You’ve decided to finally start a business. You’ve told your friends about it, you’ve committed in your own mind to ‘just do it’. Now that the lingering effects of your decision have worn off, what next?
Fortunately, you do not have to do everything at once and you can keep earning your current income as you begin laying the groundwork. Leaving a W2 job can be a daunting thought. Want to know what it takes to be proactive and strategic in your transition?
Here are the 5 best ideas we know to motivate you out of your W2 job. Oh, and this is key: you do not have to do it alone.
Be proactive:
Decide on a pro-active, self-confident mindset. Look in the mirror and talk to yourself as if you’ve already succeeded. In a recent conversation with an entrepreneur we know, she said, “I gave my decision to quit my job a voice by saying out loud, repeatedly, that I was going to make a change in my life. Every time I said it, and heard myself saying it, I began to believe it was possible.”
Start a business:
You will learn more from this step than any other. Get out there and start doing it. A good home based business or network marketing company is a great place to start as the capital risk is minimal. Or, take those skills, passions and talents you possess today and monetize what you already love doing.
We have a good personal friend who loved to go to trade shows of all kinds and in particular she loved going to jewelry and craft fairs. After spending quite a bit on beautiful hand made jewelry it finally occurred to her she could take her passion for these impressively beautiful items and turn it into a business for herself over time. Interestingly, I first met her at a women’s web design seminar where she was selling her handmade jewelry. What an extraordinarily creative place to market her business!
Start with what you know and “course correct” as you go. If you wait until you think you know everything before you begin, you’ll never actually start anything.
Strategize:
You can’t go from a paycheck every two weeks to nothing overnight but don’t let that paralyze you from taking action. A 9-5 job limits the time you have to spend on other endeavors. Be willing to sacrifice evenings and weekends for a while.
Develop a skill set as you go. Communication, negotiation, teamwork, problem solving will all be tools you add to your tool belt. Remember, practice makes perfect. Inactivity leads to little or nothing.
A friend of ours decided to leave her job as a welder for over 20 years. Her first step to starting her own business was to work for a friend in the cleaning business where she learned the ropes and, more importantly, learned how she could improve on her friends business. After 6 months she started her own company and promoted it by highlighting the things she offered to her customers that other companies wouldn’t, or couldn’t. Where those companies fell short she excelled, and her customers knew it.
Connect with other people:
Don’t “go it alone”. You can overcome the fear of not knowing it all by seeking others who do. Find a mentor who has already realized success as an entrepreneur and ask for help. Start or join a mastermind group or club of like-minded individuals working towards similar goals and objectives.
Start thinking like an entrepreneur:
Be open to risk. Be willing to take a chance. Look for niche markets and business opportunities that others fail to see. Search for new ideas and innovation. Do a search online for entrepreneurs. You can narrow your search to ‘best young entrepreneurs’ or ‘best entrepreneurs over 50’, or ‘top entrepreneurs of 2009’… you get the idea. You’ll be amazed at the types of businesses, both online and brick and mortar, which have become huge successes.
Theresa Bradley-Banta, co-creator of Big Fish Tops Dogs, is a musician, award winning graphic artist, blogger and owner of multiple businesses. You can follow her on twitter @bigfishtopdogs.
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