Escape From The 9-5 If It’s Served It’s Purpose
lunchtime #laptoplifestyle
Escape from the 9-5 or Escape the rat race, are phrases commonly used in self and personal development type marketing messages. They are also the bread and butter keywords for many sellers of online business opportunities. I believe the old 9-5 routine and the 40/40/40 system have passed their sell by date. I’d like to offer a balanced look at the subject.
I actually have escaped from the 9 –5 regime and actually do make my income on the internet as an affiliate marketer. There’s no doubt about the fact that it’s a fabulous lifestyle. It offers loads of flexibility as well as time and location freedom. Its also true however that I probably couldn’t have done it without serving my time on the 9-5 hamster wheel.
I’m in my 50’s now and started work at 19. Barring a couple of time out years to pursue musical dreams, I pretty much lived the rat race life for 30 years. In that time I did most of the things you’re supposed to. I started a pension fund; I bought a little flat, which I sold at a profit enabling me to move up the property ladder. I climbed the corporate ladder and built up my personal equity over the years.
Have You Had Enough 9-5 Or Has It Had Enough Of You?
I can’t say it was all torture but I did always want to escape from the 9-5. I told myself that one day I would find a way to do that. The truth is that had my hand not been forced by redundancy at age 47, I probably would have followed the pattern laid down generations ago. I’d have beavered away at the job, tucking away what I could – enough hopefully to finance a reasonably comfy retirement.
But when I was forced to decide whether to try and replace what I’d had and gratefully start again or to take a different route, I chose option 2. I should also add that my partner has her own business. That meant that we had income to cushion my move to self-employment. I also had redundancy funds and some savings.
Again all of that was a result of steady 9-5 employment. It helped finance my partner’s business and paid the bills whilst she built it. What I’m saying here is that I was in a pretty good place to start a new adventure. If the situation had been different I would undoubtedly have been forced back in to employment. Probably at a lesser salary than I’d been earning. I wouldn’t realistically have been able to escape from the 9-5.
Having seen the internet grow from a novelty to what it is now, an internet business seemed like the obvious choice. I wasn’t lured by the hypey escape from the 9-5 and make a million overnight stuff though. I’m a little too solid for that. I did however understand e-commerce and affiliate marketing. As my background had been in business development I also understood sales and marketing.
Escape From The 9-5 Just Because You Can Now
I could see that selling goods and services online would offer a much more viable option than old fashioned cold calling, networking and field sales. Although I was from a technical background in the audio-visual industry, I knew I’d have to acquire a different set of skills for the online world. I found those through an introduction to a company called SFM (Six Figure Mentors) I did think that sounded a little hypey but went ahead and subscribed for their free video series to find out more.
Fast forward three years. I’m writing this on a Friday afternoon from the deck in the garden of the house my partner and I bought last year. In front of me is the sparkling flat calm sea and behind me the Argyll forest. Aside from a distant lawnmower the only sounds are of insects and birds. I have my laptop, camera and Iphone beside me. These connect me to my business and to the world. My partner’s business is thriving due to my ability to market it online and all is rosy.
I’m not a millionaire (though this business model makes it a viable possibility) but I’ve easily replaced my previous salary with just a couple of hours of highly focussed, enjoyable and creative work per day. Sometimes I make a lot of money, other times not so much. I’m working on various areas of the business to make things more consistent. I can genuinely say that I did escape from the 9-5.
Life Outside The 9-5 Treadmill
So with all that being said, I’d thoroughly recommend this as a way of life – especially if you are over 40 and have some solid foundations behind you. We really are living in a world now where job security is a thing of the past. Technology and the internet is replacing many traditional forms of business and employment to the point where its better to be an entrepreneur. For the same reasons it’s never been easier to escape from the 9-5 if you have the right skills, resources and tools and a strong enough “why”.
As I mentioned, I got those with SFM – who I also decided to become an affiliate partner with. If you’d like to investigate what they offer click on the link below to get their free video introduction series. Maybe you don’t want to escape from the 9-5 per se, but maybe you’ve had enough of it – or it’s had enough of you.
