A Year Without Paychecks

I realize the paycheck mentality runs deep in us.

The temperature is dropping quickly and it’s suddenly fall in Oregon. It’s been almost a year since I quit my corporate job. When I did so, I thought I was free of the paycheck mentality. I was never the kind of worker who would spend hours in overtime, forgetting my own life and merging into the corporate system. Moreover, I had no problem asking for the best rate for the kind of work I did, so I thought I had good self-esteem and independence. (Photo by Michael Dawes)

Boy, what little did I know. I now realize that was exactly the sign of the paycheck mentality. And I find myself shyly coming out of that conditioned mentality finally.

Three signs of hidden paycheck mentality

Paycheck mentality is usually defined as the tendency to seek security and stability over freedom. It is also about dependency.

That is the basic idea, but here are three more critical signs that you are brainwashed in the corporate world, whether you currently work in there or not:

1. You think money for your work in terms of time spent doing the work.
2. You let others decide your value.
3. You compare yourself to others, real or imaginary.

Let me explain into details.

You think money for your work in terms of time spent doing the work.

Most corporate workers are paid by a certain rate, whether it is described as hourly or annual. From factory line workers to their president. You may think the president is different, but if he or she is not the owner, the situation is pretty much the same. It’s just their wage is set by the year and maybe comes with potential bonus.

But a business makes money by delivering value. There are a lot of factors involved, but fundamentally, the more value a business delivers to more people, the more money it makes. So why are the workers in that business are paid by the hour rather than the value they create and deliver?

For efficient handling of paychecks and stability of workforce, I guess.

The problem is, when I left the corporate world, I carried over this corporate paycheck mentality. I was thinking “Well, I made $XXX per hour before, so my first target is to make as much money as I did before.” When I was taking professional coach training course, I also checked other coaches’ rate and figured out what I may be able to claim as a new coach.

Total BS. As a business owner, I need to charge my service based on the value it delivers, not how much time I spend on it. For example, a good coach who can change the life of the client can claim humongous amount (like this guy). On the other hand, if the coaching is really not much more than a friendly chit-chat, that is close to free, and nobody would care about that coach’s livelihood.

I’m currently reviewing my rate for my Akashic Record Reading. There are some business considerations, but I think I’ve got the basic attitude right, finally.

You let others decide your value.

Closely related to point #1, look what I did before to determine the rate of my service. I checked others’ rate. When I was an employee, I did the same, and again, I thought I was doing great because I was not afraid of asking for the top rate.

But no matter how assertive I was, I was NOT the person who determined my rate. My boss had the final say, and I had to either take it or leave it.

I was so used to this “I’m a brilliant assertive employee who can ask for the top rate.” mentality that I didn’t notice what a dis-empowering approach it was. After all, everyone in the company was letting someone else to determine their value, either meekly or assertively – including my boss, the president.

Now that I’m the owner of my business, however, I need to determine my own value. Honestly, it still feels scary to me.

You compare yourself to others, real or imaginary.

This is the flip side of point #2. Because the paycheck is set in the pay system, I always compared myself to others to determine how I was doing as employee. When the company was purchased by another, I compared myself with my counterpart in the new company. Sometimes I compared myself with the imaginary figure described in magazines or movies.

Not that the comparison started in the corporate world. It started long before I entered the corporate world, in the school system, which is just a system to make more employees.

And when I compared myself to others, I NEVER felt good about myself. I was a straight A student – well, actually, better than that, I broke many academic records of my high school, and when I attended the college in US, I graduated with honor – but there was always someone ahead of me. Like that math genius you see in Little Man Tate. And I knew my #1 rank in test scores was something so fragile, unreliable stuff. I wasn’t even doing what I liked doing.

Enough. I don’t want to bring the same comparison-based (fake) self-esteem to my business. Focus on delivering value to my clients. If I can deliver value and make my clients happy, I’m good in my business.

The entrepreneur mentality is about realizing the power within yourself.

This is the best part of being an entrepreneur. It is empowering and liberating. But it took me a whole year to just realize how badly I was conditioned in paycheck mentality.

I recently read a great post written by home-based business marketing expert Naomi Dunford. Well, actually, it was the email she quoted in the post that I felt strongly. It’s an email written by personal development blogger Hunter Nuttall with the subject line of “How to Work from Home When You Have No Fucking Talent”. Here is the excerpt:

“. . . People who are fabulous copywriters can be you or Brian Clark or James Chartrand . . . (more name dropping about “talented” entrepreneurs.) The company I work at is likely to shut down in early October, which is actually great timing because that’s about the point when my tolerance for a corporate environment will be exhausted. I’m looking at what options might be available . . .”

While we all wait for Naomi’s new eBook that addresses this issue, here is my 2c: That is paycheck mentality, Hunter. Wake up. Stop comparing yourself to those big names, see what you can do to create and deliver value, and start doing it. It took me a year, but you are better prepared than I was a year ago (I basically just walked off and moved myself across the continent).

