One Person Company | Microsoft Small Business

Laid off? Get up and start your own business

By Monte Enbysk

That pink slip handed to you recently may not have been a surprise, but it still hurt anyway, didn't it? Now the emotional toll has almost run its course. You are seriously ready to begin plotting your next move.

Consider this: You could just start applying for a new job. Or you could try a different tack. You could take your technology, marketing or other job-related skills and establish yourself as a business.

This just happens to be a growing trend today, because there is a demand for consultants, contractors, project workers and other "free agents," particularly for technology projects or services. "A lot of companies now would rather hire specialists from the outside, to save on labor and benefits costs," says Emory Mulling, founder of the Mulling Group, an Atlanta-based outplacement and executive coaching firm.

There is room for you too in this arena, if you can answer "yes" to these questions:

Do you provide a skill or service that is marketable in today's economy?
Do you have potential clients?
Extremely important: Can you sell yourself?
Do you have the discipline and patience it takes to work at it?
Do you have enough money to live on while you market yourself to other businesses?
Do you know how to use the Internet as a business tool?

If so, you too can be a free agent. You could make money while ultimately positioning yourself for that perfect job in the corporate sector. Or, maybe you would find that working for yourself is profitable and suits you better than working at a company.

"I have seen the desire among people to become a one-person company virtually triple in the last five years," Mulling says. "Not everybody has got what it takes. But the people who do, especially IT (information technology) and other technology-oriented people, are in demand. Companies of all sizes are interested."

I interviewed five executive recruiters or outplacement experts to get a sense of this trend. Here is a summary of the eight tips they offer to people considering becoming a free agent:

1. Brush up on your interviewing skills. This can't be stressed enough, Mulling says. Yes, you've interviewed for jobs before. This isn't just another job interview. This is sales — and, at a one-man company, you are the sales manager (along with everything else). Your interview is a sales presentation, and you need to be convincing. Have a professional do a mock interview with you on videotape, and study how you did. The investment is well worth it, in terms of the confidence you will gain as well as the advice that could help you throughout your career.

2. Recognize that your sales skills are every bit as important as your other skills. Many technical workers would rather sit behind a computer all day rather than network or attend sales or business functions. Get over this. You can never stop selling as a one-man company, so you must get comfortable meeting people, shaking hands, talking about yourself, handing out business cards, eating finger foods for dinner and the like.

3. Juggle selling while serving clients. Those who succeed at becoming a free agent know that when one project ends, they've got to have another lined up. That means you can't ignore your sales role while you are servicing a client. "There is always the pulling that you face: Do I sell or do I service?" Mulling says. "The answer is that you've got to find a way to do both, without jeopardizing one or the other."

4. Get a professional looking Web site, but don't go overboard. Many outplacement experts, such as John Challenger, CEO of Challenger Gray & Christmas, will caution free agents and job seekers in general not to waste valuable time and money on building a fancy Web site. "You could spend hours and hours tinkering with your site, and it just isn't worth it," Challenger says. You need to be spending that time calling on potential clients. At the same time, those who use their personal Web sites, or mix in family pictures or favorite vacation trips on their business Web sites, also are hurting their causes, adds John Rosica, president of Management Recruiters International of Silicon Valley. Your best bet is to have a simple, professional-looking Web site built by you or for you inexpensively, where you provide only your updated resume and relevant business and sales info.

5. Invest in a search-engine submission service. You won't get very far with the "if I build it, they will click" attitude. If you have a Web site and want to generate traffic to it, you need a high-value and affordable search-engine submission service.

6. Contact everyone on your contact list. Make sure all of the business contacts you have developed over the years know about your new venture. Enlist their support. Develop new contacts and keep your contact list up-to-date.

7. Make yourself visible in your field and in your community. Memberships in professional and community organizations should enable you to network with people who can help you succeed on your own. It is very possible that you will meet others who need your services. Also, through volunteering for good causes, you can build goodwill for your one-person company, even if it does mean more finger-food dinners on occasion.

8. Rally the support of your spouse, partner and friends. There's loneliness to deal with in being a one-person company. It certainly doesn't hurt to have family and friends behind you. Make sure your spouse or partner is in agreement, in synch and in tune with what you are doing. Enlist your friends' support as well.

Note: You may not have been born with sales skills, but they can be learned, Mulling emphasizes. If necessary, check out classes on sales techniques at your nearest university or community college.