Small businesses are an extremely important aspect of any economy and that will always hold true. Historically, they’ve provided the majority of all jobs available. It may seem foreboding today considering the number of jobs created by small businesses, less than a year old, decreased from more than 4.5 million in the late 1990s down to 2.5 million in 2010 (according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics – BLS.gov). Plus when this fact is combined with fewer new businesses being started, it might make you think going into business isn’t such a good idea.
Yet it was major firms, with 500 or more employees, that suffered the greatest net job losses. Not so much for small and medium sized firms which also are experiencing the most rapid recovery.
New and existing businesses are expanding because they introduce innovative practices to the marketplace. They aren’t stuck, like many established, large firms that remain stagnant in the ways they’ve been doing business for decades.
My hypothesis is that the media tongue-wagging about the current economy is shaking consumer and entrepreneurial confidence. People are holding back, afraid to jump into the game. Often they think it’s just not the “right time.”
If that’s what you think, let me tell you, there aren’t two “times” to start a business – there isn’t a right time and a wrong time. The right time is when you’ve decided you’re ready. Period.
Start. Do. Succeed.
According to FindLaw.com, 61% of American adults have thought about starting their own business, yet only about a third actually do it. 90% of those entrepreneurs choose to start their own business “to have more control over their future.” And that’s not likely to change.
I see entrepreneurs succeeding, far more often than not, when they concentrate on skills and experience they already possess, as opposed to going for something new. In fact, sticking with what you know reduces the risk of failure or loss by 50%.
Human capital is defined as “the abilities and skills of any individual, especially those acquired through investment in education and training, which enhance potential income earning.” In other words, your value is in what you know and marketing it.
You don’t have fixed potential, why settle for a fixed income? (You knew I was going to say that, didn’t you!) I’ve always been an advocate for fighting employment and underemployment by building your own business and continually moving up to the next level. That’s what it’s all about. Moving on up!
I’m not going to sugar-coat reality. Building your own business requires work and dedication. You won’t find me telling you to “follow your dreams and then you’ll get rich.” That’s nonsense. Marketability is the key to success. You have to be fully invested in building your business with your time, efforts and resources because success requires it. You will find it rewarding and fulfilling, but you’ll also find it arduous and, at times, something akin to a roller-coaster ride. That’s being truthful.
The “winning formula” resides within you, not outside. The business doesn’t make you successful, you make the business successful. The entrepreneur that takes action doesn’t want to watch others in the game, he or she wants to be IN the game!
What does the future look like for the entrepreneur?
The entrepreneurial spirit will never die, not in America or anywhere else in the word. Entrepreneurialism has no borders or limitations. The ever-growing class of entrepreneurs with good ideas and strong work ethics will continue without abatement as long as humankind exists.
The future is now. What are you waiting for?
