What to Consider if You're Considering University — Taking Action by Bill Morrison

Author:Bill Morrison
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Dundurn Press
Published: 2014-02-27T00:00:00+00:00

Be Prepared to Take Risks — and to Go Back to School

Business is about risk above all else. It involves taking a calculated gamble about commerce and personal choices. You are putting it all on the line — your money, your time, and your reputation. Once you hang out your shingle (putting out a sign to announce the start of a new business, typically in law or medicine — another reference that means nothing these days), your name and your business idea are open to the public. What you thought was a terrific idea — delivering cakes and cookies to children’s birthday parties — could easily go down in flames. These days, the Internet makes it easier to hide your commercial experiment. Your attempt to make money by being the 694th iPhone application offering fart sounds could collapse in digital humiliation, but the odds are very good that few people will learn of your embarrassing experience. Remember, too, that most successful business people started and failed several times before they found their niche.

Being a young entrepreneur holds a great deal of promise. You will find out whether you like the field and whether you have the nerve, work ethic, and determination to succeed — and the brains to know when to shift gears, close down shop, move to another business idea, or adapt to changing circumstances. The chances are quite small that you will, as a teenager, find the business that will propel you through life. What you will find is whether entrepreneurship is for you, if not immediately then when you have prepared yourself better for the real challenges.

So, to encourage you, here are the top five lessons that we think you will gain from running a small business when you are young:

• You will figure out if entrepreneurship is for you. Most people will never be entrepreneurs. You need to find out whether you have what it takes, and whether you have the ideas and the creativity to look at the work around you and find a way to make money.

• You will discover the strong connection between work ethic and personal outcomes. If you work harder, you will likely make more money. Slack off as a small business owner and your income plummets. This is one of the most important life lessons.

• You will find out if you have good business sense. While there are many technical aspects to running a successful business, the key attributes are less formal. You will find out whether you have the instincts to identify opportunity, the strength to bargain hard, and the integrity to build a proper business.

• You will discover your openness to risk. Business is about taking calculated gambles on a daily basis. If life in a risk-filled environment is stressful and unnerving, you’d better plan on a different career.

• You will quickly learn that ideas and work ethic are not enough on their own. You will need technical and professional skills — keeping the books and paying taxes is essential.

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