Voluntary Redundancy - Do I or Don't I?

[Pintoxicated]

Guys,

I have got a major decision to make, I have an opportunity to take a voluntary redundancy (VR) which would give me a nice little payout as well as opening the door to doing something I have always wanted to have a crack at and that is running my own little business (not pinball related) but using my background and knowledge gained in my current and past job which I have been doing for 13 years now.

I am well and truly over the political nonsense that goes on at my work and I am growing very sick and tired of being a puppet, especially when the guy pulling the strings isn't overly kind.

I am torn between leaving a safe government job with a pretty good salary and having a go at something myself.  There is a distinct market for what I can offer where I live.  The wider Riverina area is currently serviced by a few guys who travel over from the coast, charge a fortune and then disappear.

I don't expect running my own business to be a walk in the park but the carrot of not having to work every weekend in December and January as well as not being able to take any leave in December and January when my kids and most other people for that matter are on holidays, the lure of picking and choosing what and where I do my thing not to mention a chunk off the mortgage is very very enticing.

So what to do?  Have a crack and see what happens or die wondering?

[noj472]

You've just answered the question yourself in your post about ten times over.

Go for it!!

I start a new job in 4 weeks time. I'm comfortable at my current job but I'm going nowhere. The new job offers so much but is quite a step up from what I'm used to but I'm not going to die wondering!

[Pop Bumper Pete]

So, you think you can run your own business and have weekends off and take two months of the year off?
Good luck with that

Did you want to be your own boss before the issue of redundancy came up?


You will notice that many AP members are their own bosses, most of them started running their business part-time while working for somebody else.
You may be the best in your field, but running a business takes more skills than that


Give it ago, the worst that can happen is that you fail and have to go back to working for somebody else

[Pintoxicated]

So, you think you can run your own business and have weekends off and take two months of the year off?
Good luck with that

Did you want to be your own boss before the issue of redundancy came up?


You will notice that many AP members are their own bosses, most of them started running their business part-time while working for somebody else.
You may be the best in your field, but running a business takes more skills than that


Give it ago, the worst that can happen is that you fail and have to go back to working for somebody else

Not sure where I said I would be having 2 months off a year and not working weekends.  At the moment I get 15 weekends off a year, none of which can be taken in December or January.  My weekend is Wed and Thu each week.  My kids are 10, 8 and 6 and you know what, I want to be able to go and watch them play sport on the weekends as well as actually being involved in their little lives before they become big lives that don't include Mum and Dad.

I have wanted to have a crack at running my own business or a family business for a long time now.  The opportunity has never arisen whereas now there are 2 or 3 ventures I can start up and run concurrently, still doing something I enjoy on my own terms and on both sides of the border.

I know there is a great deal involved, running our own super fund which includes holiday house letting has shown me that as well as the need for a good accountant.

[Pop Bumper Pete]

Go for it then !

[swinks]

a opinion from a person who was given a forced redundancy and still unemployed after 6 months is

- make sure you do some home work fast if you haven't done much
- chat to the proposed clients and see if they would merge to someone that knows their stuff but some potential clients might not like change or are mates with certain people????
- what ever payout you get will last a determined set amount of weeks stated on the payout slip - so don't spend up big too quickly as if you spend the money prior to the determined week period you will get nothing from the Government until the set period is over - I give myself and my wife $10 spending a week as we are getting slim on the budget as we are trying to minimise out desperate period. We know that we can not survive on the Government payment of $450 a fortnight for a family of 2 adults and 2 kids and we will start to go backwards fast in the very near future. Yes I recently got a 3D printer and trying to create a income but I sold a pin to get it and I have only just paid the printer off which is good but nothing major to enjoy ourselves.
- do you need any licences and liability insurances as when under the banner of Government you don't need everything but when you go out on your own you may need certain licences (determined by education etc) or proof that you have done something for a certain period to get that licence and liability insurance could eat into those funds as well.
- I worked in a place of 200 people and had it's share of crap and politics and I thought if they gave out voluntary redundancies I would go for it, but the mining tax changed Newcastle and all the industries etc and now I would prefer the politics verses unemployment.

If you are confident you can get the work go for it, but just make sure you have a solid plan and proposes to give to those clients very soon and don't spend the money too quickly because if it doesn't go to plan things could get a little tight and desperate. Sorry not trying to be negative just experiencing the other side of things where I am not experiencing alot of luck coming my way. So have a solid business plan and a roughed out backup plan

Good luck with it

[pinball god]

Rung a business means dedication, discipline, a great business sense and a shit load of good luck. Been there, done it, miss it but don't think that you'll gain more family time. You may even lose some.  But if you think you can do it, then it is very rewarding.
But above all you need a fire in your belly to do whatever it takes and do it no matter what

[swinks]

Not sure where I said I would be having 2 months off a year and not working weekends.  At the moment I get 15 weekends off a year, none of which can be taken in December or January.  My weekend is Wed and Thu each week.  My kids are 10, 8 and 6 and you know what, I want to be able to go and watch them play sport on the weekends as well as actually being involved in their little lives before they become big lives that don't include Mum and Dad.

I agree that is a major driver to do your own thing and can understand why you want to get out and do your own thing

[Slash]

I started my own business about 5 years ago, I wouldn't change that decision at all, that said it was very tough particularly early on. Still is now from time to time.

