If you are reading this, then chances are you are looking for the next step in your career. I encourage you to think outside of the box for this, your next big step might be one entirely of your own making. Consider starting your own business, it might be the perfect step for your career.
The words “starting a business” seem daunting to say the least, but they do not have to be! If you set reasonable goals you will be amazed at how easily this can be accomplished. Remember, we live in an age where the brick and mortar business is no longer par for the course. You can run a successful business from the confines of your office. Many people do exactly this.
If you have been in a field for a long time, it's likely your brain has become very valuable. Your brain can be the product that your business sells. Start looking for consulting work, with a focus on getting clients rather than making money (I will explain why later). Figure out what your niche skill-set is, and sell that. If you worked in HR for 20 years, market yourself as a human resource expert. If you did sales, sell your skills as a salesman. If you were a market analyst, do market consulting. Sell your unique skill set to companies that need training, content creation, outside consulting, temp work, et cetera.
If you can manage to rustle up a handful of big name clients, even if they are only paying you for an hour’s worth of work, you will be on the right track. The idea for all of this is to build a list of clients, a list of clients that will be happy to write you a reference. Then, instead of having them pay you directly, have them pay your company. It can be called “John Doe Consulting Firm,” and the staff can just be you, but you want to give it a company name. There are two huge benefits to doing this: one, you can make a little bit of money while still on the job hunt, and two, you get an excellent explanation for the gap in your CV.
Keeping afloat while between jobs is difficult. So if you can make a little bit of money here and there, you can keep the search going longer and find a job that you actually want. No one wants to take a job just because they ran out of money. And this will help you prevent that scenario. If there is a gap in your CV and you have no explanation other than “I had trouble finding new employment,” it doesn’t look great. If there is a gap in your CV and you say “Oh, that’s when I started my own business- here is a list of former clients,” that looks fantastic. This will set you apart from other applicants, and might be the deciding factor in you getting your new job.
Starting your own business sounds insane, but it might be the perfect step for you while in between jobs! A little supplemental income and a huge CV booster is not something you should write off just because it sounds a bit difficult. Start by looking for clients and working on your sales pitch, and you could have a business up and running before the week is out!