I am self-employed, but does that mean I am perfect and complete on my own? Is “me” all I need?
This has come up often lately as I plan on how to achieve my goals. It’s obvious now that I can reach my goals way faster by working with others that have similar goals.
I’ve recently contacted a husband-wife couple that operates a graphic-focused web firm here in Las Vegas. They’ve been doing it for over 10 years. She manages the clients and he does the design work. But they need someone technically minded to handle server setup and other web tasks. Linda, the wife, had contacted me through my job Raster Media. We were off-loading an old client that Linda is now managing. I don’t know the details, but that much I do know. So she asked if I do any work on the side. I said no. I’m not really interested in doing side jobs when I have such a great day job. But I am interested in working together to get Small Presence going (to free myself up more for other more important things).
It just so happens that I am a good match for Linda and her husband. We are going to meet next Monday to discuss the opportunity to form a team. I am hoping they will be able to take my ideal for Small Presence and develop it into a real business with real income so that I can continue to develop it further.
This is great news for me. I am eager to get moving forward on some of the necessary steps for Small Presence. I love my current job, but I want more out of my life than to work it away. A team structure is so much more powerful than any one person.
There seems to be an overall feeling of independence in young entrepreneurs. But that isn’t needed nor is it really beneficial. Sure you are freed of many things, but do not separate yourself into a corner.
Ideas, money, free marketing, feedback, and so on are all valuable results of sharing with others; especially in a team environment. You may be the sharpest knife in the drawer, but you certainly aren’t the only utensil needed on the dinner table. You should use a team like a Swiss army knife. Let each member do what they do best so that you can compliment each other and benefit from the others’ strengths.
As mentioned above, I can program a database application better than Linda or her husband. But They have experience and hindsight that I don’t have. Working together will allow all of us to progress to the next stage in achieving our own goals. Much better than me floundering in accounting, marketing, and so on.
To quote John D. Rockefeller, “I would rather earn 1% of a 100 people’s efforts than 100% of my own efforts.”
This relationship did not go anywhere, but the principle still applies. Business is all about people and working alone will never be better than working together when it comes to measurable output.
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