Being Your Own Boss

Starting one's own business, big or small, is a big step in life which should not be taken lightly. Quitting a job requires you to step out of your comfort zone(s), leaving the security of a regular job, creating your own career path, confront uncertain financial circumstances and for most parts of it, a decision you take that is hard to reverse.

The romance of owning and running a business is hard to resist. You answer to no one but yourself, you have absolute control over your time, working as you wish and never need to fill up an annual leave form or request for a holiday, the adulation you will receive for being a successful entrepreneur and the financial success you create out of your own bare hands and ideas.

However, what goes behind the smallest success of the biggest brands you have ever heard of include a great deal of planning, forecasting, understanding the needs of others, fights, defeats and brutal failures which can break down the strongest characters in life.

So, before you take that giant leap of faith, understand the valid reasons, what is needed, whether you have it and the joys (and pains) of being an entrepreneur.

To start with, there is a slight difference between being a business owner (entrepreneur) and being self-employed.

One can be self- employed, meaning being responsible towards one's income, without starting a business. You can do this through an organization, like a real estate agency, an insurance agency or a travel agent, and work at your own pace without reporting directly to a superior or a boss. You are still bound by general rules and representation comes at a price and qualification. This arrangement allows you to tap on a market brand and share resources with others at a huge discount. Your start-up cost is controlled.

As a business owner, you start from scratch. Costs to you start from the time you quit your job. There are incorporation fees, insurance, staff salaries, provident fund contributions, office rentals, rental deposits, inventories, shipping, warehousing, marketing, distribution channels costs, office setups, market surveys, and after becoming profitable, taxes must be paid.

Building a brick and mortar is an even more daunting task. There are approvals, guidelines and a massive renovation cost waiting for you.

So, before you take that fateful plunge, consider if you have what it takes to go the self-employed way and be a business owner, or work and start a small offline or online business on the side to decide later if it works out for you.

The inspiration towards entrepreneurship, self employment and a business start-up begins with an idea. This idea is embedded within our desire to start something, a burning passion to turn a concept into reality, a need to improve a current condition or a vision to see benefits in the deliverance of results to others. Besides this desire, it must be accompanied by the discipline to carry out a mission and the drive to maintain the pace and improve the overall experience. This quality in you is found in the Direct Officer (D O) or the Seven Killing Star (7 K) in your destiny chart. Having them in you provides a certain level of sequence and methodology. Not having them does not mean you are not cut for business because there are others that you can leverage on for success.

There must be deliberation and thoughts to process before you resign from a job. You need to know and be sure that there is either another (better) job waiting for you or you are ready to do without one. This state of preparedness is are found in your resource stars, namely, Direct Resource (D R) and Indirect Resource (I R). Resources form the support system, the human capital, financial assistance, your values, your expertise and moral obligations. They provide comfort and security for long term plans and vital abilities to stay relevant in the world of business. Your banker, angel investor, adviser and shareholders are examples of resources needed to start a business.

To embark on your business journey takes a strong mind and a social fabric that binds and believes in you as a leader. Friends, family members, community, society and common groups for the Friends Star (F R) while the Rob Wealth Star (R W), as sinister as it sounds, is the foundation of followers and clients who appreciate your products and services.

The output stars, Eating God (E G) and the Hurting Officer (H O) are the results of your capabilities and talents. They are the ones that showcase your opportunities and turn them into sales and profits that add to the bottom-line. Should you have the Eating God star, your identity and image gets into full gear and you are likely to produce fine quality work that are welcomed by select groups. Hurting Officer stars are the ones required when it comes to urgency, public performances and sales pitches that know no limits. Both are equally effective, though in different situations, but must be present in most selling processes.

Driven by the Wealth stars indicate a strong link to entrepreneurship in its fine form. You do things for a purpose and that usually point to a direct benefit or a financial profit. Direct Wealth stars (D W) are above the line results of producing and turning a product or service into a sale and collection of monetary returns. Direct Wealth stars in you make you focus on time sensitive deliveries and proper discharge of responsibilities. They are critical in the dealings with official jobs such as a government tender or turnkey projects with strict timelines. Indirect Wealth stars (I W) are the maverick wheeler-dealers. They are the ones that will spur you to spend in order to achieve, something that many will disagree. However, the presence of the Indirect Wealth stars have been so attached to many huge successes that it is hard to ignore that this is the one star one will hope for in the quest to start a business.

