Bill has a very good point, you need to run a small business. That will be 60% of your time, actual welding will be 20% max. I have been a welding professional for 10 years. I have been doing the mobile/ fab shop welding for 6 years . The best thing I can tell you is to keep your head up cuz it will take many months to get enough business to support you. Also, don't turn down anything that you know you can do, no matter how small (or big). Just remember that you have 1/2 of the overhead that big operations have. Get the price you want, don't try to get rich off the first job, but get enough to cover you. Phone book ads are a good place to start getting your name out. Next thing is to go out and solicit work. This is by far the hardest part of running your own operation. You need everyone to know what you do, then they need to find your # easily, then you have to be ready when they call. Big operations like mines, quarries, factories, railroads, excavators, ect. all break down and need things fixed NOW. You want them calling you, and you need to respond. That's where you get a good name and word of mouth. Drop me a line if you want to get more into it: mdgwelding@yahoo.com
Good Luck
MDG