JohnBedard.com

“Wayne, I think we've established that ’Ka Ka’ and ’Tukki Tukki’ don't work.”

Future Career Planning (was: “I am being torn apart”)

October 24, 2007 by John in Career, Of a Personal Nature, SSDD, Web Design

(Okay, that’s enough fiddling with this post. I’ve been futzing around with it for a few days now. You’d think I was writing a graduate thesis or something; for a blog it’s about that long… —JB)

I think finally, my mid-life crisis is upon me. To this point I’ve more or less “failed upwards,” or more accurately for the past few years, “failed without falling,” or “failed laterally.” I got here only having a vague idea of what kind of work I wanted to do, and with a much larger idea of the type of work I didn’t want to do (which is basically, simply, “Anything that could be called ‘real work’”).

But this year I’ve been asking myself, over and over again, “What should I do next?”

Here is a high-level view of my options:

1. Status Quo/Entrepreneurship: Continue on the current path of building SSDDWD until I can gradually reduce my hours at my day job. I would only leave my day job if SSDDWD became fantastically successful, as I need to keep my health insurance at just about any cost (including my sanity, apparently).
2. Upheaval/Relocation: Find a suitable job elsewhere, probably out of town, possibly even out of state. This job would be a replacement for both SSDDWD and the day job, basically the type of work of the former with the pay and benefits of the latter. Not sure if I’m ready to leave Helena and/or Montana yet. Losing my grandmother and my cat this year makes it easier in some ways, but I still have an unsellable house and two dogs.
3. Transition/Entrepreneurship: Take my business in a new direction, perhaps combining web design with something else. This is the new option that I only became aware of recently, and is super enticing yet fraught with peril and caveats.

As I started getting web design work on the side last year, number one became my plan. It’s very safe. If the business doesn’t grow, the bills still get paid. What’s more, I like my business. It could stand to pickup a little more, but I like the idea of it. I’d always planned on reducing my hours at my day job in a few years if/when the revenue and client base increased significantly. So far everything has happened strictly word-of-mouth; I haven’t done any marketing (other than the botched business blogging presentation I made last week). Under this plan I doubt I would leave my day job soon if ever, but rather continue to work just enough hours to maintain my health insurance and perhaps cover the mortgage. I believe that number is 20 hours per week, assuming TPTB would be cool with it.

Number two was more or less my backup plan, should things go awry at my current job. If this job went away, for whatever reason, I never really planned to get a job at Costco and try to slog my way through. I don’t have any other serious options here in Helena as I don’t plan on ever going to work for the State.

Number three is the new option, and one I never really knew about and therefore never considered until now. But thanks to the Security Now! podcast, a potential whole new world (or rather, a greatly expanded old world) has opened up for me.

I’ve completed the three-step introductory process for Nerds On Site (NOS), a Canada-based independent contractor support company with eNerds (”EntrepreNerds”) in something like 7 countries. The process consisted of two VOIP (Ventrilo) group calls and an online questionnaire. Their mission is to provide on-site computer/technology support for small and medium sized enterprises (they eschew the term “companies”) and to a lesser extent, residences. They appear to be hungry for web designers to join their little club. The NOS branding and advertising is centered around signage-clad red VW (new) Beetles. I recently read that NOS had them years before Geek Squad started using black-and-white Beetles. As an aside, comparing the two organizations, Geeks are employees while eNerds are independent contractors (to a certain extent). The Beetles aren’t required, but you get a larger cut of your billable work if you buy one (out of your own pocket). Obviously that’s a larger financial commitment that is over and above the licensing (read: territory-unrestricted franchise) fee, which is considerable (low-to-mid four-figures).

The plan for joining NOS would be to convert SSDDWD into an NOS business. Ostensibly I would get more work from across the continent or even across the globe, as leads and opportunities come in from other eNerds. But it goes farther than that, indeed, as far as I wish to take it. Most people don’t realize that I’ve been building and maintaining my own computers, and those of a few friends and family, for nearly a decade. I could incorporate that experience into my new NOS business, ostensibly increasing my potential revenue stream over just web design. And even though I do have some experience, the NOS eNerd worldwide network would be an invaluable information resource. I could also farm work out to other eNerds via the site. There are other eNerds online or coming online soon within a 50-250 mile radius.

I’ve more-or-less decided that if I only join NOS for web design, it’s not worth it. Right now I’m independent, generate my own leads by word of mouth, and handle the minuscule paperwork myself. And I keep 100% of my earnings. It is sooo not worth paying them 63% (50% if I have a Beetle, 40% if I’m really successful and earn an extra 10% in bonuses) of my gross revenue for the services they provide. I don’t need their network for web design. It’s possible I would get more work from around the world, but that prospect is currently unknowable and unquantifiable. They also do nothing for withholding taxes or social security at all; ultimately you’re just a plain old independent contractor.

So if I do it, if I pull the trigger, I probably need to “drink the Kool-Aid,” get the Beetle, buy a bunch of red NOS-branded shirts, and start learning a whole lot more about troubleshooting PCs and small networks. And really, it’s a not-unattractive proposition.

But herein lies the rub: anyone who knows me knows that I have a fiercely independent streak, and I’m a stubborn bastard. I’ve never been a joiner. I’ve been reading their guidelines and there are a lot of restrictions about how you go about operating your NOS business. They are masters at protecting their brand and I can’t say I blame them. The other problem with NOS: no health insurance plan, and no real retirement plan. The latter doesn’t worry me as much; as long as I’m making money I can dump some into a SEP. But the former is an absolute deal killer. My only option is to borrow from plan number one: continue working the current day job and reduce my hours gradually to the bare minimum it takes to keep my health insurance. There are other sources for health insurance but I’ll pay through the nose with my health “issues.”

So that’s what’s on my mind (besides Shuko, ‘natch). I got the official “invitation” from the NOS CEO last Saturday. I had already told them that I don’t have the money for the license fee right now and I’m not going into further debt to join, but it would only take a couple decent projects or another HKM and about 6 months to raise the money. While that is indeed true, I still have a lot of thinking to do, a lot of research to do and a lot of people to talk to, including my accountant and an attorney. If NOS doesn’t work out, losing the license fee wouldn’t bankrupt me, but that prospect is certainly enough motivation to wait and pay cash. Then if it doesn’t work, c’est la vie.

(Update: Okay, I can’t stand the original title. I had a lot going on last week when I started typing it, not the least of which was the Shuko situation. This, that and a few other things were combing to stress me the hell out. But I’m better now. Still no decision on NOS, however, but until I have the money there’s no decision to make.)