If you are planning on using the redundancy to reduce your mortgage  that's a great idea, but make sure you have the option to redraw some of it because (whilst I obviously don't know what type of business u r going into), chances r u will probably need to use some or all of it to support u whilst you build your business.

Pop  Bumper Pete asked a good question, did u want to be your own boss before the redundancy came up? This obviously needs to be something u have wanted and thought about for quite some time, your family too needs to be onboard also because it will directly affect them too. The stress of work and money can put a lot of strain on a relationship, plus chances are u may have to compromise on some lifestyle objectives for a while too.

How easy could you find re employment if it didn't work out? That has to be a consideration, particularly if your current employment is quite specialised or unique, particular in your area/location, with few possible alternative employers.

That said, if it's something us have always wanted then go for it. Personally I always wanted to have my own business and I knew if I didn't try I would have always regretted it.  That said I put some major personal and family objectives on hold to make sure I could stick it out. Also I knew if I didn't do it soon, the longer I left it the harder it would have been to leave my employer and start. I was on a really good income and pretty cushy job but it didn't do it for me. Plus I worked with heaps of guys that "talked" about starting their own business, but the reality was they had built a lifestyle around a particular income that they could never give up initially to start a business. I didn't want to become like that, so I knew if I was to give it a crack sooner rather than later was the go.

[elkor-alish]

I took a redundancy in November last year.
I was fortunate that it was a fair whack of money. I'm an electrician and have considered my own business too.

The things I have considered are:
Do I have enough money to support my family if I start my own business?
Is the market favourable to me if I take the money and look for another job or start a business?
What am I going to do with the money if I take it?

I don't know your full situation but I would still say go for it!
You will always wonder if you don't do it.
What's the worst that could happen?

I think most peoples fear is that they will loose everything they own. So what, they're just possessions, you can buy other stuff later.
If you can just learn to let go of the things you own, so that they don't own you, you will find the freedom and courage to do what you want and maybe chase your dream.

Go for it mate. Reach out and take your future with both hands.

[Strangeways]

.. opening the door to doing something I have always wanted to have a crack at and that is running my own little business (not pinball related) but using my background and knowledge gained in my current and past job which I have been doing for 13 years now..

..I am well and truly over the political nonsense that goes on at my work and I am growing very sick and tired of being a puppet, especially when the guy pulling the strings isn't overly kind..

..I am torn between leaving a safe government job with a pretty good salary and having a go at something myself.. 

..I don't expect running my own business to be a walk in the park..

I've snipped the questions you have asked, with your own answers.

You only live once. If what you want to do is something you can give 110% in effort and time to make it work, then you are making the right decision. As long as you are not compromising your family, then you are making the right decision. I spent the last two years of my well paid job thinking about what "I want to do", and the result was more than I expected. What I have learnt is that the hardest step was the first step. But be warned, there is no such thing as "weekends".

[ddstoys]

Mate it's always tough making a decision like that but your already asking yourself questions so there is a fair chance its time for a change ;)

  Go for it mate I think we all just need that little push

[ktm450]

Speaking as someone looking down the barrel of a forced redundancy in less than 6 months, I have been pondering my future over the last couple of weeks.

The problem I see with starting my own business is that unless it is unique I would be competing with long established businesses, in a town that employs a few thousand manufacturing workers and engineering shops that support these manufacturers, they will all be closing in the near future.  The town economy will fall obviously as these companies are the major employers of the region.

I think I will have to travel (probably fly in fly out if I can get it)  for work for a few years until my house is paid off and then make a decision down the track when I am in a comfortable position.  Very hard decision as I don't want to miss my kids growing up, hopefully I'll find something closer.

The other thing I would have to consider is if being self employed would actually give me more time with my family than fly in/out work, I doubt it, at least for a fair time setting up and establishing the business.

But if you have the vision and are confident you should definitely try for it.

[Marty Machine]

A horrible decision to make, but PLEASE don't invest all your payout into your own business, coz *if* it doesn't turn out as you dreamt then you have no nest egg to fall back on.

NOW is also the time you need to double check with your bank that you have income protection on your mortgage and/or apply for it while still employed....

Clearly you dont wanna start losing everything after making a poor investment decision with your payout.

IF anything, start looking for the next job already, THEN start doing deeper research & analysis of your dream job.

just my 2c
MM.

[pinnies4me]

While I was self-employed (as a partner in a very long established firm) for some time, I stepped out five years ago and never looked back. I was lucky because I was given the blessing (and freedom from restriction) to compete against the old firm in the same work, and because of that took little time to re-establish in the new role on my own.

That put me in a relatively safe situation. What you are contemplating Blair is establishing a new business, and with that come a lot of uncertainty. It is a risk, but with risk comes reward too, so it is a decision worth considering.

I agree with Swink's suggestion about surveying some potential clients - I did exactly that before making the step, and while not all immediately came over, now everyone I spoke to are with me. It can be hard to get people to break their relationships in business, even when they are not completely happy with an existing supplier. But if you put yourself out there, I find eventually the chances come up as people have a further unsatisfactory experience with a supplier.

I have also found that potential customers will often give a new player a go for a number of reasons, some just to simply give someone a leg up. I tend to be like that with discretionary suppliers (but not the ones where I have strong friendships with suppliers).

If the opportunity came up to buy a business (which seems a common thing when payouts come), take a lot of care as so often these do not work out, I have seen this too often. Unless it's not a huge outlay, the risk seems rarely worth it.

Very tough decision, but you are a smart guy and I am sure you'll make it work whichever way you go.