Why are You a Small Business Owner

By Sharon • September 11th, 2009

womanatdesk There use to be a time when entrepreneurs were a “rare” breed of individuals and risk takers with savings. Today, with our shaky economy, entrepreneurs embrace a far larger group of individuals who aren’t only visionaries chasing their dream. A small business owner today could be the father of 4 who got laid off from a car plant last week or the single mom frustrated with her quality of life and the uncertainty of corporate employment.

Still…not every unemployed, career-discouraged person chooses entrepreneurship. The “risk” factor still only appeals to a certain group of people . So let’s hear what the experts say on this matter.

Scott Shane of U.S. News Report researched several surveys and studies on entrepreneurship and based on those facts came to the conclusion that people choose entrepreneurship because “they don’t want to work for someone else.”

It’s not the money. Repeat – it’s not the money. Employees by and large earn more and have more benefit perks than entrepreneurs. Employees also have less stress, they may be insecure about the future of their jobs, but for many what they can’t see (unemployment) doesn’t stress them out.

Entrepreneurs on the other hand have stress. They have to pay their vendors, their employees, their business expenses, business taxes, etc. and oh yes, they have to pay themselves so their spouses remain with them and their children are fed. Obviously stress becomes a factor when all these bills come due and clients haven’t paid or the client list is wanting.

Yet…even with this stress, entrepreneurs love the independence, the control and the variety that comes with the day to day task of running a business.

Now the love of calling yourself the boss can only get you so far–starting a business takes resources though in many less than was once needed because of the Internet. For less than $100 many people find that they can be open for business…online. Whether a new entrepreneur is a service provider like an accountant, a manufacturer of products like jewelry or e-books, or a sales professional like a realtor or internet marketer, the Internet has drastically cut the cost and labor required to effectively promote that business to local or global markets.

Also, for many types of businesses a brick and mortar “office” or store front is no longer necessary. The website and a home office is in many cases sufficient for a growing number of small business owners. With shared facilities featuring board rooms and secretaries that you can lease by the hour, the need for permanent office space decreases even further along with over head costs.

Here’s a short list of some great resources helping entrepreneurs to get their businesses successfully off the ground:

Small Business Start-up Information – SBA

Freelancing

Mentorship Groups – Self Starters Weekly, Mom Masterminds

Internet Marketing Resources: Nicole Dean, Lynn Terry Click Newz

Research – Google and Twitter Search

So why are you an entrepreneur (or a soon to be entrepreneur)?

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