Posted By Chris Packham
One other point to remember:
As an employee you only had to deal with one aspect of the business, the professional work you had to do.
As an independent, you will have to take over all these functions that you did not have to worry about before, such as:
Ensuring that invoices are issued
Chasing up payment
Registrations, e.g. VAT, etc.
Accounts, and eventually dealing with the Inland Revenue. (Get yourself a good accountant and listen to his advice on this. If you don't know of one, get in touch.)
Making sure you have any supplies necessary, e.g. letterhead, envelopes, stamps etc. I know this may sound trivial, but you would be surprised how much time this administrative work can take.
You will also need to deal with your bank manager. One of the best pieces of advice our accountant gave us when my wife and I went independent was to talk to the bank manager right away and explain what we were planning to do. Have a business plan ready for him - this will show him that you understand what you are doing and that you are competent to run your own business. Some of the banks have booklets on how to set up and run your own business, so see what you can get hold of.
Be prepared to work odd hours - weekends can seem a luxury, particularly at the start!
You might also consider joining something such as the Federation of Small Businesses. They can provide you with help, have special arrangements for support on problems with getting paid, VAT, Inland Revenue etc.
Finally, ensure that you have provided sufficient resources so that if the business does not develop as quickly as you planned, you can survive for a while.
This may sound daunting, but if you have the "bottle" to go independent, do it! It can be stressful, demanding, sometimes worrying, but never dull. We did, we had a tough time to start with, but we never regretted the decision. Just the freedom to develop your business the way you want to makes it all worthwhile.
Best of luck.
Chris