Entrepreneur: The Last Free American
Along the highway in Dan Diego there is a billboard that quite
simply asks in big black letters - Had Enough? I have no idea
whether the person or company that owns the advertisement sells
cruise vacations or a better brand of Vodka, but you have to
admit it gets you thinking on a long trip.
The older we get the more we hate change. The thought of leaving
something familiar through repetition to start over again can be
intimidating. There is safety in routine. Still, no one is
locked into a relationship or a job. Free will dictates that
your life is yours to live. You can walk away from either
situation if it isn't working anymore, or better still drive
away and watch it disappear in your rear view mirror.
Why is throwing in the towel so painfully resisted by human
nature? Are we too embarrassed to admit another mistake? Are
past screw-ups mounting? Is it easier to put off quitting until
we're fired? In my working career I only got the boot once. But
he did it with such gentleness that no blood was left on the
carpet. He was wise enough to see my lack of enthusiasm; my
readiness to fly. I thanked him as we parted.
Not all ideas are good ones. I-changed-my-mind is perfectly
acceptable. Use it for heavens sake! Humans are natural learning
machines. It's inevitable that we turn down dead-end roads. In
time you begin to recognize the outcome before it even happens.
Failures and moving on are all part of the path to maturity.
It's like trees in the Amazon designed to reach towards the
sun's rays and soak up every bit of sunlight they can get. Not
all acorns grow to mighty Oaks. The tree that captures the most
sunlight, wins. It will be the tallest and the widest. No one
said it would be easy.
The entrepreneur faces an equal struggle. If it was a snap
there'd be no dilbert-cubes. Yet these free-thinkers hold a
deeper understanding of 'going to happen' vs 'hope to happen'.
They are high energy people with long term goals. And they
aren't afraid to take a risk.
No better time in history offers the entrepreneur a fighting
chance thanks to the Internet. So close your eyes, hug your
computer's monitor and make a wish. It's almost that easy. If
you're going to leave the herd and seek your freedom, you have
to put one foot in front of another and start walking.
Currently 125,000 people a week go online in search of a
Home-Based Business. This alone is an amazing statistic. As an
entrepreneur you can now literally work from anywhere while
seamlessly running your business. Not any of your clients need
to know you are not in some downtown high-rise.
With the bare bones of a mobile office in place you can spend a
month in Mexico or on an island in the Pacific. How about
working today from a bench in the Park, or under an umbrella at
Ocean Beach or a booth in Starbuck's coffee shop? Your
office-bound clients and prospects will travel with you.
With smaller, more powerful laptops, improved internet
connectivity worldwide, and variety of cellular and web services
to choose from - we're no longer confined to the home office
either.
Having brought a smile to your face just putting yourself in
this picture, I must add that this freedom comes with the
personal responsibility for your own taxes, social security
contributions, and medical insurance.
However, when you can earn in one month what you have been
earning all year as an employee, this will not be a hardship.
Calculating your business-use-of-home income tax deductions
should offset most of this anyway. Uncle Sam loves us business
owners.
For most employees, losing their job is a fearsome and
ever-present possibility. As your own CEO, you'll never again
feel like you're walking a tightrope without a net.
Entrepreneurs are -- the last free Americans.