In the "real world" of working for someone else what hours you like to work isn't a choice you have to make.

When you acquired the job you were told when to be there, when you could go home and what the policies were pertaining to absences and time off. The odd thing is that, even after you've left that workaday world for the new one of self-employed entrepreneurship, your hours still aren't going to be a matter of your own choosing!

In our first segment I cautioned that you were losing one boss but gaining a whole bunch of new ones in the form of your customers. It will be those customers that will determine your working hours not your preferences! If you went to bed late one night or, more accurately, early one morning, and were awakened at 7:30 am by a customer demanding 10,000 widgets by half-past-nine the choice would be simple. You'd drag your bleary eyes and tired body down to the shop and start stacking cases of widgets out on the loading dock. That's called service. It's the sort of thing that your customer will vividly remember and no doubt tell other potential customers about!

In some cases the hours you will be working "go with the territory." If you become a franchisee your contract will often specify the hours and days your doors are to be open. Should you be fortunate enough to land a McDonald's franchise, for example, your location will operate the same standard hours as most of their locations do. Likewise, if you obtain a franchise to operate a donut business, you may find yourself open 24/7! This doesn't mean, of course, that you personally will be present at all times. It does mean, however, that you will be responsible for having the business open during the specified hours and, as well, will have to be on call in case of any emergency. It also means that you'll need to be adept at staffing the operation for some of your responsibilities will eventually be delegated to others. Further, don't forget that there are a multitude of tasks to be taken care of other than having the business up and running. You're required to do the paperwork (or make sure it is being done) do the cleaning-up, restocking, inventory and so on. Don't expect to be putting in less time than you did at your old job. You'll probably be putting in more!

Even if you're operating a distributorship or dealership, something you could conceivably run from home, your working hours won't be entirely your own to choose. Your customers will expect you to provide the product or service at their convenience not yours. In most cases you can expect to be working, or at least available, during standard business hours. In some businesses the same may hold true for weekends or, at the very least, a portion of them.

So, to sum up! If you have decided to become self-employed so you can sleep in every morning, or never miss a home game of your favourite local team, you're definitely taking the wrong path. Most entrepreneurs will tell you that they put in more, not less, time at their desks or behind their counters than they ever did when they were working for someone else. Thing is, they'll probably also tell you they don't mind because they genuinely enjoy what they're doing.