The easiest routes to entrepreneurship

You might want to give up your high flying career for something that will give you more job satisfaction. There can’t be many more fulfilling ways to spend your days than by working for yourself. The route to entrepreneurship rarely runs smoothly and is fraught with obstacles that you have to overcome.

However, there are some easier paths to follow to get your foot through the startup door that should ease your transition from full time employee to entrepreneur. Take a look at these simple ways you might want to explore on your quest to work for yourself.

Get a ready made brand

While your ultimate ambition might be to own your own flagship store or brand, being able to franchise a business complete with loyal customer base already embedded and recognisable brand could be the simplest way to get your name noticed. Opening up another store for a well known eatery, retail establishment or gym gives you the luxury to hit the ground running. There may be some financial incentives to take on a business in this way. The only cons to such a business model is that you will have less influence to set prices, less freedom to work on marketing or branding and less ability to morph any business vision to be bespoke to the direction you wish to take your startup.

Start small

Even though you might want to build an empire of hair salons, a menagerie of toy shops or multiple offices specialising in tax services for IT contractors, you will need to set your ambitions a little smaller, at least to begin with. Consider keeping your overheads as low as possible. Begin by working from home. Setting up a small home office in your humble abode away from your brood can be the ideal way of negating the need for business premises. Only when you need to take on staff or need to meet clients more regularly do you need to consider moving your startup to an official office.

Hopefully, you will be able to take some useful contacts and clients with you when you go freelance, especially if you’re planning on sticking with the industry in which you’ve cut your teeth. With word of mouth, social media buzz and effective marketing you can then extend your customer base and take on more staff as needed.

Don’t go it alone

Two heads really are better than one. If you have a close pal or an acquaintance who you trust, it might be a worthwhile consideration to go into business with them. The skills that you lack may be filled by their skill set and vice versa. Thrashing out ideas can be fun, exciting and enthuse you to write a business vision that sees your fledgling startup a roaring success within a couple of years. Having two minds working on a common goal will be beneficial in terms of funding options, finding your ethos and industry ambition.

Becoming an entrepreneur is a dream of many but realised only by a few. Use this guide to make your route to setting up a business just that little bit easier.