Millions of Americans have been laid off, furloughed, or otherwise misplaced from the career path they were on before the pandemic turned the economy upside down. LinkedIn is filled with people searching for that next great opportunity.
There are a couple of paths you can take when you find yourself in this situation. You can brush up your resume and actively search for the perfect new job, or you can use this time to start that business you have always been looking to start. As a SCORE mentor I have seen a marked increase in the number of people feeling courageous enough to finally pull the trigger on business ownership. To some it sounds too risky, but history shows that economic down turns have yielded some successful startups. Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Mailchimp, and Uber were all started during a recession.
When you take a minute to think about it, if you are talented enough to run a multimillion-dollar division for your employer, why wouldn’t you be successful in your own business? The government has stepped in to help with SBA financing plans that will help to defer the initial cashflow issues, and interest rates remain at all-time lows. So, you have to ask yourself – is now the right time for you to explore business ownership?
Obviously, there are many things to be considered when looking for a new business opportunity. Things like market size, market access, cash flow management, and many others all need to be considered before diving in. The most important thing however, is far easier to consider yet most often gets overlooked. Without it even the most successful ventures are sure to fail over time.
The factor to remember above all others lives inside and can only be evaluated by the new business owner. As they say, beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. Only you can determine if you will have a passion for the work and will be able to stay with it long enough to make the venture a success.
If you are working with a broker to help you locate a business, be honest about what you are passionate about. Don’t let the potential ROI push you into doing something you are going to really hate doing every day. As the saying goes – “love what you do, and you will never work a day in your life”. Here is to having the courage to find out what we love to do and living the dream!