Controlling Your Destiny

I've been working on this post for a week and still don't feel satisfied with it. I expect many updated versions to follow this initial post but I wanted to put something out there. 

Controlling Your Destiny                        

I went on a run this afternoon in Encinitas, CA. Being a random Wednesday afternoon; how many middle-aged men out and about enjoying the day surprised me. It’s quite obvious that the men I saw are more athletic, have more free time and probably just have a higher quality of life than the average American. It is also quite apparent that these men are not middle managers in corporate America (not to mention the average home price in Encinitas is over $1M). They control their own destinies.

The most fulfilling move I have ever made in my life was to leave corporate America. Being an entrepreneur, for all the ups and downs that comes with it, allows for one to control their life. Being a sole proprietor, you never have to answer to anyone but yourself (or maybe the bank). As I look forward, I don’t envision how I could ever answer to anyone else again in my life. I want to control my own destiny. 

Common wisdom is that entrepreneurship is risky. There’s no guaranteed paycheck, no health insurance, and no co-workers to bitch about the first two with. But is it more risky than having your future controlled by someone else? Or worse: controlled by the market. If you go to work everyday and do a diligent job, it’s most likely you won’t lose your position. But what if the knuckleheads down the hallway are underwriting mortgages to people without jobs at 100 to 1 leverage? Those knuckleheads are putting your job at risk. You are not in control.

Worse than job security is the income limitations imposed by being an employee. A good situation on any investment would be to have minimal downside risk with unlimited potential to make return. Being an employee is the exact opposite. The downside risk is getting fired and having nothing to show, the upside is a 5% raise every year (or as your manager deems fit). What a terrible scenario. As an entrepreneur, you are able to control risk. Risk, in this scenario, is probably best defined as permanent impairment of capital. As an entrepreneur, how much you spend and in what capacity is entirely up to you. How much you make on that spending, the return, is boundless.

Some people are not cut out to be entrepreneurs. They enjoy job security and health care. They like leaving the office at 5pm everyday. They enjoy their guaranteed four weeks vacation a year. But if you can sacrifice those minor luxuries, why would you continue to have your life dictated to you by someone else’s agenda? Take hold. Control your destiny.