Is entrepreneurship for you? Is now the time to break out on your own?
I am hearing questions like these a lot right now. And the answer is: definitely, maybe.
Regardless of the type of business you are launching, entrepreneurship isn’t for everyone. It requires passion, know how, and opportunity. It requires a strategy and great timing.
When this topic comes up in my coaching conversations, we explore the pros and cons of entrepreneurship, as well as the timing of starting a new business now. For example:
Cons: With unemployment claims at 30MM in the U.S. and unemployment dropping to 10.2% (16.5% factoring in part-time employees), there is still a lot of volatility in the market.
In the months of March and April the US economy lost more than 21MM jobs, and in May, June, and July, regained 9.3MM (about half of jobs lost). While this upward trend is good news, the question remains, what happens next? A lot depends on three things:
- The virus: While scientists are making great progress toward a vaccine, the number of new cases continues to grow.
- Consumer confidence and behavior: Some experts speculate that many people used the $1200 US stimulus check to pay-down debt, rather than stimulate the economy with new purchases.
- The government’s response: At the time of this writing, the U.S. government has not reached a consensus on a second stimulus bill. Of course, this is really only a piece of the puzzle in response to a global pandemic.
Pros: If you’re unemployed, with no indication that you’ll be returning to work any time soon, now is a great time to explore possibilities.
According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, when people have a greater amount of time to find the right position (with the security of un-employment benefits to sustain them), they find a better fitting job. Sometimes, this means creating a job perfectly suited for them, while solving a problem for their clients.
Many leaders, executives,, and managers secretly wish that they were self-employed. And some are even initiating these conversations with me.
Now may be the perfect time to examine your past career choices, explore today’s opportunities, and accept the reality that we can’t acquire more time. You see, when we acknowledge this, we open the window to options and opportunities.
Are You Ready for Entrepreneurship?
Ask yourself:
- What steps must I take to transition to entrepreneurship?
- Can I give myself permission to succeed, or fail?
- How does fear keep me in a reactive stance, constrained by outmoded routines?
- Am I content to live partially, or am I ready and willing to explore new ways of thinking and feeling?
- Can I gather the energy needed to realize my unlived potential?
- How can I take one small step?
Launching a successful business requires passion, know-how, and opportunity. It requires careful planning, and a bit of serendipity. I’ll dive in to this a bit more in my next posts.
In the meantime, what do you think? What thoughts, and questions, do you have about starting your own business? I’d love to hear from you. I can be reached here, on LinkedIn, or give me a call: 561-582-6060.
