Why I took the job...

I went in for a followup interview on Thursday with the zoo regarding their part-time marketing position and walked out employed. Well, technically I walked out under "security review" but I'm not anticipating any problems with that so I should be starting work with them next week.

Let me first state, that I am not abandoning my company. My company is my priority and I still - perhaps foolishly - believe I can juggle it all. In a nutshell, my decision to take the job came down to three points:

1. I believe in this organization and it's mission. I'm already a volunteer with them and feel strongly about what they're doing and how they're trying to change the world. They do a substantial amount of conservation work around the globe and in my role I will be charged with both helping get more people through the gates so that more revenue can go towards conservation and with trying to help people understand the importance of conservation. Trust me, if this job were simply a marketing position at Big Computer Company or Random Accounting Firm I wouldn't have taken it. It's this organization in particular which holds specific interest for me. Not to mention that my boss seems to be very understanding that this is only a part-time gig and won't be expecting me to check email during the weekend or anything similar. It's the type of job you go in, work hard, and leave after 20 hours with no more thought of it until the following week. Which leaves me with all the other hours in the week to worry about my business.

2. It's validating to get a paycheck. I don't for a second mean the actual dollar amount - but simply to receive a paycheck. Even while I'm building sweat equity in my company and believe it will pay off down the road, there's something validating about getting a paycheck. The one thing I've always struggled with in regards to my company is that I haven't been contributing financially to the "family pot." I want to pull my own weight or - at the very least - pull some of it. That's empowering. So while this may not be a huge paycheck it's something. And on a second note, this is money that can be used to fund my business. Remember that my business is entirely self-funded and while I've substantially closed the gap with regards to getting it to breakeven, there are certain times of the year that the business needs a cash injection to buy materials/packaging/etc that is needed for the busy holiday season. Now I have a well to draw from that isn't the "family pot." This seems even more important this year as I'm literally watching small businesses I know drop like flies around me. There have been three small companies in my workspace alone who have closed up in the last month and in talking with my graphic designer yesterday I learned of two more in the area that are in my industry that didn't make it. Even if people are saying the recession is over, it's still tough out there and I want to position my company to succeed. One way to do that is to make sure that it has enough cash to survive the lean periods.

3. And lastly, I'm excited to get some other employment on my resume. Being self-employed is not always viewed as a positive by potential employers some of whom seem to think that said business is a hobby and not a legitimate business. While I don't plan on ever needing to write another resume, it's good to know that I'll have some more up-to-date 'working for someone else' information on my resume. Guess I've just been a little spooked lately because in addition to seeing so many small businesses fall by the wayside, I've also had a number of friends going through changes (divorce, family death, main breadwinner loses job) that requires them to start looking for jobs to help support their family. While we're not planning on any of those happening, sometimes life simply doesn't have the same plan and I want to know that I'd be able to get myself employed to support my family if something untoward happened.