Self-employed consultancy is something that many of the HR professionals I talk to have toyed with in the back of their mind for quite a long time. That’s no bad thing – it’s a big decision; it’s not like just changing jobs, it’s more like a life choice. So mulling it over for months or years can be sensible – I know I did.
You need to be in the right place, in terms of having the right experience and the right personal and financial circumstances. And also you need to have enough headspace to launch yourself into something new, and give it as much focus and energy as is required to make a success of it.
But what’s actually stopping you right now? We all know that a high level of control over our work (and our lives) is crucial to wellbeing. To me what that means is even if the current situation isn’t exactly what I want it to be, knowing I am doing something to move it to where I want it, I have at least a degree of control.
So if being a self-employed HR consultant is in your future, what’s stopping you doing that right now? And what are you doing to remove that obstacle?
Perhaps it’s financial – you need a cushion or some money to invest? That’s fine, so you can focus on working out how much you need, and making a plan for how you can save that or access it. Having a figure on a piece of paper saying how much you’ll need gives you something to focus on and makes it much more likely you’ll get there more quickly.
Perhaps it’s another logistical obstacle around your home life or personal circumstances. Identify what that is, and have a plan in your head for either how you can change it, or a timescale for when you think that will change so that you can start working towards that.
Perhaps you feel you don’t have quite enough experience or knowledge yet? That’s something you can easily make a plan to address. If your current job provides you with opportunities to develop in the specific areas you need, take those opportunities. If you need a different job to get that experience, then look for that, knowing it’s part of your overall goal of self-employment. If it’s knowledge you are lacking, you can plan to gain that too.
But be honest with yourself. Are the obstacles you perceive genuine ones? Or are they all (or partly) in your head? We all have a tendency to avoid things, or to make excuses to stay within our comfort zone, or to put off something where we perceive there might be a risk of failure, or it might be tough.
So as well as identifying what’s specifically stopping you, also be honest with yourself about whether those obstacles are covering up your own fear. Are you perhaps clinging to those obstacles a bit harder than you need to?
And if that is all, or partly, the case, you can take steps to address that as well! Work out what exactly you’re afraid of, what are you worried about, and then work out how best to tackle those fears and be as prepared as you possibly can be. And then take you’ll be able to take a deep breath and jump… either into doing it alone, or working with us if that’s the right choice for you.
But today, identify what’s stopping you, knowing that’s the first step towards where you want to be.
If you’re interested in talking to us about becoming a partner with face2faceHR, do get in touch.