Possibly losing my job... looking for opinions/suggestions

[othersteve]

Hey guys,

Well, this economy's cut deep, that's for sure. To make a long story short, although computers are my passion, for the last four years since my college graduation I've been working at a family-owned mechanical contracting firm doing management, and all my tech work has been on the side. But now it's honestly not looking good for the family business, and I am seriously considering the possibility of having to go it my own in the tech business.

Here's the thing: I have a mere minor degree in computer science accompanying my Baccalaureate in management. I don't have any certifications under my belt or anything of that nature, but I do have a massive amount of knowledge on the subject and some (admittedly) pretty rare talents when it comes to software-oriented repairs, including disinfection.

My questions to all you tech industry veterans here are:

1) Do you think I'd be able to land a well-paying job at a computer repair company simply based on sheer knowledge and experience alone? Are there people who hire based on such criteria? I've never seen the need for certifications considering my situation, and quite frankly I know I can handle just about anything that's thrown at me. I'd think someone could deduce this pretty quickly in an interview but I just want to be certain this is a possibility.

2) I do technically have a small customer base that I've built over the past few years of people who swear by my services. I have advocated referrals to these people and I think I could make a small amount of income even just via my current situation, but it wouldn't be enough. Any idea how quickly I could probably accumulate enough customers to do, say, ten repairs per week? I'm currently sitting at just a few.

Just looking to set my mind at ease and prepare myself just in case. Thanks guys.

 

[NYJimbo]

I think your personal situation is whats going to matter the most right now. If you are living with mom/dad and can afford to make very little for a year then going out on your own might be worth the risk.

However if you have a spouse, kids, mortgage, bills, car payments, etc and are already living paycheck to paycheck then you need solid work right now and it might not be a good idea to try to do it on your own.

As to if a shop will hire you, first see if anyone in the area is hiring. There are millions of people just like you. Tech background, tech schooling and wanting to get into the repair business. Shops can afford to be picky and choose the best out there so you would have to find out what they are looking for and if you lack it, you should try to work on getting certs or some kind of degree before going for a repair shop job.

 

[hardtoremember]

Othersteve, sorry to hear you may be losing your job. I just lost mine last week. I got home, sat down and figured out what exactly my bills are. Not including the extra stuff. I filed for unemployment and found that if we are careful with our spending we can make it with her income and unemployment.

We have considered going into computer repair full time for quite a while and now we are going to do it. Like you we have a small very regular customer base that will use no one else.

I don't know how shops hire. I know that my nephew [16 y/o] has a few certs and I wouldn't let him anywhere near my computer. If you go into business you need to do the same you do for your current customer base. Don't just fix it and leave. Talk to people and teach them.

I have called and emailed a couple of repair services out here and waited in each case a week or more for a response. So either they are too busy to get back to me or they don't care. Hopefully it's the former and that means there is plenty of work out here.

If you are confident in what you do I think you'll be successful. Just start from home, figure out who your audience is and do a little advertising.

I saw losing my job as an opportunity to get going full time. Maybe this is your opportunity to do the same?

 

[othersteve]

NYJimbo,

Thanks for the perspective man. I appreciate hearing from someone who's clearly pretty deeply-ingrained in the industry. To be perfectly honest, I think that if I could manage an interview or two I'd be able to land a position with just about anyone, not least because I'm skilled at articulating my qualities. I'm pretty good with people, and I'm also well-spoken. Hopefully that coupled with my huge cache of experience would be enough to get me in somewhere.


hardtoremember,

Thanks very much for your input as well. It's great to meet someone who's possibly in the same situation as myself. I would very much like to go it alone and be my own boss, and I am strongly considering that possibility. I think if I could just do even an average of ten repairs per week I'd be fine, possibly making around what I do now anyway. And best of all, the hours would be awesome. I definitely do see it as a bit of an opportunity, but I'm honestly just more concerned about the startup than anything else. Sure, the wheels are turning already, but I would really need to expand my customer base to make this thing viable.

I do have one other question for you. In terms of unemployment, roughly how much of your income percentage-wise does it cover? Is it different per state? Also, can you collect even while making some money part-time on the side, or is that against the law?

Thanks so much.

 

[hardtoremember]

Well in Nevada I think the max is either $400 or $450. I ended up with $400 a week which is less than half of what I was making. We had some savings and I got paid through the month. So I had a little extra. Your mileage may vary!

As far as the part time work goes, you are supposed to report it. I don't know what is the best way to go about getting new customers in your community and I would really look at some of CallThatGirl's marketing posts. Really do that!

