Chaosplay

Although I am still getting a pay check but yesterday was crazy. On one hand I feel free and relaxed but at same time I am worried about getting my business started. So while I am playing Valkyria Chronicles, I am trying to think of a name for my startup.

And I want to go to a doctor before my insurance from work runs out, I am also looking for a new place, I am also looking for places to travel to while I can, I am still working on Challenge App, it’s only 5 pm.

Last night, I had a good conversation with my old friend. He is considering going to business school for MBA. He already has masters in Electrical Engineering.

On other hand, I wanted to do MBA last year but then I figured best business education would be to run your own business. Hence, I decided quit corporate world to start my own business.

While we can argue forever about which method is better, I did some simple cost analysis to see which method is more expensive for business education.

Part-time MBA from a recognized school:

• Cost ranges between $50,000 – $80,000 for whole program. Let’s take average of $65,000.
• Part-time MBA can take 4 years, as my friend plans to do.
• Per year cost is approximately $16,000.
• Average salary for Electrical Engineer or Programmer with benefits is $90,000.
• In 4 years, you will earn $360,000
• Minus MBA cost, $295,000

Business Education via Business:

• Cost in terms of lost wages: $90,000 per year
• Cost in terms of using savings for business: $12,000 per year (Just a guess, it’s probably higher).
• Possible income in first 4 years: $40,000 per year (40K is my goal or benchmark to keep going. Hopefully, it is higher).
• 90000+12000 => 102,000 x 4 => 408,000 – 160,000 => $248,000
• Cost of business education via business: $248,000

Wow that’s one expensive MBA.

Of course, above scenario if I fail and return to the corporate world. Also I am hoping in above scenario that my business experience would be recognized as good as having an MBA. If I try to get an MBA after I return to the work force, it will cost me even more.

Then on the bright side, if I succeed in my business then rewards will be big enough to make it worth. God Willing!

1. Quit smoking
2. Learned a little Spanish
3. Learned a little Arabic
4. Read at least 9 books in six months (all Affiliate links):
   1. Outliers: The Story of Success
   2. The Drunkard’s Walk: How Randomness Rules Our Lives (Vintage)
   3. Head First Ajax
   4. Web 2.0: A Strategy Guide: Business thinking and strategies behind successful Web 2.0 implementations.
   5. PHP and MySQL Web Development (4th Edition) (Developer’s Library)
   6. Founders at Work: Stories of Startups’ Early Days
   7. Transcending CSS: The Fine Art of Web Design (Voices That Matter)
   8. The Digital Photography Book, Volume 2
   9. The Art of the Start: The Time-Tested, Battle-Hardened Guide for Anyone Starting Anything
5. Started running and being more active
6. Updated my old websites
7. Started new project, iGree.nu
8. Started new project with Patrick
9. Started working on a project with Blake

I am ending monthly goals as I haven’t been able to keep up with my goals in May and June. Instead I have just one goal for the rest of year that is to start my business.

I love coffee shops & I really love indie shops. Unfortunately, there are not enough indie coffee shops in Dallas/Fort Worth. However, there are still some great coffee shops here:

Coffee Haus

In Arlington near UTA. A great place to work on your project & probably the quietest coffee shop in this list.

http://www.thecoffeehausdowntown.com/

Crooked Tree

In uptown Dallas near McKinney avenue. Been there only once, but they had best tasting coffee of all 4 shops here. Def. need to return there. Great atmosphere & crowd.

http://crookedtreecoffeehouse.com/

@crookedtree

Boun Giorno

In Grapevine. I stop here on my way back to home from work. Good place to do some happy hour coding.

http://www.buongiornocoffee.net/

@BGCoffee

Opening Bell

South Downtown Dallas. I have been there only once but they had great service & atmosphere. Been wanting to go back there.

http://www.openingbellcoffee.com/

————–

Not in Dallas but unique Coffee shop. Photo by Duncan Rawlinson

Last year, in Coolest Professions post, I listed my ideal jobs: Archeologist, Photographer & Writer. Now 6 months later and slightly wiser, I can see what I really liked about these jobs. Here is the partial list:

Archeologist:

• Adventure & risk – I know it won’t be as exciting as Indiana Jones & Tomb Raider but still it is one of more exciting profession out there.
• Sun – I love sun & outdoors.
• Discovering & exploring – I love learning new things, & I have diverse interest in history, culture, evolution & religion.
• Desire to tell great stories one day 

Photographer:

• Creation/Art – Some people may say photography is simply capturing. But I don’t care what you call it. Creating or capturing great photos doesn’t happen by accident. I love to create something great.
• Independence – Photographers can take their job wherever they want to go. They can work when they want. They can take a vacation & call it work. And they are their own boss.
• Cameras – This is probably lame but I love modern camera & all the things you can do with them.
• Coolness – Another lame excuse but their is certain degree of coolness attached to photographers. I guess I want to be cool too.

