Why employment again?

I’ve been thinking of what to say if an interviewer asks me why I’m seeking employment back in the government now after a decade of self-employment and running my own business.

I want to be honest and upfront, instead of the usual polished white lies most people will tend to say (the best is “Where do you see yourself in 5 years?” lol).

So here goes:

Push factors

• The consulting market had been bad, and the trajectory isn’t looking promising either, with many design teams going in-house.
• Overall outlook for the economy isn’t rosy either. Inflation is up, costs of living are rising faster than our wages. It’s probably the worst period of time to run a business, in the decade I was in business.

Pull factors

• I thought back about why I went self-employed in the first place. Because I had a dream of starting my own business, and having the freedom and autonomy to create products. After slightly over a decade, it’s fair to say I’ve done all that. I set out to achieve that dream, and I’d done it.
• I’m in a different life stage than I was before, when I started my business. I got a family to feed, and elderly parents to care for. Lifestyle wise, I’m being pulled into a more stable rhythm. I want to be a good husband, father and son. So going back to a stable job will help with that.
• I’ve always enjoyed designing for the public good. I get much meaning and purpose from it. I’d stuck with it for a decade, and despite shiny new things from indie hacking, I’m still here. Even in my spare time, I volunteer my time to create tech for good products. So that passion to give back, to have a larger purpose and greater good behind my work, not going away anytime soon. So going back to gov design feels natural.

Truth is, I’m happy to have survived last year as an indie hacker and not having to go back to employment. And if I have the resources, I would love to stay self-employed. But money is running out. So I’m open to options now, even while I want to keep indie hacking.

So an ideal situation would be to go back to a fulltime job where the organisation allows me to continue with my indie projects as side hustles. I’m willing to work harder in early morning, evenings or weekends to make my indie products work out. And maybe with the stress of feeding the fam removed out of the equation, I might feel more clear-minded to do a better job at indie hacking perhaps.

Who knows what will happen this year. We’ll see…