Am I too risk averse or just sensible? Work related.

[NigellaWannabe1]

I’m 53 and have been working for my university for 25+ years. I’m happy although massively unchallenged; the pay is decent and the work-life balance is fantastic. However, this uni (like so many others) is struggling economically and redundancies are on the way.

I have a small creative business which I promote on social media. This year has been great and I expect to earn as much from it as from my salary. It has potential for development but am unable to spend much time on it at all given my job.

My uni offers the chance to go part-time or even have a career break for up to two years and still retain my post. This seems like an amazing opportunity but I feel very nervous to take it. Party, I think, It’s because there are no guarantees about this business - I had zero experience of entrepreneurship before, know of no business people in my circle, and I’m just worried.

The other thing is the fear or redundancy, the impact on my pension and so on. Im just a risk averse person, especially financially. But genuinely think that the potential of this business is significant and maybe I should go for it.

What would you do?

I should probably add that my eldest is due to start university in a year as me I have two more kids. So that purs financial pressure on me. My husband works in a “safe” job although he earns a bit less than me- he also has a very small pension pot so far as he stayed at home quite a bit for the kids when they were little.

I mean there is nothing wrong with not being entrepreneurial. Perks like sick pay and pension are important and it’s nice to be paid the same every month.

If you have already done the work of setting up the business and are up and running and you can have a year or two out with jeopardising your role and you’re not interested in taking a break to go all-in on your business, maybe it’s just not for you.

Maybe you’re right. It feels like a big risk though at a time of redundancies. If I lose this job it’ll be extremely difficult to find a comparable one in another university. I’d have to do something else entirely, perhaps just do this business full time… if it still goes strong in the future!

Will they cover your role if you take a career break? My university started off by making gap savings so maternity, long term sick weren't covered. I went on secondment and my post wasn't covered and the tasks shared out between the team. This made me very nervous that if the powers that be thought my role could be covered for 6 months then they may want to make it permanent.

Yes, that is a concern! That’s why the decision is harder than it seems.

I would start by getting all your info together- what savings, what pensions, etc. How much do you need to live on, how much are the children likely to cost? Are there other changes ahead, e.g. when will you clear your mortgage? Then you might have a clearer picture of how great a risk you'd be taking.

If you've already done this, then your worries are based on as much as you can know (life would be so much easier if we could foretell the future accurately...)

I think I'd go PT, rather than take a full break. I took a secondment at work, but stayed on the on-call rota, so my original department wouldn't be able to say, "we don't need you," so easily. (They did say that a few years later, but it was okay.)

Not sure I would take that leap with just a year of good earnings from creative business right now.

You might not be able to answer, but if your client base are also being made redundant, as many are, a year might not be able to judge effectively, with the continuous changing economic outlook. Luxuries, nice to haves, are great in a buoyant economy, will it still be the same in a couple of years? Especially with dependents whom you might want to help financially during university or to start their adult lives.

But you could do your sums, I would proceed with caution and probably give it another year with a stable income, good work life balance and see where you are in 12 months and how you feel.

Yes, I think going part-time is all I’d be comfortable doing and even that makes me nervous. I don’t have a mortgage any longer, btw, but still expect a very expensive few years due to the kids going to uni.

In the university situation, I probably wouldn't. I don't know of anywhere that is not facing some kind of scaling back or trying to increase some student intake on the same staffing levels. Maybe a good thought to try to request, or try out, compressed hours though, which could give you a day for more business work?

This. I'd be very wary of giving a university any indication that they could do without my role. We're being asked to make as many savings as possible and this feels like you'd be handing your job to them on a plate.

Could your DH get involved in helping to develop your business if it's safer for him to maybe reduce working hours? Looking after all the business side of it, accounts, social media all the paperwork. Then you could carry on doing the creative part in your spare time. If that works out well over the next year or two then take the plunge.

Hm - I wouldn’t want my husband to work with me as he’s never been involved in the business at all. But I can 👌 at someone to be a virtual assistant, as other creators are doing. Yes, the university situation is concerning but on the other hand, I just know this business has a ton of potentially - I’m equally worried about losing momentum

The uni I work at then went on to introduce voluntary severance, option to reduce hours and take career breaks. I did ask our head of service about whether gap savings could lead to more permanent savings and she seemed to think not but I wasn't convinced really. I had decided that if the secondment were to be extended (as I was covering MAT leave) that I wouldn't take it. As it was the person I was covering decided to take the VS so it ended after 6 months anyway which I was kind of glad about as it took the decision out of my hands.

What general field is your creative business in? Would it be vulnerable to AI?

Thanks, all. My business is definitely being disrupted by AI. Part of the reason why going part-time would help is that it would allow me to keep up with AI tools which could potentially enhance my business. If I don't do that, then yes, the risk of the business losing momentum is really quite significant.

Sounds like part time coukd be a good option? What about outlay, do you need to spend more on materials and things if you scale it up?

I think if your business can earn you the same as your uni wage, keep it as your Plan B especially if the university is looking to reduce headcount, make sure you put enough aside for your tax bill, and keep at it as and when you can.