Writer:

• Independence – Just like photographers writers are free to do what they want, when they want, & where they want.
• Creation/Art – I am sure everyone will agree that writers create
• Beaches & Sun – I just imagine poor writers with not enough money for rent but they can work from a beach. They win!

Looking at this list, I realized that independence, outdoors, exploration, travel, coolness, creation, & technology is important to me. I wondered what job can give me all these elements.

As some of you know, I will be starting my own business (God willing) in September when I laid off. I haven’t figure out exactly what I will do but a few thing I want to do are website design & development, social media applications & cell phone applications, basically working from computer. I think this will fit exactly with element above. I can work whenever & wherever. I am sure I can do some design work by beach or lake. I always wanted to play with some many new technologies but never could find any time. Now I can finally learn Ruby, write G1 apps. And I will get to create new stuff. And all of this is cool, especially if I succeed and become rich

So the coolest profession in my opinion is an entrepreneur!

Please post your comment or e-mail me.

Thank you!

This week my company announced that my department will be outsourced. Don’t panic, there is a four month transition & knowledge transfer period. Then I get a severance package. It’s an unfortunate event. I can almost feel the pain of some of my co-workers. However, things are different for me. For past few months, I had been thinking of quitting my job & starting my own startup company. I have been working on a few side projects to sharpen my web development skills. Also reading a lot of business books. I had marked Jan 15th, 2010 on calendar to make the final decision to turn in my 2 weeks notice or not. (I know I gave myself a long time to decide.)

In past, I have worked as independent consultant before but it was basically not by choice. I could not find real job, so I started my own business. Hence, as soon as I got a real job I stopped taking care of my own business.

While working in the corporate world, I realized that reward motivates me more than failure. In the corporate world, it will take me a lifetime before I can make a few million dollars. My hard work doesn’t give me a reward rather it provides security of receiving paycheck next month.

So when I heard the news of getting laid off, I wasn’t disappointed. To me, it was a sign. I must go independent. Work on what I like and when I like. Work as much as I want because in the end reward is directly proportional to the work. In corporate world, one simply work harder than their co-workers if they want to progress quickly not as hard as they could. If they just want the security of paycheck, then they simply work as little as possible without getting fired.

It’s a big decision. Going independent. I still get goosebumps thinking about it. I already am getting visions of me having money, no paycheck, no security. OKay I must stop. That day is far away. Let me focus on a few tasks that I can take care of right now.

1. Business cards – must get these. At @cohabitat’s launch party, everyone was asking for my business cards.
2. Business name – not very important right now but need a good name.
3. Products – working on book exchanging project and a few more are in my head.
4. Decide, if I should use my old corporation or start a new one. I will need to rename my old corporation so the cost will be almost same. Probably I should talk to my accountant.
5. Find an attorney and talk to them before I do corporation stuff.
6. Update my online persona to reflect, my new business plans.
7. Retake Paypal certification exam. I got a lot of call from people wanting to integrate Paypal in their website last year.
8. Brush up on my Math skills so I can tutor as a backup while I look for business. (used to tutor).
9. Figure out a way to work with partners. Talk to attorney, I guess.
10. Figure out what else I can do now. (Without 10th item, list would have looked empty

Okay I guess first thing I will do is order business cards. I know what you are thinking, how can I order business cards without business name. I just need something to give to potential partners, clients and possibly employees with my name and number.

I will go out now!

Today in one of our meetings, senior leader said that technology should not be driving the business instead it should only come into play after business need is defined. At some level, I always knew technology is just a tool for a solution but not a solution. But I never really put that into practice. I guess thats why so many of my previous ventures failed cause every time I learn about something new, i want to go out and build a business around it. I wasn’t sure how I can build a business on Facebook but I just wanted to do it. Perhaps I just wanted to learn technology. I just bought G1, not because I wanted a new cool phone but because I wanted to write applications for it.

I guess now I need to find out what I really want to do, perhaps, it is not even related technology.