By Farrah Gray
NNPA Columnist
Recent news headlines have been dominated by tales of the recession and continuing economic woe. This week, the Federal Reserve (June 22, 2011) announced slower growth in the U.S. economy anticipated focusing on high unemployment and rising inflation. Notably, however, the Fed Committee will monitor the economic outlook and financial developments and will act as needed to best foster maximum employment and price stability.
The bleak economic outlook adds up to increasingly troubling statistics at a time when individuals have fewer financial options at their disposal.
Unquestionably, great emotional and psychological upheaval result from the loss of one’s home and job. The fact that the loss is through no fault of one’s own does little to assuage feelings of abandonment, rejection, and disbelief.
Rationally, people understand that the economic downturn and its consequences are beyond their control.
The bright lining to this unfortunate situation is that it affords you the luxury of taking control of your financial destiny and creating a different outlook for yourself. Focus on a change of job or career, with the possibility of reversing your current fortunes and ultimately making yourself recession-proof.
Men and women of an entrepreneurial bent have been able to make money from their own homes, garages, or yard sales. Although self-employment has many appealing qualities, it does require an enormous level of self-discipline, confidence, and timemanagement skills.
Before taking the leap into self-employment, first inquire about any required business permits. Next, buy or lease the equipment your particular venture requires. One of the most important things a home business needs is a good networking system. This allows you to contact individuals who can offer you work or refer you to others.
Aside from the challenges involved, it is possible for anyone to start a small business. However, it is critical that you know what you are getting into. For those who are undecided, a logical first step is to list potential areas of expertise, special training, educational and job experience, and special interests that could be developed into a business.
You must possess the necessary drive to succeed, especially when long hours and difficult decisions are needed. There is no one type of person guaranteed to either fail or succeed in small business. Starting a small business is not a decision to be entered into lightly, and should only be made after serious study, selfexamination, and counseling. The key to your success is detailed preparation and longterm planning.
Before starting a business, you need to identify what type of entrepreneur you wish to be. Many types of entrepreneurs are needed to help the country, and its economy, to grow. Listed below are but a few of the possibilities:
- Self-Employed: Individuals perform all the work and keep all the profit. This can often be a full-time job because no one else is involved and you are responsible for all aspects of the business yourself.
- Opportunistic Entrepreneurs: Those individuals who start a business and expand it in order to hire other employees that have the necessary expertise that the owner lacks.
- Inventors: Those with particular inventive abilities who design a better or unique product and then create companies to develop, produce, and sell the item.
- Economy of Scale Exploiters: Those who benefit from buying in volume and offering discount prices while operating with very low overhead.
- Buy-Sell Artists: Those who buy a company for the purpose of improving it so that they can sell it again for a profit.
- Speculators: Those who purchase a commodity and resell it for a profit. Art and antiques are typical speculator items.
- Franchisee: A franchisee is an individual who starts a business for which a widely known product image has already been established.
Try to list up to 10 businesses in your community that you consider efficient, smart, lucrative or suitable. Since there may be more than 10 small businesses in your particular community, concentrate instead on the types that most interest you as possibilities for self-employment due to high profits. Don’t leave out any possibilities just because you feel you don’t have the capabilities or expertise necessary for success. If you don’t possess all the necessary skills or abilities, you can likely develop them or hire others who have them to help you out. Include every possibility that seems appealing.
Once you decide, you need only to work out the details and plan for an outcome you have control over.
. Farrah Gray is the author of The Truth Shall Make You Rich: The New Road Map to Radical Prosperity, Get Real, Get Rich: Conquer the 7 Lies Blocking You from Success and the international best-seller Reallionaire: Nine Steps to Becoming Rich from the Inside Out. He is chairman of the Farrah Gray Foundation. Dr. Gray can be reached via email at fg@drfarrahgray.com or his web site at http://www.drfarrahgray.com.
