When Should You Fire Your Boss and Detail Full-Time?
It’s a question that is pondered and asked all the time by new, and even sometimes veteran detailers… When should I fire my boss and detail full-time? The answer is simple, but the decision is not an easy one… When your detailing has proven that it provides year-round cash flow that will support your income needs.
When I started out, I kept a part-time job in the slow, winter months for the first two years. Looking back, I should have kept a ten-to-twenty a week winter job in my third year, but we squeezed by. From our fourth year on, we kept busy enough year-round.
It’s important to have patience. Give yourself four to seven years before you are making a rewarding income. Some may achieve this goal faster, but as a rule of thumb, this is a reality. Here are 6 questions to ask yourself…
Are You Financially Ready?
Take a close look at how much you are making detailing. Can you live on what you make? If you are close, you may be ready to quit your day job. This is because you devote yourself to your detailing business full-time, you will probably be able to make more.
Do You Know Your Business Basics?
So, you know how to detail, but can you run a business? If you don’t know how to run your business, things will fall apart quicky. Do you know your numbers? Do you have an understanding of your market? Do you have a well-thought-out business plan?
Is Your Work Attracting Attention & Customers?
This one is pretty simple. Is your detailing starting to gain attention? Are more people seeing the passion in your work and requesting your services? Do you have enough customers you can rely on?
Are You a Motivated Self-Starter?
Once you are working for yourself, and yourself only, there’s only one person responsible for your results… You!!! You will need to keep yourself motivated for the long haul. Talent is great, but without discipline, finding success will be very difficult.
Are You Out of the Novice Stage?
When you first started detailing, you were a novice. Have you built up your skills by investing in training? Have you put in the hours and practice necessary to bring your skills up to a professional level? Do you feel like a novice or a pro?
Can You Afford Not To Go Full-Time?
Are you in a position where you are turning down meaningful, profitable work because you don’t have enough time to take on anything else. Is your day job getting in the way of your detailing business? Is your family or social life suffering because you are working too many hours? If you can’t grow your business any larger because you don’t’ have enough time or energy, it may be time to go full-time.
So, what do you think? Are you ready to go full-time? If the only thing holding you back is fear, you may definitely be ready. Happy Detailing!
