Should I take the job?

I was offered a position with a company that wants to get me into their financial advisor training program. The catch is that I will be an independent contractor and they will offer me no benefits. Is it bad to get involved in this? Also, if I decide to leave the company, what happens to all of the clients that I have built up? Can I take them with me?

look...this is a tough business. Speaking as someone who's been doing it full time for the last four years I will tell you it is tough. As a father, I would not want this for my kids, and I would talk my kids out of doing it. It takes a minimum of 5 years or longer to make a living. so in a sense its an endurance race and you're running till you're out of time or money.

Working as an independent contractor may sound appealing. It did to me, until my third year when I suffered a major heart attack at the age of 45. No benefits means no money when you're sick or not working for months like I did recovering from my heart attack. I saw my income drop by nearly half.
If you have questions about the business feel free to email me at rchechile@yahoo.com

I agree with the above post...this is an extremely hard business to get started in. Most of the major wirehouse firms (merrill, mssb, wells) will pay you a salary for 2+ years, provide benefits, etc...so there would need to be an extremely good opportunity at the independent firm you are referring to. What are you being offered?

ps..rchechile--sorry to hear about your health, the past few years have been extremely stressful in our business. Best wishes to you and your family.