Are you at a crossroad to quit your job? Do you have a business idea that has been boiling over in your head for the longest time but unsure if it is time to launch it? Are you being called and invited to a business venture and unsure if it will work in your favour?

Find out if you have what it takes to be your own boss in your destiny chart at www.hofs.sg/bazi-calculator. Drop us your questions at enquiry@hofs.sg and we will answer you in confidence.

The Best of You is in Your Bazi Chart

Every individual is capable of great development. Besides our physical well-being, there is our will, faith, belief systems, energy and humanity that will endear us through much in life.

How many times have you wished that you are 'better' than the nearest competitor, richer than the neighbor next door and better liked than your friends ?

Nature has blessed us with great talents and abilities and yet few of us truly make full use of these gifts in us to realize our full potentials. While not everyone of us will become the best nor the most adored, one should not bemoan and complain for the lack of opportunities given to them.

You will always be Yourself. Your success is a personal responsibility and shall be the result only when you bring out your personal best. The question remains - How do I make use of what I have and turn them into tools of execution that will lead me to personal achievements, financial success, social recognition and a personal elevation of status ?

The answer from a metaphysics point of view is the awareness of your five most powerful stars endowed upon you and how you breathe life into them so that you attain more with less unnecessary efforts.

To know what your five stars in your life, plot your destiny chart using the BaZi calculator www.hofs.sg/bazi-calculator and you will land up with this chart.

These five qualities are there for your taking. You will see the them as Noblemen | Intelligence | Peach Blossom | Sky Horse | Solitary. Each with its unique qualities and strengths for you to leverage in different situations in life.

Noblemen are stars and energies that provide you with the necessary resources, assistance, motivation, connections and reasons for you to succeed. Having the Noblemen star in your favor accelerates your progress. Noblemen come in all forms and may appear during the most unexpected situations. Having the Noblemen star in your chart in the various location in your chart can lead to different outcomes. In Ethan's case, his Noblemen star (Rat) is found in the Year branch. This suggests that his success can be driven by others who are distant in relation to him or do not interact with him often but can make a positive difference in his life when it is activated.

The Intelligence Star is a sign of street smartness. This is vital for quick responses to immediate problems and crisis. This star makes a person think and figure out how best to deal with others in the most effective way. Having this star in your chart defies conventional wisdom that one needs to follow strict rules and methodologies to get ahead in life. People with the Intelligence Star tends to think creatively and just know how to handle situations where others ignore and fail.

The Peach Blossom is often and broadly taken as a 'star attracting opposite sex'. In reality, this is a star of attraction to all beings. Relationship matters are the main staple for people with such a star in their chart. They tend to draw people and when utilized in the right ways and intention, the Peach Blossom star in you brings people together for a common cause that usually benefit you.

You will need the Sky Horse to bring you fruition and results in a fast fashion. This is the star of movement and mobility. Anything fluid and in execution represents the Sky Horse. This is the one star that propels you to the realms of high achievements. The purpose of the Sky Horse star in your favor is to kick-start a brilliant idea and to 'short-circuit' the system so that results becomes evident earlier in order to give you a sense of direction.

While the namesake of the Solitary Star seems to link one to loneliness and seclusion, this is the one that is often overlooked and untapped. If one has this star in his chart, he is likely to operate on his own, within his scope, at his pace and much at peace. The Solitary Star offers you the ability to focus, think, derive and analyse a situation better than the rest and especially in times when everyone else is rushing the wrong way. The power of this star cannot be underestimated and when activated, provides you the clarity and calm required to turn any crisis into an opportunity.

If you find that you do not have them in your chart, don't fret. We shall discuss in our next articles where to locate them and how to activate them.

Please leave us your comments.

Tokyo Broadcasting system

Mysteries of the World , a prime time program which explores the wonders and practices of different cultures and heritage.

Filming included the exploration and beginnings of Feng Shui in Singapore.

Suntec City, Orchard Road and parts of Geylang.

With the filming crew from Japan.