So you think you might want to be a young entrepreneur? It’s easy to see how, in some ways, there are more opportunities out there now than ever. With killer apps, social media and Cloud computing changing the way we do business, there are all kinds of new avenues to go into business for yourself.
Of course, very few are going to be the next Mark Zuckerberg. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t certain advantages to being relatively young and having an entrepreneurial spirit in today’s changing economy.
Let’s take a look at some of the reasons you might want to start early in pursuing your dream:
- What’s stopping you? If you don’t have mouths to feed or anyone else dependent on you, it’s a great time to take a risk. You can dive in with both feet and not have to worry about some of the practical concerns that might otherwise slow you down.
- Happiness. As I say, the chances of your business becoming an overnight success are slim. But that doesn’t mean you can’t start something that steadily grows into a sustainable way to make a living. Most importantly, it’s something you really care about, and you’re more likely to be happy in your career if you have a passion for what you’re doing.
- Learning Experience. Whether you succeed or fail, you’re going to learn a lot. You’re going to develop skills you didn’t have before, which will better ready you for your next venture or position. Building a business will force you to adapt, learn new things and be very patient. These will help you down the road no matter what happens.
This is not to discount the risks. You could lose a great deal of money and time. But entrepreneurs tend to be optimistic and willing to take on more risk than the average person. For some, it’s just in their nature, and they’re going to start a business one way or the other – people like Zuckerberg or Ben Silbermann and Evan Sharp of Pinterest or Daniel Elk of Spotify. For thousands of others, they’re people who have a great idea, see a niche in the market and want to have control over their own lifestyle. What kind of entrepreneur are you?
When is a good time to start? Perhaps it’s never too early. The sooner you start, the more time you will have.
