How to Become an Entrepreneur

According to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2000, out of every eight adults in Brazil, one is an entrepreneur. Closely following Brazil is the United States where one in ten adults is an entrepreneur. Not far behind the two leaders are Australia (one in 12), Germany (one in 25), United Kingdom (one in 33), Finland (one in 50) and Japan (one in 100).

With respect to economic growth and job creation, entrepreneurship is considered to be a dominant contributing factor. Owing to its contribution in the economic well-being of a country, governments throughout the world are framing policies and devising strategies to make the environmental conditions as lucrative for an entrepreneur as possible. In fact, this is the right time to become an entrepreneur, but the biggest question that must be impinging your mind is how to become an entrepreneur.

Need for Self Assessment

If the entrepreneurship bug has already bitten you, then before taking a plunge, it would be worthwhile to wear your thinking cap and do a bit of self-assessment. This will help you to determine whether you have all the requisite qualities to become an entrepreneur. Ask yourself the following questions:

Do I have the courage to take the initiative?

As an entrepreneur you would have to amass all the required resources as capital, labor, land, etc. to kickstart your business venture. You would have to organize yourself, manage your resources meticulously, and painstakingly follow all the details to ensure the success of your business.

How well can I get along with different people?

For the sake of the well-being of his business, a business owner has to establish and maintain healthy relationship with a wide range of people like bankers, lawyers, consultants, accountants, customers, staff members, etc. All these people have varying personalities. An astute entrepreneur is one who has a lot of patience and knack to handle these people in the best interest of his business.

Do I have the ability to make sound decisions?

When you own a business venture, then you are expected to make decisions from time to time. Decision-making is never an easy task. At times, decisions have to be taken quickly, independently and under pressure. Your decisions are important because they usually set the future course of your enterprise. Therefore, you should have the ability to make good decisions in a short duration of time.

Do I have the mental and physical stamina to run my business?

As the owner of your business, you would be working 24-hours a day, 7-days a week and 365-days a year. Sometimes you would be the only one working. Do you have the physical stamina to endure all the hardships? Apart from physical stamina, some mental endurance is also required. You would be at the head of things; therefore you would be expected to be emotionally strong. You should have the ability to instill confidence, professionalism, optimism and competitiveness in your co-workers. You would have to learn to conceal your emotions, inhibitions and apprehensions. Your passion and entrepreneurial spirit will encourage your subordinates to work hard for the success of your enterprise.

Do I have that entrepreneurial persistence?

Running a business is never an easy task. You are bound to stumble over lots of obstacles like legal hassles, resource shortage, customer dissatisfaction, colleague incorporation, etc. Here the never-give-up attitude is required to root out all these obstacles.

If you have given a positive reply for each of the above questions, then you can surely become an entrepreneur.

Gauge the Economic Environment

The next thing that you should do is to assess the economic environment. The economic landscape has a dynamic nature; therefore it is essential to study the economic trends at the local, national and global level. This investigation will help you to devise strategies to protect your business from the impact of changes in these trends.

Find Out Your Options

Once you have thoroughly studied the economic environment, it’s time to track down a business venture that will bring profit for you. Most of the time business ventures are a replica of existing business models. If you want to walk through the tried and tested aisle, then an acquisition or buyout would be a better option for you. However, if you want to create your own unique niche, then an online business venture would be the best option for you. Online business allows you to be a part time entrepreneur. In simple words, you don’t have to leave your 9-to-5 job to become an entrepreneur.

Create a Business Plan

After you have decided the kind of business you want to pursue, the next step would be to create a business plan. A good business plan will compel you to exploit the business opportunity you have identified in a holistic manner. Creation of a business plan will force you to conduct meticulous analysis on a wide range of issues as competition, customer specifications, pricing, distribution, etc. In end, you will know exactly how to run your business venture successfully.

Implementation of Business Plan

Unless you take action, becoming an entrepreneur will always remain a distant dream. Hence, implementation of business plan is essential. Initially, you might face failures, don’t allow failures to bog down your entrepreneurial spirit. Instead consider them as an opportunity and start afresh.

The allure of becoming an entrepreneur is certainly irresistible. However, don’t venture into this arena simply because you’re dissatisfied with your job. The right decision would be is to find a better job. Nevertheless, after carefully considering all that has been said above, if you still feel that you want to become an entrepreneur, then take the bull by the horns, and create something that is completely mind-boggling.