I spoke with Andy, a friend of mine, over the weekend during a downpour of rain while camping* and he was giving me some feedback on Ditch the Office.  He wasn’t sure if some of the posts were relevant to how I was going to ditch the office.  I think I’d agree with him to a certain degree.  I suppose I’m struggling on two fronts:

1. I struggle with creative writing.  It takes me forever to write something that I’m happy with so it takes forever to get content up on Ditch the Office.  I really want to get better at this.  A glass of wine is helping this post.  Enough said.
2. I’ve got a list as long as my arm about the lessons I’ve learnt so far through my experiences so I’m also struggling to work out in which order I should publish them.

So in line with Andy’s feedback, I’m going to make a greater effort to make the posts here relevant so that they’re both inspiring and informative.  Here’s my request.  The following is my current list of posts that I plan to write.  If you’ve got any preference on the ones you’d like to see sooner rather than later, let me know and I’ll prioritise them.  I’d also be grateful for any other topics that you’d be interested in.  I’m sure that I’d at least have an opinion on whatever it is

• The Bookshelf – I think this is pretty self-explanatory.  I plan to list out the books I’ve got on my shelf.  It’s really to provide a list of the books that I’m interested in reading that will eventually become reviews on Ditch the Office.
• To Prototype Or Not, That is the Question – I want to run through the experiences I’ve recently been through with ‘furcle’ and the thoughts I have about another project that I’m currently working on in relation to developing a product prototype.
• Show Me the Money – I hate Jerry McGuire, especially that cute little kid with the glasses that wins over Tom Cruise.  Anyway, this post is about a discussion that I had with Ajay the other day about pricing relating to the aforementioned other project
• Let’s Do the Congo – Anyone familiar with the congo chain?  It’s sure to appear wherever there’s a large gathering of happy people who have usually had a couple of vino’s and are hitting the dance floor – the logical thing is to grab some hip and Da Da da da Da Kick!  It’s just one after another and it’s the same with the business ideas.  You need a pipeline of ideas I’ve been told so that’s what I’ve got.  I’ve found that I’m struggling with working on four concurrent projects and planning many more ideas besides.
• What Am I Really Doing? – Believe it or not, I am actually working on Ditching the Office AND doing something for myself so I wanted to give you a better idea of what I’m actually working on.  I’m still a little sensitive about what I’ll publish until there is a business operating (hey, I’m being honest) but I do want to give further details and one thing I have learnt is that you can’t start a business without talking to as many people as possible.  And speaking of which…
• Poker Face -
• Inspire Me! – What is it that is worth working on?  I’ll humour you with my approach to identifying what it is that inspires me.
• Can’t Someone Else Do That? – Outsource baby, yeah!  Don’t let a lack of skills, time or desire to do something hold you back – I’m not!
• Lifestyle Guru – The end game for all of this.  I’m trying to design/engineer/architect my lifestyle (and my beautiful wife’s).  There’s plenty of things we want to do in our life and working for someone else is going to take up too much time.

I’ve got some other topics as well but if you’ve read this far then you’ve done well!  Either way, this is a request for you to let me know if there’s ideas that you’re interested in reading about.

What I also plan to do is try to post my activities and achievements for the week gone by.  I’m also going to try and provide some more information about my different streams of activities.

* We went camping at The Basin located in the Kurringai Chase National Park.  It appears that it rained the most there across all of Sydney over Saturday night (check out the rainfall for Avalon).  Needless to say there was some tent flooding that resulted in some weary people the next day.

I’ve decided that I should put up a page with links to resources that I’m collecting along the way.  I’ll update it whenever I refer to something in a post.  If you think that there is anything you’d like to add or recommend, then please let me know and I’ll put it on the list.

It’s taken forever to get this post together. I’ve been busy, but I don’t think that that’s the entire reason it’s taken me so long. I’ve just struggled with getting my thoughts in order. I think getting a business partner is, for me at least, one of the most important things that can kick start your business adventures or give it a good kick in the you know where. I guess that means that you should choose carefully.

To be blunt, I’m interested in shoring up my weaknesses and sharing the load. I have plenty of flaws, just like the next person and any typical human being. As most of the readers in the early days of Ditch the Office already know me, there’s probably a few nodding heads at the moment. Anyway, let’s get into it.

Why get a partner?
These are probably pretty obvious.  Remember though, no stupid questions.  I think that getting a business partner is a good idea for the following reasons:

• Greater than the sum – corny and clichéd, I know, but it’s actually true when you can find someone to work with where you can come to a better result than either of your could come to individually. Two heads are better than one.
• Spread the workload – enough said really. Two pairs of hands are better than one. This is especially important if you’re working your day job at the same time.
• Spread the skills – Fill the gaps. I know I’m not an expert at everything. I want someone else who can balance my skills and weaknesses.
• Generate ideas – This is really important for me. I find that the ideas flow when you have someone to discuss them with.
• Motivation – You know how you’ll go running if someone is waiting for you? Same deal applies here.
• It’s fun to share – Yep, warm and fuzzy. Sharing the experience with someone else is more rewarding.

