Small Business Week: Is Entrepreneurship Right for You?

As part of Small BusinessWeek, October 15 to 19, 2012, staff at Navigate has prepared a series of information sheets on entrepreneurship and small business ownership. Is Entrepreneurship Right for You is the second article of this series.

Is Entrepreneurship Right for You?

(Navigate Entrepreneurial Program - An initiative of Grenfell Campus, Memorial University and the College of the North Atlantic – Corner Brook)

Have you ever thought it would be cool to be your own boss? Do you have a great idea for a new product or service? Do you see a void in the market just waiting to be filled? If you answered yes to any of these questions, than entrepreneurship and small business ownership might be right for you.

An entrepreneur is any person willing to start a new venture and build capital through initiative, risk taking, and innovation. Entrepreneurs must be self-confident, optimistic, and most importantly be persistent.

Entrepreneurship has the potential to be very rewarding. No job can be more satisfying and fulfilling than one you create yourself by doing something you are passionate about. Some of the benefits of entrepreneurship include:

  • You determine your own hours and work pace.
  • You create your own work environment.
  • You have the ability to be creative and innovative.
  • You can follow your passion.
  • You have no real limit to how successful you can be.

So far, being an entrepreneur sounds like a great idea right? Well before you rush out and start your business, you may want to consider some of the potential challenges of being an entrepreneur:

  • Unpredictable income.
  • You must be extremely dedicated in order to be successful.
  • You are responsible for every decision you make in your business, good or bad.

As you can see, owning your own business has its pros and cons but if you feel that the rewards outweigh the risks, then becoming an entrepreneur could be the right choice for you!

Philip Gillis lives in Corner Brook, NL. He is currently completing his business degree at Memorial University-Grenfell and is a student assistant working with the Navigate Entrepreneurship Program.

photo credit: Derek K. Miller via photopin cc