Being self employed brings with it a multitude of dilemmas, do I increase my prices, should I advertise, have I taken on too much, do I wish I had more work, and there is nobody to share this with. All self employed industries bring a stigma with them, sharing productive times and good profit margins sounds a little like boasting and can sit uncomfortably mid air in a conversation when with peers who are not doing so well. The pressure then becomes apparent for everyone to be doing well, back slapping and sighs of relief, is the reality the same in the cold light of day.
It is a fact that new businesses in the UK do not survive as well as in other countries, we are considered to be recovering from one of the worst periods of recession for some time, so how does the fledgling business compete. Commonly by dropping prices, running offers and sometimes supplementing income with a second or third job.
However I read a post that inspired this blog, culling the register for driving instructors, yet the odds are not on the side of longevity for many who are new to this particular career, unsurprisingly that is a common pattern amongst all trades where training exclusive of career are regular practice.
Plumbers, electricians, driving instructors, painters and decorators, plasterers, brick layers, to name just a few train specifically with the intention of being a sole trader, the business may grow, after all we all have to start somewhere but initially it is about making a living and developing a reputation, so why are so many held back by their limiting beliefs.
There are two trains of thought here, the first being a lack of willingness to diversify particularly if the educator painted a particular picture of life on the job the other being concerned that too much promotion could result in an unmanageable work load.
So the driving instructor, where does new work come from? Word of mouth? As a newbie that can take a year, how do you pay the bills meantime, what if you are predominantly shy and the thought of standing outside a school or college handing out cars leaves you cold, then maybe thinking outside of the box is the first place to go. The green badge is not just about teaching learners, many organisations looking for in house trainers require a green badge holder.
The future for driving instructors is rosy, formalisation and of course the anticipated privatisation of the DVSA, after all that was the whole purpose of the merger, with the excellent record of VOSA under the control of Mr People's the DSA suddenly became a salable item over night, there is a huge amount of job satisfaction, flexibility and potential attached to this profession. Like the plumbers, electricians etc, there is work to be found it's thinking outside of the box that finds it.
Can the cheap lesson culture continue, of course it can, whether it will is debatable because price fixing may not be legal but there is nothing wrong with the RRP so we move into guidelines, quality control among others. Does the provider of cheap lessons want to work twice as hard to earn a living, or would they like their hands to be tied by a price structure, surely yes, what stops an ADI demanding a fair days pay for a fair days work?
Price structure, SRP, RRP, when lessons will be sold as specific courses, this is not intensive courses, but the block booking style of other EU countries. This guarantees commitment from the client, eliminates cancellation notice as the fee has been paid already, and the likelihood of chopping and changing for deal chancing gone. However, it would appear that these measures are seen in countries where the driving instructor is seen as a professional providing a valuable service, until these measures come to the UK then the instructor is fighting an uphill battle until all of this is in place.
If you would like to see formalisation to mirror other EU countries, email me at centraldt@hotmail.co.uk and I can add your thoughts to the data collection.
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