People who has done it knows. Here is Harry’s comment to that post.

“This is so surreal. I’m reading Hunter’s email and thinking, “But I’m a regular Joe, too.” The thing is, we all start at ground zero. I was scared shitless two years ago when I lost my cushy, high-paying, regular 9-5 job. It’s difficult to let go of that security blanket the weekly paycheck provides. James and I had talent, yes. We also had an idea. But that didn’t make it any easier.”

Best wishes to all who are starting to believe in your hidden talents and willing to take action.

Special Thanks

Coincidentally Hunter just published a great interview – of me as Akashic record reader. Please check it out.

How I Traded My Life For Future Security And How I’m Getting It Back

(Photo by Roger Lynn)

Editor’s note: This article is contributed by Ken King of Destiny Building. Thank you, Ken!

Have you ever had a feeling in life that you were exactly where you were supposed to be, doing exactly what you were supposed to be doing?

If you’ve ever been fortunate enough to experience it, you know that when it happens you feel a deep a sense of contentment in knowing that you are on the right path. All is as it should be, and the path that led you to that point was exactly the one you should have taken.

One afternoon last week I hopped on my bicycle and went for a ride to one of my favorite vistas, a beautiful lake overlooking downtown Orlando. Much of my writing is inspired in nature; composed of things that either “come” to me when I open myself up to ideas, or often as the result of meditating on a subject and then writing whatever begins to flow naturally.

While riding over towards the lake it began to dawn on me that in life our experiences are actually much more about the journeys themselves than about arriving at any particular destination. Somewhere along the way, I realized that I was so focused on getting where I wanted to go, I was ignoring wherever it was I happened to be. You see, one of the blessings I get to experience is that I live in an area with lots of older, unique homes, mature trees, brick streets, and in a community where people walk, ride, and jog along the main thoroughfare. Tables at outdoor cafes are common, and so when heading from point A to B there’s a lot to experience if you don’t get so focused on your destination that you block it all out.

Catching myself doing exactly that, I was reminded of the career paths that made up most of my existence. Too often I traded in the richness of the experience for benefits I believed would accrue when I arrived at my ultimate destination.

My focus on the future was killing my present.

My arrival at the lake provided a moment for reflection. As I looked back upon my career path, I realized that the shift away from enjoying the experience began in college, where after two years I changed my major from music to finance because I had no stomach for playing the role of a starving artist. Once out of college, I ignored jobs with challenge and high paying potential, looking instead for those that provided security and stability.

I found both in a career with the federal government. I had my own 6′x6′ cubicle, an excellent health plan, and three mid level supervisors sitting within 30 feet of me. I also found excruciating boredom and developed a distaste for mindless routine. I worked in an office full of people who kept retirement calendars pinned to their cubicle walls, counting down the years, months, and days until they would arrive at their ultimate destination (retirement). It was then that I began to realize that the chase for security left much to be desired.

My focus was chained to the future, and it was killing my present day by day. Yet so strong was my future orientation that I persevered in spite of my distaste for the environment. Eventually I grew to the point where I simply couldn’t stand it anymore.

My successes and failures as entrepreneur.

Six years later, after one more degree and the birth of my child, I made a radical shift, this time going into business for myself. I started a cleaning business that I ran for seven years and was financially successful with. Initially the challenge of building something from the ground up motivated me. Everything was my creation, from the logos to the advertising, hiring, firing, and networking with other local companies to bid on and complete large contract work.

I loved the creative portion, yet my outlook was still future based. And once the business became established I no longer enjoyed the day to day activities very much because to me the work lacked intrinsic value. I eventually sold the accounts and decided to take on an entirely new challenge.

My next business venture turned out to be my biggest failure, and yet also potentially my greatest blessing. I purchased an established retail operation and had ambitious plans of growing it even bigger. It too was void of intrinsic value, but the money looked good and I decided to go for it. It was a business that catered to homeowners and was almost entirely dependent upon the real estate market. I bought it at what turned out to be the worst possible time. Instead of making it big I ended up losing a lot of money and ultimately had to sell it at a loss. In short, I failed.

Yet I now had another chance, a choice to either do something that motivated me and was in line with my values, or to seek security in a steady income and put my focus on securing a successful retirement as my ultimate destination.

Embracing my journey to my life purpose.

Fast forward to that scene at the lake. There I sit, perusing my ambitions as a writer, life coach, and aspiring public speaker. I’d always had the urge to write, and I’ve been passionate about personal growth for many years. I’m a strong believer in being a lifelong learner, having taken courses in project management, public speaking, Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP), life coaching and improvisational comedy simply because I loved learning and had a genuine interest in these things. I’d never taken any courses in writing, yet in the back of my mind I often imagined myself doing it someday.

Does my new career choice satisfy my desire for intrinsic value? Absolutely. To me there’s a deep sense of gratification in helping people overcome challenges and live out their life’s ambitions. To see that I’ve made a difference in someone’s life provides me with a sense of satisfaction unequaled by anything I’ve done before. So as I sat there overlooking downtown Orlando, pen and notepad in hand, suddenly it dawned on me.

