When asked about becoming an independent consultant, my business partner and I often share these two observations from our early days:

1. We thought we would work 20 hours a week and get rich. Instead, it often seemed like we worked 20 hours a day just to make a living.
2. We thought we’d find wealth and security. Instead, it often seemed like we were six weeks away from bankruptcy.

The latter is also a good personal test — if the fear of failure paralyzes you, probably best to stay with your day job. But if that fear gives you a little jolt of adrenaline… well, you’ve got “the itch”,  for which there are only two known cures.

Don’t despair – things eventually get better. When starting out, plan on working hard and even being scared at times. But isn’t that the lot in life for most entrepreneurs?

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