Me, Inc.

Posted January 9th, 2009 by Chris Gurney

As most of my friends know, I left my full-time job at the beginning of September.

At the time I really didn’t know where I was going to end up. Not much in the job market really excited me; I wanted control, to lead… to build something. Any one of the above, really. But nothing fit the bill.

Then, shortly thereafter, I was lucky enough to receive a call from my ex-boss to offer me the opportunity to work for the company, on contract. I was a little hesitant at first, but I thought about how this might be the way to start my very own business. So I went for it.

Since that day, I’ve effectively been working for myself, and have been enjoying every single moment of it.

The One-Person Show

As I’ve now discovered first-hand, working for oneself is not without its challenges.

Of course, there’s always the risk involved. Not knowing what things will look like more than a few weeks away is certainly an interesting prospect. Who knows, I could be back in a full-time job in a matter of months.

And then there’s those things I used to take for granted:

• On a daily basis I no longer get the same exposure to people as I once did in an office environment. While some may find this to be a boon, I personally need people around me — it’s almost like it’s a psychological requirement of my day. Social networks, instant messengers, and the likes of Twitter don’t cut it, though they do help.
  Luckily, thanks to my trusty laptop and BlackBerry, I have the ability to get stuff done anywhere. And so, I’ve been making my way over to the library and do drop into Starbucks every now and again, if only for the background noise. (I’ve also looked into renting office space, but the cost outweighs the benefits, at the moment.)

• This may sound silly, but I also miss the commute! The journey to work used to be one of the most inspirational parts of my day. (Yes, I said inspirational.) These trips used to result in drafts upon drafts of writing, and an outpouring of ideas about whatever happened to be the project of the day. Today, however, I have yet to reproduce this experience on the trek from my bed to my computer.

• So far, I’ve also seemingly spent a lot of time thinking about the essential hardware, software, finances, processes, and paperwork I need in place to run my business. I’ve also spent some time hunting down the free-to-low-cost replacements for the services I used to take advantage of every day, things like Microsoft Exchange, long-distance calling and web conferencing, to name a few. I’ve been successful on that front, for the most part.

Thus far though, I think the most important lesson I’m learning being self-employed is the meaning of the word “discipline”.

I used to have weekly deadlines, and an ever-present need to get things done, if only to stay ahead in the workplace. Assigning myself tasks to complete in a given day (that aren’t customer-imposed), and then sticking to them, is a relatively new concept to me. Here, I’d be lying if I said I’ve been successful. :)

Registration of my Corporation for my Edification

And so, after being self-employed for a few months, I decided to formalize the business.

Without a specific focus in mind, I first started to think about what, exactly, to name my one-person show. In the end, I was spinning my wheels and couldn’t come up with anything that suited me. So I just got on with it.

Enter: Chris Gurney & Associates, Inc.

To actually incorporate the business, I went to CorporationCentre.ca, which made the process dead simple: I spent about 20 minutes filling in the forms online, and in a matter of days I had most of the necessary paperwork back (I’m still waiting on my GST number, but I didn’t expect that to happen overnight).

It really was that easy. (A little too easy, perhaps.)

The goal was to get a business entity founded so I could simply do business for myself. A cool name and flaming logo would come later.

What’s Next?

As of right now I only have one customer, and I’m aiming to bring on more. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye open for opportunities that fit.

I’m also looking to meet other entrepreneurs in Toronto, so, hopefully, we can learn a thing or two from each other, and potentially find each other more business.

You should also spot some minor changes to my site, to emphasize my services and such, as well as some minor tweaks to refresh things a bit.

So, fair readers, join me in this virtual bottle of champagne, and wish me luck on my new endeavor!

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