I was right where I was supposed to be, doing right what I was supposed to be doing. All of the experiences of my life had come together to bring me to this point. They were all part of the journey. And quite often the experiences I labeled as “bad” proved to be the catalyst for change that ended up taking me where I really wanted to go.

I also learned that destinations in life are like checkpoints -once you reach them it’s time to move on to something else. It’s in the actual journey towards our destinations that we learn, grow, laugh, cry, rise, fall, and experience all the beauty and emotions of life itself. Lesson learned, I packed up my pen and pad and hopped back onto my bicycle. Riding home, I missed not a thing along the way.

Contributing writer’s greeting:
Thank you, Akemi, for allowing me to contribute to Yes to Me.
My blog, Destiny Building, is dedicated to helping people discover and live their true potential. Please check my blog if you enjoyed the above article. Thank you.
– Kenneth King

Why I Couldn’t Become An Entrepreneur Earlier

(Photo by Vardhana)

The opportunity to become an entrepreneur was there all the time.

In hindsight, I can see it. Like when I was let go from the bank. I was also recently divorced. My friend from the support group suggested it. She had a landscaping business – she loved working outside with plants and rocks, and being her own boss allowed her to define her time so she could meditate or even meet friends before work. She saw I was a good self-starter with lots of ideas, and suggested to think what I wanted to do with my special gifts. But I didn’t take her words . . . or more accurately, I didn’t take myself seriously. . .

Or back when I was in Japan when I organized a JSL (Japanese as Second Language) teachers’ association. We created a booklet that served the dual purposes of learning basic Japanese and learning the survival skills in earthquake emergency. (Remember the big quake that hit Kobe in 1995?) I could make more books (today, they’d be e-books) and sell, organize similar groups when I came to the US . . .

So why did I stay in the Corporate America?

1. I liked the ease and security of picking up paychecks.

Prior to coming to the US, I worked as freelance language teacher, teaching Japanese to non-Japanese and English to Japanese businesspeople. The hourly pay was excellent, but it was tough to fill my schedule, so overall I didn’t make enough money. When I first got my full-time job, I couldn’t believe how easy it was! I received the same amount of money whether the business was busy or not, and even for days I was in training. No toiling around for new clients, no need to plan for potential income dip . . . Thank God. I loved the steady, predictable paychecks . . . until I started to think I may have more value than the paycheck . . .

2. I liked the learning opportunities the workplace provided.

Learning new things excites me. And in the corporate world, I could do this at company expense! I also liked the fact that I was pushed to learn things I may not have learned otherwise. I knew this was important. I had to keep my computer skills up to date. I learned how to interact with all levels of personnel, from the CEO of our parent company (billion dollar international corporation) to the housekeepers I was supervising (new immigrants who spoke little English). I learned about various banking products, safety policies in manufacturing environment, and management of corporate identity (yes, I’ve been around). I even went through training for TS16949 internal auditor. (Don’t worry, most people have no idea what this is, you are not alone.) I think these experiences have enriched my life. The problem was that I grew to be more and more interested in learning the kind of things my company was not interested in teaching me. Like real estate investments. And helping people to see their own special gifts . . .

3. I was afraid of life changes.

If I go independent, will I have health insurance? Will I qualify to get in an apartment or to have a mortgage? Will I be able to take all aspects of business, like accounting and tax preparation, and computer technical support? Will I have friends, and will my family and friends accept me without a job?
All these issues have solutions (I will be writing them in details), but the problem was I was I was so afraid that the fear paralyzed me and interfered with my logical thinking for solutions.

4. I didn’t know how to start a business, and I didn’t know where to start.

Because I was in the corporate world, pretty much all my friends were employees, who had no idea about entrepreneurship. I attended some workshops for small business startups, and came home discouraged . . . Other attendants already had their businesses or at least had business plans. I only had the vague idea that what I know and can do may be valuable. I didn’t have anyone help me connect the dots . . .

5. And most importantly, I didn’t believe in myself.

It was easier to fit in the corporate world than to take the leap and face my potential (or the lack of it). Or so I tried to convince myself. Somehow work got more and more stressful, my boss became meaner and meaner . . . until I had to admit to myself I was getting into health issues. Just like 13 years ago when I realized it was either I’d get out of my home town to re-building my life in America or I’d go through a slow death. I just had to do something for myself . . .

Now that I am an entrepreneur, I am not upset at myself for taking this long. Maybe I needed this much of time. Maybe my experiences in the corporate world will help me in my business. Yet I do wish more help was available when my entrepreneur spirit was in embryonic stage. Someone who could help me realize that I had already outgrown my job, someone who could help me build my confidence, and steer me to the right direction . . .And this is why I now help people in the same situation.

What do you think? Are you tempted to start your own business and yet find it hard to take the leap? What is your reason of staying where you are now? What does it take for you to get over your fear?

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