Making a Living Without a Job, revisited

This past week I had the opportunity to connect with Barbara Winter, a longtime Working Solo colleague, who published her classic on self--employment, Making a Living Without a Job, at the same time I wrote Working Solo (back in that last century!). Barbara's just updated her book (it's on Amazon), and she shared some insights for both newcomers as well as experienced soloists:

What's changed?
"Technology, definitely," says Barbara. "And it's now so much easier to be self-employed, because of the array of resources available, many for free." We also agree that soloists garner more respect these days. "The only model used to be freelance writing. Now that's just one of many, many options," she adds.

What hasn't changed?
"The personal qualities haven't changed, and creating something of your own is still an incredible growth experience," she observes. "There are also those intangible qualities, the human side of what it means to be an entrepreneur, such as actively seeking inspiration and connecting with others. That hasn't changed."

Preparing to take the leap?
If so, Barbara offers 3 points: a) do your homework; b) know yourself; and c) join the conversation. "Get clear about what makes your heart sing, then get into the game," she advises. "You'll make mistakes -- we all do. That's not only OK, but necessary."

Where do people get stuck?
"Leaving employee thinking behind is much more challenging than people realize," Barbara says. "Being an entrepreneur is operating with a whole different way of thinking and seeing things. For example, where employees see tax refunds, entrepreneurs see tax deductions."

Biggest concerns for soloists today?
In spite of the uncertain economy, Barbara detects a sense of calm in many of her self-employed colleagues. "One of the 'Big Aces' we hold as entrepreneurs is flexibility," she notes. "We're not limited by only one way of doing things. We just try things and see how they work out."

The benefits of longevity...
Two things Barbara cherishes about her solo work life are the adventure -- "I have a low threshold of boredom," she admits -- and the people she gets to meet. Another benefit arises from experience, she says. "As times goes on, you develop confidence in your ability to bring an idea to life, even if you haven't done that specific thing before. It opens up more and more opportunities to you, every day."

To follow Barbara's adventure, check out her site, Joyfully Jobless. She's also on Twitter, @joblessmuse. Thanks, Barbara!

-- Terri Lonier
Founder, WorkingSolo.com

P.S. If you're a soloist in Florida (or you're up for a road trip), come join me on October 10th at the University of Florida in Gainesville (my MFA alma mater), for JumpsART, a terrific day-long program on Creative Entrepreneurship. It's sponsored by a mix of business and art programs at UF, which in itself is very entrepreneurial. Here are all the details.

Next Issue:
When Clients Ask You to Drop Your Price