Is Passion Enough?

Often times, people talk about the evil that is an 8 to 5 job, and how life would be much better if their passion was their work. The appeal of working flexible hours, being one’s own boss, and having a job is so huge, that many times people start a business with nothing but capital, passion, and sheer will and determination. As part of the package, passion for what you are venturing into and capital are a great place to begin, but that shouldn’t be all the ammunition that you have as you get onto your journey of self-employment.

Whatever your reason, it is important that you establish whether self-employment is a suitable career path for you. Module 4 of the ReadytoWork programme discusses the entrepreneurship skills required in-depth. Here are some of the important things to consider before embarking on the self-employment journey;

1. Will your business make money?: Unless otherwise, most people go into business to make money. To ensure that your business makes money, your product/service has to be relevant to the target audience. The more of a necessity that the audience finds it, the more money you make. As a business owner, you are your own job security therefore your product/service has to have the potential to keep you in a job.
2. Read, read and read: Research about businesses (both in that industry, and in general), find out about what the successful businesses did/didn’t do, and what those that didn’t succeed did/didn’t do.
3. Write it down: Write down the plans for your business in detail, how the product will be made, who will supply the material, where you will get labor from if necessary, the distribution plan, all to the last detail. Take your plans on a test drive to find out whether they will work and adjust accordingly. Write them down because we are more forgetful than we think, and forgetting even the smallest of things could cost you a lot.
4. Find a role model/mentor: A lot of local businesses suffer the same failures that other businesses have faced because of lack of guidance. Having someone to help you grow your business will take your business a long way, well because two heads are better than one.
5. Know your target audience: This includes age, gender, income bracket, existing and potential competitors et al of your target audience. If you make a product that the target audience can’t afford, or don’t like, your business may not have anything to smile about. Understand the patterns of your target market, and if the product doesn’t apply to them, find an audience it suits or adjust the product to suit the target audience.

If you have been thinking about starting a business but didn’t know where to start, this right here is your start. Access the Entrepreneurship Skills Module, for free by registering for the ReadytoWork programme, and logging in.

To successful, growing and thriving businesses.