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The main reason people don’t leave their jobs to start a business

I would have thought it would be either because they:

• Don’t think they can afford it
• Need the benefits
• Don’t have an idea for a business
• Don’t know what to do
• Are scared to fail
• Are worried about other people’s opinions (their families’, mainly)

Those are all valid reasons. I had the delightful opportunity to interview Valerie Young, an experienced “out-of-the-box” career counselor who has helped thousands of people transition out of employment to self-employment, and I asked her what she found mainly blocked people from making that transition. Here is what she said:

The main thing that blocks people from leaving their jobs and running their own business, is not believing it’s possible to do so.

You might think that this is saying the same thing as “I can’t afford it” and it is in a way, but Valerie is pointing out that it’s the belief that stops people in their tracks, not the actual facts.

Now how she has helped her clients over the years is  by brainstorming with them on the various ways they could make money, and that allows her clients to not only check the facts (is it really true they can’t make money?) but also to start believing in the possibility of entrepreneurship on their own terms.

And she is not a proponent of taking unwise risks, making me chuckle when she said; “I call my business “Changing Course”, not “Taking a flying leap”!”

Now she takes on very few clients nowadays, instead being busy training other people on how to do what she does and become brainstormers. If that intrigues you, you can check out her training program by clicking on my link to her site, “From passions to profits” .

Valerie’s program is a combination of self-study and personal assistance and since she is a never-ending source of stories and ideas, it should be totally fascinating to train with her!

Now back to the reason why most people who want to start a business never leave their job; how can you stop feeling it’s impossible to do it?

Well, you have to make a plan you can believe in. That involves first, identifying what the business might be. Some people know and most people don’t, not really. They may have an idea but it’s often too vague. Or they may have no clue.

Then you design the transitioning phase which preferably will be something different than quitting in disgust and having no income to support you!

And you plot how the beginnings of your business would look like. What you will offer, to whom, and how you will reach them.

If that sounds like a lot of work, it is but not nearly as much as starting in the wrong business or in the wrong way. I strongly believe it’s not something you should do on your own for three reasons:

• If you knew how to do it, you would have
• Even when you learn how to create a startup plan, you need to get someone else’s point of view on your ideas; hopefully someone who understands entrepreneurship (as opposed to someone who’s always been on a paycheck)
• The forces of inertia are too strong and life is so busy that you might never finish your plan.

In case you’re wondering; is that the kind of work I do? I can, if we’re the right fit, so if you’re wondering about that, send me an e-mail (helene “at” wherebusinessmeetsspirit.com).

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