How to tell someone gently that you think their idea to go self-employed is not a good one..

[howdidthishappenthen]

Quick call for advice pls ladies! Backgroudn info - I am London-based long term self-employed and making it work nicely with my part time child-care arrangements.

My Cornwall-based SIL has just heard that her part-time job with the Council is being made redundant, and she's been offered instead a 12month temporary contract doing other work at same rate of pay and same hours. However, she's thinking of instead of turning this down and offering herself to the general job market as a 'freelance secretary'.

She's asked if tonight I will call her and give her the benefit of my experience advising how to set this up, attract clients etc etc.

Trouble is, I can't that there's any demand in Cornwall for this type of freelancing. The county is economically depressed at the best of times, and in a recession this type of low-level admin work is the first thing that gets brought in-house in smaller businesses and sole traders (who I would normally tell her to approach). She also has quite low self-confidence, which will make the sales side of SE work hard for her.

Should I tell her that I truly think she'd be better off staying in paid employment, or should I do my best to support her in her goal?

I agree with you. I do admin work (employed in a small family firm)and to be honest there is a lot less of it to do at the moment.

I used to type all the invoices, quotes, tenders etc but now the engineers do it themselves on their laptops and so a large part of my job now is just answering the phone and ordering the office supplies.

I would be honest with her and tell what you perceive the pitfalls will be. Tell her you think it's very brave of her to be thinking of going freelance at this time and that you don't think you would have the confidence to do it in the current climate. Tell her to do a lot of research into the demand in her area, perhaps she could carry this out during the year she works the 12 month contract? This way you are being truthful whilst not putting her down. Also then if she does go for it and it doesn't work out she can't turn around and say 'You told me to go for it!"

Tell her bluntly she'd be nuts to be SE if she hasn't the personality to do the very necessary sales. end of really..

Has she got a business plan?
Has she has any potential clients at all?
How will she make sales?
How will she do her networking and marketing?
Does she have a website?
Has she done any market research? Are her skills / service in demand at all?
Has she done any feasibility study?
Does she have a business mentor?

Until she can show a clear plan with sales projections and clients all lined up she's be MAD to leave her job.

Obviously she could set up her own business, and I would urge her to contact all the bodies who help this kind of enterprise whilst working on this temporary contract.

Don't give up the day job is my advice, and I've had my own business for 15 years.

Just start asking questions that zazen outlined, and she will come to conclusion that maybe it is too complicated to become SE at the moment... Let her make her own decision by asking the right questions.