Becoming an entrepreneur is about one thing above all: passion. You’re choosing to take a path that isn’t traveled by many, on a route that doesn’t offer clear and concise directions. While that all can seem daunting, it also means that you can live a life full of value that isn’t available elsewhere, full of experiences and opportunities that aren’t afforded otherwise. If you can build a foundation that is solid, be aware of the potential pitfalls along the way, and create a sustainable vision that can be essential to many others, then you can have a success that is unlike any other.
What are you good at? What are you great at? What are you passionate about? That’s what you should be doing. With all the resources available for free online, and affordable curated content by other entrepreneurs and experts, there are zero reasons to not begin this journey and see where it can take you. When it is something you’re passionate about, you’ll be constantly motivated to continue throughout any struggles that come along the way. While this path is extremely rewarding, it can sometimes be a slow starter and take time to build your client base. In that regard, do not be the wave, whereas be the water. Trends come and go, so you need to be a constant that can provide value to your clients no matter the climate of the markets or the world. One thing I am passionate about is cooking, restaurants, and hospitality. Having my tenure in the kitchens, I’d love to have my own restaurant one day. While that is a part of my long-term vision board, I use that passion to fuel me when offering my creativity to other restaurants. Mixing your passions with a set of skills that are in demand ensures your longevity.
By profession, I am a photographer. When I went back to school in my early 20s, I took time to get some life experiences to figure out exactly what I wanted to do so I didn’t waste time or money to decide in academia. I went to a local community college, refined and refreshed my creative technique, while also taking classes in Marketing and Advertising. Once I learned what I felt was best for me, I left. Post high school learning is essentially:
Year 1. Discovery
Year 2. Analysis
Year 3. Understanding
Year 4. Application (with year 5 being theorizing, year 6 being justification, so on and so forth)
After year 2, I felt that my understanding was already valid, and instead of application being the form of case studies for a grade, I utilized real world clients for a check. With that being said, ONLY do this with situations that you know you will be successful in. Your clients are relying on you to provide an improvement to their situation, not just be a bill they’re paying. If you are not giving them something of value that can increase their revenue, you are just another debt to their bottom line. As you continue to learn, then you can begin offering other services or aligning your skills with others to provide potential clients more opportunity to improve.
Once you have a set of skills that you feel comfortable offering to clients, who are these clients? Go back to your foundation, and focus on the passion. Google is your best friend for this, or just going off life experiences. What is a local small business you love supporting? Imagine if you could support them internally and make sure they continue their success. Sounds pretty fulfilling, right? What is it that you offer and why is the way you do it the best value for them? How do you get in touch? You can send a DM, with your link and what you offer. You can walk in and talk to someone, leaving contact information behind. Make your existence known to those who you wish to be of service to. Doing it right the first time will hopefully give you a customer that comes back to you in the future. Having residual business is important in sustaining longevity and living the entrepreneurial lifestyle.
If you get worried that your particular skill set isn’t enough to keep yourself in business, align yourself with other individuals that have skills that complement yours. If you can collectively offer more to a potential client at a better overall value, while you might not have as much of a profit margin, you’ll have a higher chance of getting a new client and hopefully for the long haul. I’ve said this for over a decade now, and I love when I hear the same phrase being used in speeches and even songs… “It’s a marathon, not a sprint.”
There is always opportunity present. You can create the position you wish to have. New demands require new occupational responsibilities. This year alone proved to many people that didn’t have an online presence (with restaurants and online delivery services) just how important that is. With that online presence for example, there is a lot that goes into how that presence is being received by the potential audience. If you began thinking of the different solutions, then your mindset is where it needs to be. Continue to sharpen that everyday.
Your passion will always supersede everything else. Passion is the fuel that burns best. If a potential client can see the passion you have in providing them a service that can help their passion continue to grow and improve, they won’t forget you, I can guarantee that. While you may not always make the most money by working with clients that don’t have the highest budgets in the beginning, you can grow with them, and be pivotal in how their business continues to improve. Watching that glow up is satisfying in its own right, and it’s a perfect example of a case study that you have on your own, not just one that was given to you to study for a grade. Figure out what you love and care deeply about, and then learn about how you can become an important part of how it continues to thrive.
