When considering the benefits of remaining employed and embarking on a self-employment journey, there are three key signs you can look out for to decide if you’re ready to take the leap of faith.
There’s Nothing New and Exciting
Oftentimes, the company you’re working at isn’t looking to innovate. It feels stagnant, like they’re draining your creativity away instead of putting it to good use. This is the first sign you should be looking for. If you’re anything like L.A.-based AI and tech entrepreneur Dieter Hsiao, you might see that the company is only stifling your growth. That’s why he founded DIVISA.
“I decided to launch my side hustle, DIVISA, a strategic advisory firm, in 2008 during the financial crisis. After working for major corporations for over 10 years, I grew frustrated with the lack of innovation and vision. DIVISA officially launched in 2009, and through delivering impact for clients, the company grew steadily. The flexibility of running my own business has allowed me to invest in growth areas like ecommerce and new technologies. DIVISA now works with major brands and VC-backed startups across industries.”
When a company isn’t taking your ideas seriously, that isn’t a reason to give up on them. Hsiao himself acknowledges that starting a side hustle and growing it into a business can be challenging, but the reward of knowing that your ideas are going to make a real change can be more than worth the risk. New ideas help any company stay ahead of the competition, so it’s important to act on these moments of wisdom as they come.
Your Company Has a Blind Spot
Because large companies struggle to accept new ideas, there are usually gaps in the market that need to be filled, but size can hide these in a blind spot. Working at a stagnant company can have the upside of revealing these opportunities to any entrepreneurial spirit with an uncanny knowledge of the industry.
After spending 15 years in the HVAC and plumbing industry, Courtney Zalesak founded Home Service Amplifier when she identified one such space in her market. “I recognized a need to help other home service business owners scale their operations through digital marketing. Home Service Amplifier officially launched in 2016, and we’ve since worked with hundreds of contractors to amplify their online presence.”
As with Hsiao’s example, Zalesak found it difficult to get a business started while working for another company. Still, it was because of the experience she gained working in HVAC and plumbing that gave her the knowledge to identify where her industry was lacking, and exactly how she could be the one to address the issue. Because of her decision to start her own business, Zalesak has the freedom and opportunity to empower those in her industry while maintaining flexibility in her operations.
Desperate Times Make for Good Opportunities
Unfortunately, there are circumstances in which starting your own business becomes the only option. Persistent unemployment can be a powerful motivator, even just to start a side business. Many successful self-starters began their journey when the job applications just weren’t working, and they needed to pave their own way forward.
Desperation can become an outlet for creativity and self-expression that identifies problems in the market that only you can solve. Often, a future business owner just needs to go down the road less traveled, and it might make all the difference. Even freelancing can be a tool for escaping rejections and disappointments; just put yourself out there and the opportunities may be waiting.
It’s never going to be easy making such drastic decisions, but the risk is so often worth the life-changing reward. In stagnation, there is never fulfillment.
