Christian finance and consumer credit counseling & debt management
Career Guidance
10th Essential:
Make Your Own Job
Making your own job means choosing self-employment as a alternative way of making a living. Is this lifestyle for you? More and more, people are investigating the option of self-employment.
What's involved in starting your own business?
1) First
Check out the feasibility of your idea. Ask people if this is a good product or service that they are likely to buy, at a price that you can afford to sell it at. When exploring feasibility, take a careful look at your competition. What are they doing right and where might you improve or be different from them? Customers buy benefits! Know what motivates your customers to buy from you.
2) Second
Let your customers know you exist. To do that you will need strategies for networking, selling and promotion. To be effective in marketing your product, you will need a clear idea of who will buy from you. This is called a customer profile.
3) Third
Make sure you are personally and financially ready to start a business of your own. Successful entrepreneurs are persistent, have the discipline to self-manage a business and most importantly, know when to ask for help. They also understand the importance of planning for their success, and this means writing it down!
If you are comfortable with your personal readiness, check out your financial situation. Also, ask yourself if you can survive until your business can afford to pay you.
The keys to making your own job
Find a business that you enjoy.
Test your idea to make sure you have customers that will buy from you at your price.
Create a marketing plan that will appeal to your customers and let them know you are in business.
Always keep the customers' needs foremost in your mind.
Keep on top of your finances.
Set long-term and short-term goals and then put them in place.
Write a business plan and keep it current.
Surround yourself with excellent people.
Always be on the lookout for new opportunities.
Never look back.
What do you do now?
If you are interested in self-employment...
Find a mentor, coach or consultant who will start and keep you on the right track.
Get all the information and help you can (banks and government are good sources).
Join a club. Search through the categories
above for a club that matches your interests. Click on that club
name, then on the "join" link in the upper-right-hand side of the
page. More help.
Create a club. Find a category that matches your club, then click on "Create a Club" in the upper-right-hand side of the page. More help.
10th Essential:
