Starting your own small business…

is not a walk in the park, but it can be the best thing you’ve ever done. But do you have what it takes? You may be asking yourself this very question. Even if you haven’t brainstormed a product to sell or decided which niche your business would fit into.. you can spend 5 minutes and analyze if you really have the characteristics of an entrepreneur. Because if you possess these three character traits, no matter how foggy your business plan is you will succeed at building your own little empire.

1. Being a bad employee. This sounds crazy, how can being a bad employee be a characteristics of enterpreneur(S) everywhere? Because if you hate your job, or are constantly thinking of “i could do this better” then you know your meant to be your own boss. If you are comfortable in the rat race and feel okay about being told things to do and then executing, for a steady paycheck (or not in these times) at the end of the month… more power to you. Often I wish I was like you, because if I was I wouldn’t have thrown myself into business and struggled through all the hardships, I’d have been content bartending or teaching or working for the man. There isn’t anything wrong with being a good employee, the world depends on them to run, but if you are an entrepreneur the seeds of rebellion & the bad employee M.O. runs deep in your viens.

2. Not being afraid to jump without a parachute. Metaphorically of course, because if you take this one literally you’ll just be a dead aspiring entrepreneur. Safety nets are for those who know they’ll fall… a wise person once told me. It sounds ridiculous but it isn’t. Many great companies & large fortunes have been made of the brink of disaster. Entrepreneurs, backed against a wall, with no other options but to succeed. Failure is not an option for the die hard entrepreneur. There is no safety net waiting for you if your small business doesn’t succeed. Putting yourself in this mindset is one of the most important suggestions I can give you. That and I can point you towards a book called The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur that is all about soaring because there is no option to fail.

3. Action Jackson. The last characteristic of an entrepreneur is the A word. Action, action, action. No matter how small or how large, the entrepreneur knows that action is the only thing to take them from point A (hating your job in the rat race) and point Z (financial freedom and living life on your own terms). Rome wasn’t built in a night, but neither was it built with all the workers sitting on their hands. If you want something, go for it, set yourself up to succeed by doing the simplest actions TOWARDS your goals. Problem is people often mistake planning, thinking or wishing for action.

When I started my first business, back when I was 19 selling antiques on eBay, I had to make a definitive choice. One day I was sitting in my apartment with my girlfriends and I thought “I wish I had money to go out to eat” but I didn’t and I’d spent the money the folks gave me for the month. So what did I do, I registered for eBay (ACTION), I looked around at what was selling (ACTION), I knew I had a few antiques that my Grandma gave me stored at home so I called and had them shipped to me (ACTION) and then when they arrived I took photos, created listings and a few days later sold them all.

These very first baby actions allowed me to make $60 online, then roll that $60 into $300 by using it to invest in more antiques to resell on eBay.What if I hadn’t done that action? I would never be here talking to you.. instead I’d probably be bartending at a swanky place in Vegas (oxy-moron) and hating life. I’d be making good money but knowing that the moments my figure & looks go I’m toast (which happens surprisingly fast in the LV nightlife scene), instead of building up several small businesses that I plan on one day selling and that for the time being are my full time income streams.

ACTION JACKSON, get off your duff & arm yourself with the 3 characteristics of entrepreneur(s)! Be a bad employee… think every day how you could do your job better then one day leave & do! Jump without a parachute… and leave no room for failure only for amazing, crazy success! Take Action everyday, even if they are small, towards your goals and towards your entrepreneurial future.

Let me know what actions you are taking, or plan to take towards starting your own small business. I’d love to hear from you in the comments.

XOXO – Maren Kate