So You Want Your Own Business….

I don’t blame you. Being an entrepreneur can be an awesome experience. I’ve been involved in entrepreneurial activities for about a dozen years now and can’t imagine working for someone else ever again.

The main motivation for me to own a business is “freedom.” Freedom to make my own choices and decisions, freedom from corporate rules and politics, and from the structure and routine that typically dictates in the corporate environment. The problem is, if you don’t like structure and routine it takes an enormous amount of discipline and sacrifice to run your own company. So be careful what you ask for!

Many of the entrepreneurs and solopreneurs who come to me for coaching chose to embark on their entrepreneurial ventures for reasons that are common to the creative, entrepreneurial mind. They want to make their own decisions, be accountable only to themselves, and make lots of money. Often, by the time they come to me they’ve learned that they don’t get to make all the decisions, they are accountable to the clients, and money – well, there’s less and less of it.

So what do you have to know before taking the leap to “freedom?” Certainly, it depends on the type of business you plan to start, but here are some basic questions that you may want to ask yourself.
-Do you have a minimum of one year’s “salary” set aside for yourself? (more if you’re opening a storefront or renting space.)
-Do you have a system in place for project management and have the organizational skills to manage your clients/customers?
-Do you have a business plan that includes projections and a budget for the first year of business?
-Will you be able to do it all alone? How many hours a day will you have to work to provide the service, track the jobs, make your product, market the company, and whatever else is necessary?
-What is your marketing plan? How much money do you have to implement it? Remember, the “build it and they shall come” theory is rarely accurate.
-Will you need employees now or in the future? What experience do you have managing people and do you enjoy it?
-Do you have a budget to allow for repairs, new equipment, back up systems, and other necessary growth?
-Do you possess the skills, diplomacy, and personality necessary to connect with the customer/client – even when they are unhappy? (Hey, it happens.)

If you’re not certain about these things, or they are overwhelming to you, please, please, please, hire a good business coach. This investment will pay for itself many times over as you embark on what may be a very exciting and profitable venture. Protect yourself and your investment by planning wisely and swallowing a dose of reality. That’s a big demand for those of us with that creative, entrepreneurial mindset but it’s also an example of the discipline that you will need to run your own business.