Most of us are trained from a very early age to know and trust this system: a good education leads to a good job, which leads to a career with benefits and advancement opportunities, which leads to climbing the corporate ladder until retirement. Most people reading this can relate to this scenario. Whatever it is that we are passionate about usually launches a career…and at first, it’s enough.
And then one day you wake up and realize you’ve been caught in a cycle within a closed system, with limited opportunities to realize your real dreams…the ones you still daydream about. That’s exactly what happened to me and Steve while in our respective careers, sitting around the grill on the weekends, dreaming of what could be. We had elevated ourselves and excelled in our jobs. We got the promotions and made as much money as we could possibly make while working for someone else. We went as high as we could go… and then we reached that tipping point. It was time for us to stop making someone else rich and start working for ourselves.
So how do you know when you’re ready to take that big leap toward entrepreneurship? Here are three bright, flashing neon signs telling you that you are ready for a change:
- You’re Constantly Daydreaming of Something Bigger
- You Feel Like Your Talents are Being Wasted
- You Never Seem to Have Enough Time, or Money…or Both
When Steve and I asked ourselves those same three questions, we knew we were ready for entrepreneurship. Granted we didn’t plan to capture the number one spot in a $25 billion dollar industry. We didn’t plan to eventually go on to have hundreds of millions of dollars in contracts. Nor did we plan to experience nearly 25,000 percent growth over the first three years and make the Inc 500 twice, ranked number 23 and number two – becoming the second fastest growing privately held company in the United States.
We may not have planned for this level of success, but we were certainly prepared. Why? Success doesn’t happen because you plan for it. Success is a result of being prepared for it.
Chances are if you are reading this right now, just like me and Steve sitting around the grill, you daydream of more. You have goals yet to be realized, potential yet to be tapped, and dreams yet to be achieved. So whatever your current career choice, wherever you are personally or professionally in life, you have been preparing for the success that lies ahead.
The question is: Are you ready to take the leap? Find out by taking our Entrepreneurship Assessment!