Ok. I literally can't work for someone else any more. But how can I make it happen?

[SunsetSkylane]

I'm a Head of Marketing. I simply absolutely cannot work for someone else any more.

The older I get the harder I find it. I've currently got at least a decade more experience than my current (very nice) MD; the only difference between us is that he comes from enough money to set up a business and I don't.

I have this constant feeling that the time is now to try setting up on my own, or the window will pass (I'm 45).

But, how the hell do I get started? How do I begin to look for my own clients when I already work 50+ hours a week? We don't have spare cash to fund me quitting.

Does anyone have any advice? Please?

What do you do @MoonPieHazySky

Everyone (both in my field and outside it) told me it would take 2 years to be fully scheduled as a freelancer.

Not quite sure what you mean by 'fully scheduled' but I assume you mean having enough work/earning enough money?

In which case, my own experience was very different! When I left my job to become self-employed, one of the key facts was (when doing my business plan) I realised that if I only ended up earning as much as my salary, then I would have failed - based on the number of projects that would have been.

... and then when I did make the leap, I was fully employed (and turning work down) for the whole year I was self-employed. I ended up forming a company with another colleague, which took things to another level for both of us.

But the key to all of this was doing thorough analysis and thinking about the business and what I/we could do/achieve by leaving our jobs.