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I love working for myself.

In the late 1990s, I chose to leave a stable IT job to venture out on my own.

At the time, I was an IT Director for an investment bank.

The stress is overwhelming.

The hours are ridiculous.

After the 2008 financial collapse, most of my clients disappeared.

Some went out of business.

The rest stopped spending money on marketing (the kiss of death).

Luckily, I was able to land a full-time job in 2009 that lasted almost four years.

The company grew so fast during a horrible economy they received venture capital money.

Most of the marketing department was cut loose.

I was back on my own as my Ultimate Guide to Twitter for Business and Ultimate Guide to LinkedIn for Business books were released.

I love my freedom.

I love working from anywhere.

I love spending a month every year at Lake Tahoe skiing in the winter and beaching in the summer.

I love going for hikes in the middle of the day.

I loved being the only Dad driving on school field trips.

I loved coaching my kids' soccer, basketball, and baseball teams.

Working as an IT Director didn't let me have any freedom.

I was tied to my pager (then my cell phone).

Did I mention I love my freedom?

What freedom is missing from your life?

Ted?Prodromou, America’s Leading LinkedIn Coach, is the award-winning, best-selling author of Ultimate Guide to LinkedIn for Business and Ultimate Guide to Twitter for Business (Entrepreneur Press).

Ted?has been featured on?Entrepreneur.com,?Forbes.com, Twitter Revolution on CNBC, The New York Times,?HuffPost.com,?and many other popular websites.

Ted?is a social selling expert and the founder of Search Marketing Simplified, LLC, a full service social media marketing agency. The SMS team creates advanced LinkedIn and social media lead-generation campaigns for small to medium-sized businesses with over $100 million in revenue generated for their clients.

Get your free LinkedIn and social selling training at www.YourLinkedInCoach.com