in your business. Let the facts guide your decision to quit.

What if you hate your day-job? There is hope!

If you hate your day job and are counting the days until you can quit, then let;s talk about how to do that safely.

9-Steps to leaving your day job

1. Save at least a 6-month cushion.

Most people will ignore step one and save enough to make it through the month. Here are the facts. Vendors and clients take time to pay. Sometimes you can have receivables sitting on your books for 90-120 days before you receive payment. Your cushion could be all you need to keep your business alive and thriving. But if you fall into the camp that quit without a cushion then go straight to step two.

2. Payoff all debt, except maybe your mortgage.

If your side hustle is as good as you think, then you should be able to pay off your debt with all the extra cash you have earned. If you discover that you CAN NOT pay off your debt then maybe you shouldn’t quit your day job yet!

3. Make sure your business entity is completely set up. S-Corp, LLC, Licenses etc.

Most companies offer legal insurance. Use that insurance to get legal assistance to set up your business, Trusts, Wills, etc.

4. Research health insurance.

Understand your health insurance needs and how much you will have to pay each month for appropriate coverage. Don’t forget disability insurance, if you get hurt or your vocal chords get damaged, who is going to pay you while you heal? There is no “paid time off”. You need coverage. Let’s also talk about the D word. What happens if you die? Your day-job normally provides a small life insurance policy. You are now the day-job. This means you will need to get life insurance to protect yourself and those loved ones you leave behind.

5. Create a monthly budget.

Before you quit, you must understand how much you need to earn each month to live the life you have become accustomed to living.

6. Set up your retirement account.

Yes, one day you will retire and you will want to sit on a beach and tell stories about when you were caught up in the hustle and bustle of life. If you want to do that then you need a savings like that 401k/403b or other investment account offered at your day job.

7. Figure out how you will handle your administrative tasks.

Decide how you will handle billing, collection, marketing, social media, relationship management customer follow up and complaints. Who is going to wear these different hats? Will you be the person or will you outsource? If you plan to outsource, start now. You don’t want to discover that the contractor you planned to use is awful at billing when you are depending on their collection abilities to live.

 

8. What will your working hours be?

Often entrepreneurs blend personal and professional, which means there is not a lot of separation and family can get tired of being dragged into every business matter. You need time to take care of yourself and those who love you. Do not allow your business to intrude on everyone’s life. Your day job has hours of operation. You should too.

 

9. Decide how much money you expect to earn this year.

You would never take a job without first understanding what the pay would be right? Why wouldn’t you do the same thing for yourself.

Write down how you plan to get to this dollar amount. This involves a little math. Here is a quick voiceover example. You want to earn $100,000 this year. Average job pays $350-500. Including taxes, you need to earn $130,000 in gross sales to keep 100,000.

$350 per project-voiceover / $130,000 = 371 jobs
$500 per project-voiceover / $130,000 = 260 jobs
$1,000 per project-voiceover/$130,000 = 130 jobs

Now that you have a goal. Try it out while you work your day job. Be the best employee and make your first investor happy to have you and sorry to lose you – when its time to go.

Part 2 of our 3 part Mindset series.

 

Look around you- look at your cell phone, your laptop, your sofa, the air conditioner, the internet and every other thing around you. What do you find common to all?

Isn’t it amazing that these things were once ideas in the minds of the inventors? There are so many wonders in the world today that your great grandfather would find difficult to believe could ever exist. Such is the power of the human mind.

 

“Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life’s coming attractions.”

• Albert Einstein.

Everything we see today are products of the human mind so for anything to be a reality, it must first be imagined. This means your thoughts determine what becomes real in your life. Believe it or not, all the thoughts you have had so far cumulate to create your present reality.

What do you think about?

If you haven’t paid attention in the past.  Start now.  Our thoughts are too powerful to leave on autopilot. What I mean is, the things you focus your mind on become your reality.  You are constantly manifesting your own truth.  I know it sounds far fetched but hang on for a second and let me share a story with you.  Sitting with a group of my accountability partners I was always afraid to say my big dreams aloud.  I would keep them inside for fear of them being crushed.   I secretly love acting but I don’t desire fame. And I prefer the voice aspects of the craft.  I told my group that my secret dream was to be in a show and randomly I got an audition for a Netflix Short.  I had no idea what that was but I thought I would give it a try.  They not only hired me but they also hired my daughter.   I will include the link so you can see one example of how manifesting has worked in my life.

Watch your thoughts because eventually you attract that into your reality.