I am pretty much in the same boat as you except I have already lost the job. I am going to try and use every successful marketing strategy CTG has posted as I can afford it. I would be fine with starting with 10-15 repairs a week. I am concerned about start up costs too. I have 4 different pieces of paper to get here in Nevada plus insurance that have so far and are going to cost a little bit but I think I will be glad I did it.

I am not going into this to get rich. I am doing it because I absolutely love doing it. I love new challenges and I love helping people learn more about their computers. I wish you the best of luck and really do hope you are very successful!

 

[anonymous Mac Tech]

1) Do you think I'd be able to land a well-paying job at a computer repair company simply based on sheer knowledge and experience alone? Are there people who hire based on such criteria? I've never seen the need for certifications considering my situation, and quite frankly I know I can handle just about anything that's thrown at me. I'd think someone could deduce this pretty quickly in an interview but I just want to be certain this is a possibility.

2) I do technically have a small customer base that I've built over the past few years of people who swear by my services. I have advocated referrals to these people and I think I could make a small amount of income even just via my current situation, but it wouldn't be enough. Any idea how quickly I could probably accumulate enough customers to do, say, ten repairs per week? I'm currently sitting at just a few.

You have a degree so that helps. If there is a call center in your area you could get a job doing tech support pretty easily because they are always hiring. Doing hands on work, a small independent shop will probably give you a shot, provided anyone is hiring? As far as corporate IT and lacking certs and professional experience, you would need to at least acquire a couple highler level networking certs to even be considered without any professional experience.

Might even be best to go your own right now. Just really put yourself out there and let your clients know you are looking to build up business.

 

[callthatgirl]

1.) the probability of you getting a job in the next 6 mos is not good.

2.). If you have a client base, do the bare minimum to get your business rollling. There are many affordable marketing techniques that can get you business NOW. Most of my marketing tooks 6-8 months though to get going.

While you are building the biz, continue to look for work. One thing that may help you get in with a computer shop is to tell them you will bring over your clientbase.

Don't know your personal situation, but for me...I had nothing to lose by going on my own. I got fired from a law firm and gave the corporations a big FU. I had enough of them, but enough passion for my work to continue on my own. I had the dream to make happen.

If having your shop is not a dream, then you may just want to sit on unemployment til you get a job.

Remember, there is a lot more to having a shop then being certified and knowing enough to repair computers.

 

[kagman]

Hey othersteve, sent you a PM.

 

[othersteve]

Well, I've got plenty of knowledge with regard to running a company already considering that I've basically been doing so for the past four years now. I stepped into this company while it was in very poor health, deeply in debt. I cleaned it up massively and actually cut our current payables in half while growing the business, but the last year has been catastrophic for just about everyone.

I will say this: I am definitely a do-it-yourselfer when it comes to this sort of thing, and I absolutely prefer to work for myself. I am the type of person who does not accept failure under any circumstances; I set my mind on something, whether it's a project or a personal life goal, and I work at it until I succeed. It's as much a gift as it is a curse.

That's why I think going it alone might be my best bet. I hate to say this, but I even feel like I couldn't trust 90% of other techs to do the work I do. I often find that I am fixing problems others could not. On one hand, that's a delegation/trust problem, but on the other hand, I really, truly believe that this is my calling. Since the third grade, twenty years ago, it's been my passion.

I guess the costs are a concern, but I don't know how much of a problem that really is. I'd just have to score some accounting software, keep better track of my expenses, and make sure my insurance is solid. After that, I'm not even really so sure what else I'd need. I don't even think I'd need a physical location to start off with; thus far, everyone has been more than happy dropping off their PCs at my workplace or home or having me come on-site to them.

And you know, I still am not completely sure of the future of the family business. There is a possibility we may survive, it just doesn't look good. I certainly hope we do, and I may still exit later on to pursue my own ventures. But I'd love to do it as a product of choice and not necessity.

You guys rock. Thanks for all the suggestions and I appreciate the down-to-Earth advice. I realize not a lot of firms are currently hiring so I'm not even sure if I'd expect a job from someone else. I'm almost inclined to consider looking for a position doing something else part-time to supplement my income and then starting up the computer stuff alongside it all. I wonder if that's the best plan of all...

 

[callthatgirl]

Just don't sweat the little stuff in the beginning, like accounting and whatnot. Work on getting clients! Spend 90% of your time out networking and getting the word out, especially with your current clients.

Insurance is easy to get.

So many folks I see in any biz start up phase spend 6 months wasting time doing little business tiddles.

 

[othersteve]

You rock Lisa, thanks so much for the advice.