If the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, the path to becoming a successful entrepreneur starts with a simple idea.
Everyone dreams of one day becoming their own boss and having the power to answer to nobody in particular, along with the freedom to follow their unique vision of how things should be done. Becoming an entrepreneur is how you can get to that point, but you need an idea. In truth, this part is a lot easier than most suspect. Many people have business ideas every day. But only a select few have enough potential to legitimately act as the rock-solid foundation upon which an entire career can be built.
If you genuinely want to become your own boss, there are a few ideas that can act as starting points and are definitely worth exploring.
1. The World of Real Estate
One of the reasons real estate can be such an excellent option on your path to becoming your own boss is its versatility. Are you disinterested in more traditional real estate transactions? Consider flipping houses and focusing more on the rehabilitation side. Or, you could lease directly to tenants and generate a long-term consistent income for yourself.
If you want to get into the field but don’t necessarily have the upfront capital typically required, wholesale real estate is always an option. Here, you’ll act as the middleman between a buyer and seller. You get the property seller to agree to one price, a buyer to agree to a higher one, and you keep the difference as profit. You’re not actually buying anything, so there’s no money involved initially like there otherwise would be.
Regardless, real estate is a dynamic landscape that offers you a wide range of options regarding how and why you become your own boss.
2. Exploring E-Commerce
Another great option that can allow you to become your own boss has to do with the various e-commerce options that are out there. If you’ve ever had the urge to open up a store but wanted to avoid managing the day-to-day operations of a physical storefront, e-commerce is for you. Many people find success on sites like Etsy by opening their own online store to sell niche or otherwise unique products, many of which are homemade.
Regardless, depending on precisely what you want to sell to the masses, there is no shortage of platforms you can leverage to make it a reality.
3. The Path to Freelancing
Many people have found success over the last decade, in particular with offering their services in a freelance capacity. Indeed, this is a big part of the “gig economy” that came about thanks to the rise of platforms like Fiverr and others. Do you have a specialized set of skills that you’d like to be able to monetize? Rest easy knowing there is a platform for precisely that.
Maybe you enjoy being a “handyman” and would like to pick up some extra money by working around someone else’s house instead of yours. Perhaps you’re a full-fledged general contractor (or aspire to be one) and want to market your services. You may be a writer who wants to capitalize on your skills for independent projects. It doesn’t matter – so long as you’re willing to be proactive about always looking for that next job, freelancing can be a very rewarding way to work.
You can even take that willingness to write one step further and launch a content creation agency to call your own. This can be a great way to embrace your creativity and tap into the demand for digital marketing simultaneously.
4. Becoming a Consultant
Becoming a consultant is another viable way to become your own boss, particularly if you’ve always had a background in business that people respect. You could consult with the leadership at small organizations and offer expertise in a specific niche, for example. Young companies, in particular, often look for consultants to help fill in some skills gaps that they have at such an early stage in their lifecycle.
5. The Popularity of Subscription Box Services
Finally, you could launch your own subscription box service to capitalize on people’s love and affection for curated product offerings. You could partner with small vendors in your area to offer something unique to subscribers every month. Everything could fall under a particular theme, like different types of crafts or even seasonal goodies. Or, create a subscription box for specific kinds of products. Every month could be a new beer sample or a similar beverage from a local brewer or distillery.
Regardless, subscription boxes are a great way to be your own boss and generate recurring income for yourself. So long as your subscription is priced competitively and you’re genuinely offering something people can’t find anywhere else, they’ll be happy to keep coming back for more.
The Freedom of Being Your Own Boss
Ultimately, one of the most important things to understand about becoming your own business is that you answer to nobody. Everything you work so hard to achieve and all your successes will solely be attributable to you. They will be the product of your hard work and determination. But all the mistakes and failures that you experience will be your responsibility, too. Never forget that every successful entrepreneur you admire has a career history littered with both.
That is to say, it’s entirely possible to have a great idea for a business and still mess up the “running a business” part of what you’re doing. Even if you’re just a freelance worker, you’re still technically running a business and must deal with all this entails. Always make sure that you understand the situation you’re getting into and that you’re actually comfortable with what being your own boss really means. So long as your expectations are in order, you’ll enjoy all the benefits of this process with as few potential downsides as possible.
Featured image provided by Karolina Grabowska; Pexels; Thanks!