How do you watch your thoughts?

Your thoughts are formed by what you feed your mind; what you watch, what you listen to, what you read and the conversations you have. With the advent of social media, there is endless content on the internet to watch and read but if you do not curate your timeline, you will feed your mind with junk. Just like watching your diet, you should watch what you expose your mind to.

Fundamentally, the differences observed in people’s quality of life is based on their mindset –the way they think about things. Your mindset is a product of your thoughts and your thoughts are products of what you consume.

For example, if being wealthy is what you desire, you should become the type of person who has a wealthy mindset. Are you reading comic books while the rich are reading the Financial Times?  Are you buying lottery tickets while the wealth minded are buying stocks? Be a student of what you desire.  Find out what they read and how do they manage their time?  READ!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Are you overwhelmed by the weight of mental, emotional, or physical trials and tribulations?

Have you found yourself on the brink of giving up?

Yolanda is a contributing author in Healing Toxic Habits, Volume 2, in which ‘Ticia Nicole Beatty and six other inspirational coauthors reveal that they found themselves exactly where you are. Now, they are ready to use the lessons they have learned to inspire, encourage, and support you as you summon the strength to give life another chance.

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After reading the accounts of these overcomers, you will be assured that what you are going through will not last. You will survive. You will heal.

Buy Healing TOXIC Habits, Vol. 2 here:

 

Yolanda shares tips to help get you started in a voice-over career.   

If you’re thinking it’s easy money, think again.

Starting a career in voice-over may seem easy. After all, you only need a good voice, a microphone, and a computer, right? Wrong. Sure, that is a part of it, a very small part, and the rest is simple. However, it’s important to remember that simple and easy are 2 different things. Don’t get me wrong, we’ve all been here before, wanting to do something life-changing before realizing it’s easier said than done. When it comes to breaking into the voiceover industry, there are many things to do and consider that can make or break your success. Talent is required, but it’s also about the time and effort you’re willing to put into this work. You need equipment to record, edit, and publish your voice-overs, but before any of that, you’ll need to take a class to learn the business basics.

It’s not difficult to find local classes, but keep in mind there are some pretty good online options as well, like gravyforthebrain.com, which I have used in the past.  During the class, you will get familiar with your abilities and start building confidence. It’s also a great idea to find a beginner’s voiceover coach. Dan Friedman enjoys introducing new talent to the VO world in his spare time and can be found at sound4vo.com! From there, you can decide the type of voice-over jobs you think you’ll like. This is where it starts to feel real!

 

You’re almost ready to give it a test drive but not yet!

 

You need to find equipment and a good space to record in. I know many people think that fancy equipment equals success, but that’s not necessarily true. It’s better to start small with some quality, reasonably priced equipment. There are many resources to help you understand what’s good and what’s not. Here is a quick list of products that helped me get started: Audio Technica AT2020 Microphone, Rode NT1-A, Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 Interface, and GarageBand. YES, I did commercials on GarageBand! LOL.  Always keep in mind that voiceover work should be fun for you, so don’t allow this career to cause you financial stress.

 

Once you begin earning money from booking voiceover jobs, THEN you should improve the quality of your equipment, but remember this is a marathon, not a sprint. This career does not work like an ATM. You have to start somewhere before those high earnings and consistent bookings come rolling in. Once you have a demo, hop onto a pay 2 play site like voice123.com and start auditioning. This is where the magic happens!

 

But wait, there’s more…. We haven’t even touched the tip of the iceberg

 

Aside from purchasing equipment and recording your voice-overs, you will need to become efficient in editing them, so you that you can compete in the marketplace. You also need to audition a lot, invest in continuous training, attend some VO conferences, start marketing, get headshots, take acting classes, set up your invoicing, and more. The list really goes on.  As a beginner, this is all much easier when you have a network to ask questions. That said, consider joining an online community with other voice talents. Use social media to your advantage! Start by finding a Facebook group to practice with other like-minds who will help you improve.

 

It’s your time!

So, you have the information you need to get started, and now the ball is in your court. You ready to do this or, are you going to just keep thinking about it? No judgment here! Take your time because voiceover ain’t easy, but it’s an absolute hoot IF it’s a fit for you.

 

P.S.

One last point to ponder…… when you get to audition 63 with no response, keep this in mind. Rejection is not refusal. Voiceover is art.  Your voice may not be the creative impetus needed for one specific project, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be perfect for the next! Stay inspired and be resilient.