Self-Employment

I am considering going out on my own and doing something that has been a dream for over 15 years. I have always wanted to start my own consulting business in the area of process expertise. The good thing about this type of business is that it is very open and I can address a wide variety of business types. However, the scary part is that I may not be able to gain any clients and will just flounder and fail.

I have over 26 years of process experience from previous employment but that all ended about 5.5 years ago. In that time I have been unable to find employment that would use my process expertise and talent so I have been languishing as a supervisor and then car salesman just to make ends meet. It has been a difficult time.

I am a man of faith and have spent countless hours seeking God’s direction and wondering why he has me in unfulfilling employment situations. I apply for jobs weekly that seem to meet my God-given talent but get very few responses and when a response happens in has been negative. I have never had such struggles finding a job. I feel, at times, abandoned by God.

Today (July 14th, 2018) I started to wonder again why God has me in my current place of employment. Then I came to the realization that God has not abandoned me and maybe has provided all the answer to prayer that I require. He may not want me to find another position like I have had in the past but is pushing me to pursue a totally different path of self-employment. In the interim He has allowed me to make just enough money to scrape by so as not to leave me destitute. Maybe He has been asking me if I have enough faith to trust His plan for my life?

I have preached 4 sermons in these difficult years. The first subject was Faith, the second was Hope, the third was Love and the fourth was Even If: What do we do when God don’t. Kind of telling as these are the struggles I face daily. Another indication that God is asking me to go in a different direction.

I have started a weekly podcast and my last release was on “Change”. I discuss how to manage from different points of view. I was unaware, at the time of recording, that I would have an epiphany to actually make a major change.

My wife then mentioned that it would be nice to have a little financial cushion in the bank. Two days later we received a notice of a class-action lawsuit that will pay us almost the exact amount she requested. On top of that my leave pay-out will also add to that cushion.

I, through the direction of my wife, have assembled a team of couples that we have asked to be our support team. They have all been so supportive and are excited about the adventure and feel like I have every chance to be successful.

My family is behind the effort whole heartedly. My kids have voiced their excitement and support. When I called my mom her first response was, “It’s about time!”. When I told my oldest brother he repeated the exact same words. He has been telling me to take this path for over 10 years. I am not expecting any different response from my other brothers when I have the opportunity to fill them in on the plan.

All this to say that I fully believe that God is directing me to follow this dream. The support from family and friends has increased my faith in the decision. I have not felt this level of excitement concerning my professional future in a very long time. Am I scared? Absolutely but I can finally pray again.

I look forward to updating this post in the next months as the adventure takes shape.