I wrote this piece and then decided to see if there were some other opinions out there.  I particularly liked the reasons for getting a business partner here.

How to get a partner?
There’s no rocket science here.  Get out there!

• Networks – Yep, speak to people about your interest. This is the way that I’ve found a few people that are interested in some self employed adventures. You’ll find them in the weirdest place – maybe even at home! Now, I’m not the world’s most effective socialite but I understand the power of networks. I’m working on getting better at networking as relationships make the world go round, not money. That just comes after (maybe).
• Entrepreneur groups – Find yourself an entrepreneur group or network. I’ve put some links at the bottom that may be of assistance.
• Perseverance – I kept looking until I found one. Pretty straightforward really. I think I’m probably annoying a lot of my friends as I’m always on the lookout for opportunities now. I’m the same with being open to trying to get stuff done with other people.

What does it mean to have one?
I’m in the throes of pursuing a few opportunities at the moment, each with a business partner or two, and I’m not going to pretend that I’ve run into all the situations. I see it this way – you’ve got to have trust and respect in any healthy relationship and this is no different. All the relationship counseling you’ve ever heard on TV with those neurotic America sitcoms applies here too.

Some other things to consider about having a partner:

• Making sure you’re both in it for the same reason or, at a minimum, for the same outcome.
• Plan for when you’re not going to be partners. I think there is something called a buy-sell agreement that is basically your exit strategy from any business endeavor with a business partner.

This is probably the area that I’m least aware of at this stage. I’m sure that I have plenty to learn. At this stage I’m only aware of some of the horror stories like bullying, unable to get your, fraud etc etc. I think that the benefits I’ve listed above are more than enough to warrant getting into it up to your neck with someone else.

And what about me?
And* good on you for asking.  I’m taking the easy way out on this one and I’ll justify it with a “everyone’s different and your personal circumstances will guide your own decisions and choices”. Soft huh? If you’ve got any form of self-awareness then you should probably be able to tell if you’ll play nice with someone else. If you’re greedy, for example, you may elect to save others from the wrath of your green streak.
Resources (I spent 23 seconds on Google)

• http://www.tie.org/
• http://www.tenonline.org/
• http://entrepreneur.meetup.com/cities/au/sydney/

*On a side note, being the English language giant that I am, I do know from my grade 8 English education that you can’t start a sentence with “And”. I find that it’s interesting to write that way sometimes and recently I heard a great piece on the use of language by Stephen Fry (British comedian and of Fry and Lawry fame – Lawry went on to be House, you know the annoying Doctor with a chip so big on his shoulder it makes him limp?). And as they say “But I digress!”. I’m sure you’re not allowed to start a sentence with “But” either.

What would any self-respecting, financial freedom inspired blog be these days without the obligatory review of Robert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad Poor Dad?  I don’t really have a witty answer so it seems that I should support the status quo.  Kind of.  Rather than give a blow by blow, I think it would be good to give a view of the lasting memories that I have.

I read Rich Dad Poor Dad a couple of years ago while on holidays in China.  The book is written as something like the internal dialogue of Robert as he learnt, from a young age, the thought processes, skills and attitudes necessary to become rich.  The learnings are all conveyed through the story his experiences with the attitudes and help of his Rich Dad (father of his friend) and his Poor Dad (Biological father).  I could be wrong here about the internal dialogue, which is both possible and likely, but it has been two years.  Either way, I remember it being an engaging read.

I had already begun this “I can’t continue working in an office like this” journey at the time but I really had no idea on what I was going to do to sort it out.  I’ll be honest.  I really enjoyed Rich Dad Poor Dad.  I really enjoyed it in the “I read it in a day and a half, found it engaging and took something away all at the same time!” way.  Since then I’ve wondered on a regular basis why I enjoyed it and I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s the way the book gives you a great sense of opportunity.  It looks to change your perspective in a very simple way.  It is in essence a motivational book.  It helped get me off my proverbial to start to act on my desires.  Big call huh?

Some friends who’ve read Rich Dad Poor Dad don’t like it.  They think it’s either:

• Rubbish because it’s simple
• Rubbish because it doesn’t prescribe how to get rich
• Rubbish because of the whole play between the Rich Dad and Poor Dad (you”ll need to read it to get this part)
• Rubbish because they don’t like capitalism

If I were not to take the book as a motivational, then I would have a few of issues (read points for discussion with the Robert) and would put these at the top of the list:

• The irony that you’re lining Robert’s pockets by buying the book is not lost on me.
• If I remember right about the story being told from the perspective of a young Robert, I don’t really know why he wasn’t applying the rich attitudes and practices up to the point when he hit rock bottom at mid life.

I think that it probably is a rubbish book from a point of view of getting great tips running to get rich.  If read as a motivational book, I think it is both great and potentially very powerful in the sense that it can change your perspective.  So with that in mind I’d recommend you read it.  You can pick up Rich Dad Poor Dad up through Amazon.