The single-person firm, however, isn't a universal solution. Gradually we went from one employee to two, then two to three, and so on. It's been a roller coaster. Paul Guertin knows all about handling growth. Though his company has undergone substantial expansion since it's inception in 1991, Guertin stresses that when you start your own business, things rarely go according to plan.
Growth comes in a series of spurts, as a general rule.
It's hardly ever steady. When asked to give advice to other AEC professionals who've been toying with the notion of opening their own firm, our six brave entrepreneurs offered similar sentiment. If you have a reasonable base of knowledge and good intentions, you can succeed. Don't think its going to happen overnight. Be prepared for long hours, be prepared for disappointment, be devastated when you lose a job for about five seconds, and just don't let it all wear you down.