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Are you an employee, a freelancer or an entrepreneur?

May 14, 2017

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Work is love made visible. For if you bake bread with indifference, you bake a bitter bread that feeds but half man’s hunger”?—?Prophet Muhammad

In modern times we deliver work in three different ways?—?Being an employee, a freelancer or an entrepreneur. As an employee we build something smaller than ourselves. What I mean by this is, we never do more than or even as much as of what we are capable of doing. In this case perhaps we will never explore the genius in us. Trust me everybody has one. As a freelancer we build something as big as ourselves. Practicing a set of skills delivers the best out of us. But as as entrepreneur there is no upper limit. We build something way bigger than ourselves. As exciting as it seems , this is the toughest of all.

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Being an employee is the easiest way to live in this era. It does not mean we do not need employees. But we need creators more than employees. A creator is somebody who brings something new or original into being. Ask yourself everyday, ‘Do I bring anything new to the existence?’, ‘ Do I provide real value to my company?’. If not, then frankly you are doing a no brainer job.

Here is a thing, if I have to draw the map for you, I can probably hire someone cheaper. Thus you will always find yourself in the rat race. And even if you win the race, you are still a rat.

Fifty years back it was a different story, when our dads had no option but to follow the education system to get a job. In this internet era our current education system is yet another hangover.

Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high 
Where knowledge is free 
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments 
By narrow domestic walls —?Rabindranath Tagore

This poem was written and visioned in 1910 by the nobel laureate Tagore, who by the way flunked school in the nineteenth century. Fast forward 100 years, and it stands true. Knowledge is free, and we have shattered the geographical walls with the power of Internet.

Is it a blessing or a blessing in disguise? Lets find out!

Currently we are information overloaded. This is another problem with some working class people, they have all the information on whats happening in news, neighbours, colleagues, twitter feed, facebook, whatsapp etc, but if you shoot them with some back to back questions on any particular subject, you will see assumptions as their key foundation. All they have is information, very less knowledge and no wisdom at all. They forget to go by depth vs width.

There are too many things in this world for us to be informed. And it will lead us no where. It is like playing a soccer game with no goalpost. Your goalpost is missing. So lets focus here, pick up your best interests and get the shit out of it. Once you do that, you will find yourself knowledgeable than just being informative. And you will start being more valuable to your organization. Modern companies need employees with entrepreneurial blend.

And remember, it is better to be the head of a donkey, than tail of a horse. Work in small and medium size companies and deliver on your utmost potential.

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Freelancers are personal brands who expertise at a particular set of skills. For example professionals?—?doctors, lawyers, consultants, an UI designer, or a coder who chose to work for himself, artists?—?actors, writers, singers, etc. Their expertise gives them an upper hand to make a good business deal. They are at times the most valued person in a business. They are unique, authentic and cannot be replaced by another. Their utmost freedom gives them the audacity to be unique and often being called the gen.

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Being an entrepreneur is the toughest but it has never been easier before. They definitely have freedom, but not as much as a freelancer. In fact they are answerable to a lot of people, their shareholders, employees, suppliers etc(all stake holders).

You do not even get to solve problems you wish, you have to solve problems that the company needs you to work on, the most critical ones perhaps. You have to work on things which are going wrong in your business. You might have to learn new skills, if needed. And at the same time you got to constantly hold the bigger picture, the vision and lead your tribe upfront.

An entrepreneur often starts being a freelancer. Then there comes a pivotal moment when he/she choose to build it bigger and starts teaming up. Often they are expert at some skill sets, which gives them the choice to create something valuable and think beyond. As an entrepreneur learning is an ongoing process. Each day becomes more and more exciting as you slowly transcend your fears and shatter all your limitations on your way to change the world.

Knowing is not enough, we must apply…..willing is not enough, we must do”- Bruce Lee

It is always easier said than done. Lets pledge to contribute and add value to the society by the work we do, be it as an employee, a freelancer or an entrepreneur because what we do is just an expression of who we are. So be valuable and be resourceful.


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