Is going into business worth it?

P

Pinnie

Senior Member
Location
Ohio
Occupation
Commercial Electrician
I am gearing and studying to go on my own as a solo commercial contractor. I know it’s a common discussion whether or not it makes sense for someone to stay an employee vs the stress and complexity of starting your own business. I would just like to know how possible it is to hit the ground running and how lucrative it can be. What is achievable take home pay for one man doing small commercial jobs a year? I’m in Ohio which is a very good market.
 
Even if I make less, then I would working for someone having the control to do what I please, and the other benefits of a business owner outweigh any negative.
What happens with our weather so forth? It’s not for the faint of heart though.
 
AC\DC said:
Even if I make less, then I would working for someone having the control to do what I please, and the other benefits of a business owner outweigh any negative.
What happens with our weather so forth? It’s not for the faint of heart though.
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Money is a big consideration for me.
 
You can't treat business income like a paycheck, because there will be lean times to endure. I've seen lots of guys do it, but sooner or later you are going to need savings to carry you through a lean year
 
You need to have a plan. Understand what startup and ongoing expenses will be.
If it’s just you, you will be working two jobs - running the business and the technical work.
 
I did it for 6 years and had one employee (actually we were partners). First year broke even buying trucks and tools. 2d year better, 3,4 & 5 were good saved up some money. 6th year recession hit and the bottom fell out (1992?). But I was working about 15-16 hours a day between work and estimating and paying bills etc.

When the recession hit the phone just stopped ringing and I am sitting there watching the $$$$ go out. Liability insurance, workmen's comp. truck insurance etc etc, bills have to get paid whether your making money or not.

So, we closed up shop, and both got jobs right away. We both ended up in the union and I probably couldn't have retired if I didn't do that. We paid off all our bills, didn't go bankrupt had some money left over that we split so I am proud of that.

I am glad I tried it but it wasn't for me.
 
Pinnie said:
It feels like there’s not many success stories
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I don’t recall the exact figure, but I remember reading that something like 70% of new businesses fail in the first year. That being said, I have several acquaintances who successfully started businesses. A couple of them required multiple attempts before finally succeeding.
 
Pinnie said:
I am gearing and studying to go on my own as a solo commercial contractor. I know it’s a common discussion whether or not it makes sense for someone to stay an employee vs the stress and complexity of starting your own business. I would just like to know how possible it is to hit the ground running and how lucrative it can be. What is achievable take home pay for one man doing small commercial jobs a year? I’m in Ohio which is a very good market.
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Do you already have a contractors license? Are you currently working for a business? If so, what size are they and how successful are they?
 
retirede said:
I don’t recall the exact figure, but I remember reading that something like 70% of new businesses fail in the first year. That being said, I have several acquaintances who successfully started businesses. A couple of them required multiple attempts before finally succeeding.
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i wonder how that stat differs in my state, Ohio, as there is no journeyman’s or masters license here. Only a contractors license. Is it the case in your guys states that you would have the license you need to start your business whether or not you intended to, making it more tempting to start one? Here you need to be intentional and not many guys pursue their license in Ohio because there’s no real benefit if you don’t start your own company.
 
Joe.B said:
Do you already have a contractors license? Are you currently working for a business? If so, what size are they and how successful are they?
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No I will take my test in the spring. Yes the company I work for is around 40-50 employees in all divisions. The commercial side has about 20 including the office. 13-15 field guys. 5 or 6 foreman ranging in experience.
 
After you have a license of you own, I would consider talking with the right person (high enough up, but also approachable) about your future with the company. You may be offered the opportunity to grow within the company and gain valuable experience, or you may be shown the door, who knows. But it's worth it to find out.

I know several contractors that started working for a big contractor while they got their license and gained experience. When they were ready to branch out they had a good relationship with the big company and a significant portion of their workload came to them through that big company. It would come either as a referral because the job was to small for the big company, or they would sub-contract out to them. Being your own contractor means you have all your insurance and bonds, they don't have to cover any of that. They can set a price and reasonably expect that to be what they pay.

If it turns out that you're not good at the business side of things, they may take you back. Shoot, if they see that you're motivated they might make it worth it to stay. But I'd bet that if you don't talk to them about it and just leave, they probably won't give you the time of day.
 
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