Ready To Become Your Own Boss This Year? Here’s How!
While the idea of starting your own company might be incredibly appealing, it’s not something that can happen without a bit of work. Even if you are sick and tired of that long commute to work for a grumpy boss who doesn’t seem to appreciate you, becoming your own boss takes time, work, and careful planning. That being said, if you’re ready to become your own boss, this isn’t a dream you need to put on hold forever – it’s time to get the ball rolling! Here are three tips to help you become your own boss within the next 12 months:
1. Figure out what you want to do
The first step in becoming your own boss is to determine what you want to do. In order to do this, you should look at your personality, your inherent strengths, your interests and your experience. For example, if you are an introvert, owning a sales-centric business that requires you to make a lot of phone calls and chase down clients to give them a hard sell might not be the best option for you. On the other hand, if you are highly motivated and love being creative,consulting or contract work might be a perfect option. If you liked your previous line of work but just don’t want to work in someone else’s office anymore, maybe there is a way for you to offer similar services. Be honest with yourself and your abilities, and create a list of business ideas.
2. Figure out your finances
Another incredibly important step to take before opening your own business is to take a hard look at your current financial situation. As Investopedia notes, you will need to determine how much time your new line of work will need to eventually generate income on a regular basis to cover both your business costs and your regular bills. Sit down with a pad of paper, a sharp pencil and your bills and determine your personal finances, and then look at how much you need to launch your own business. If you dream of becoming a freelance photographer and you already own a fantastic camera, you might not have as many start up costs as someone who wants to open a neighborhood coffee shop.
3. Give it a try — part-time
If you can swing it, it might be a good idea to start moonlighting at your new line of work while you continue to hold down your regular job. Start out by setting aside a couple of evenings a week and at least one weekend day to focus on your new company. Use this time to reach out to potential customers, work on your new website, and — in a perfect world — start doing some small jobs for clients.
Depending on the line of work you are getting into, there are resources that can help you find leads to clients; for example, if you dream of becoming an insurance agent and opening your own small office, websites like QuoteWizard offer semi-exclusive and exclusive leads that will help you to establish your client base.
As you start to gather clients and work, you might find it’s pretty tiring balancing two jobs and all of your new responsibilities. Just remind yourself that it’s all part of your goal to become your own boss, and once you have your new company pretty well developed and a reasonably steady amount of work, you can give your regular boss your two-weeks’ notice and jump into your new business with both feet.