Many of the employed population, actually want to know where to start to become and entrepreneur. Today, there are many choices to make that happen.
If you really want to know where to start to become and entrepreneur, the answer is “your mindset”. Most people search for the product or service to get into first. Those people end up failing because they kept the same mindset that was causing them to struggle.
I’d like to start by telling you the path I took to start to become an entrepreneur. My journey was a slow one. Why? Because nobody told me there was another way to earn a living other than becoming an employee. Oh, and by the way, I couldn’t just go online for mentorship or research, because there was no Google, Bloggers, Social Media, or Wikipedia…… there was NO INTERNET! (I still feel and act young. Does that count 🙂 )
Think about the advantage you have today, with the ability to get around experienced entrepreneurs, without leaving your home. Now this is an advantage over what I had, but don’t just sit behind a computer screen and get stuck in perpetual learning.
You need to absorb some knowledge and then actually put it to use. You also need to surround yourself with other like-minded entrepreneurs in person. Find your local groups and Meetups. Check out meetup.com and search for those entrepreneur groups also.
I’m sure you’ve heard the saying “You are the average of the 5 people you hang around most”. So now think about who they are and what their financial position is. Are they where you want to be? I didn’t think so. You need to get uncomfortable, and go get around people who ARE where you want to be.
Employment As The Sole Option
So like I mentioned, I was brought up to be an employee. I never saw any other option offered. When I was really young, I would try to raise money with yard sales, lemonade stands, or mowing lawns, just like most kids back then. (Now days, I feel like most kids don’t naturally have the drive to do that.) I also got a small allowance from my parents (Which I do not offer to my kids. You can read more about why in another post here. This is a must read!).
My Mom was a stay-at-home-mom, and my Dad had worked at several different locations over the years, because of lay-offs. This is back in the days when companies offered pensions to their employees. He was nearing retirement as “defined pensions” were phasing out.
The companies would fire you or lay you off to avoid having to commit to paying out on the pension. He was an incredibly intelligent person with extensive capabilities. I really think he could do, or build anything!
I really didn’t do much with him as a kid. He always seemed to be busy or sleeping. We had to be very quiet to not wake him, because he worked 2nd and 3rd shifts. He did have a barbershop a few times, but it just couldn’t pay the bills, so he ended up being an employee 99% of his working life. That’s why I was trained to be an employee, just like most of you.
Closing In On Adulthood
Later on as I approached the age of wanting to earn some better money than a couple bucks a week, I wanted to find some part time work. Unfortunately, my parents just acquired 10 acres and were going to build the new family home on it.
My older brother was allowed to get a full-time job over the summer at a theme park, where he was around tons of girls, and it was great fun for him. He met lots of friends at that job and they could all go to Six Flags Great America for free on their off days with their work ID.
I, on the other hand, was to stay home and help with the construction and landscaping of the new family farm. Lucky me ?. This was very long, hot days and very hard work with NO pay. The way I remember my young life with my Dad, was “all work and no play” (Later in life that changed).
In my Junior year of high school, I was selecting classes. My Dad told me that I should select Machine Shop as an elective, because a machinist job would “always put food on the table”. So, I took this class, which was at the community college for my junior and senior years of high school.
I was the top of my class in machine shop, but I didn’t like it. I met Dan, a great friend in that class, so it did produce something good. The class was structured as a working business, so we all had rolls that we played. The teacher was the owner and I was the shop foreman.
All the other students were straight workers. This structure made many of the other students jealous. Not the best situation when the workers don’t need to keep their job. Tough atmosphere to be a boss!
I GOT A JOB! (Crap!)
Also during those two years, I worked in a machine shop part time during school. Full time during the summer. My dad’s friend Bill, owned that machine shop (who later became a great friend to me). None the less, I didn’t like working in a machine shop at all.
I was good at it, but I couldn’t wait to leave each day. There wasn’t a lot of time for friends during those couple years between school and work, but I saved almost all my money. I have always bought my own stuff, and never drove my parent’s car or borrowed money from them. I am proud of this and my kids are doing the same.
Well, unfortunately, because I didn’t know any better, I went to work for a company that built automated machinery after high school graduation, as a machine builder. This lasted for 3 years and I ended (I quit) as a lead machine builder.
While I was there, I built machines and then flew out to the customer’s location after the machine was shipped, to set it up and train their employees on how to operate and maintain it. I was only 18 to 21 years old, and old workers didn’t feel they had to listen to me. That made me have to work extra hard just to accomplish the task.
I hated traveling, because all my friends were back home having fun and picking up girls. We were on motorcycles, or skiing, during any free time. The only things good about this job was, meeting Steve, one of my best friends, making money, and gaining more knowledge. I didn’t like any of the other people there other than my friend. He and I were the youngest workers, and all these other “old fart” employees, hated our high energy.
Work Life Sucks
I hated getting up early, driving in rush hour, doing work I didn’t like, and being stuck around people I didn’t like. One of the biggest problems was being so young and growing so fast in the business. All those old, Hagerty, beat down employees, didn’t like having a teenager be in a more important position than themselves. What they didn’t know was that my pay was crap!
So why was I in a high position making crap money? Well the shop foreman also felt threatened by my fast advancement and kept my wage low, hoping I would leave before taking his position. He also was very condescending toward me and would say things to upset me all the time, as well as provide negative opinions to the company owner.
It worked. I QUIT! But, on my way out, I let the owner know why. (This part is beautiful!) That foreman lost his job two weeks later (YES!). But, I refused to go back. Working under people in a corporate setting, who were not nice to others, was NOT for me.
Three years of that crap, was torture. I always felt that people should treat others with respect unless you get disrespected by them. Here it is many years later and I still say that this foreman is the worst guy I ever personally knew, and I know a LOT of people.
Time To Break Free (NOT!)
So here comes my first (half assed) attempt to get out from under being in this situation again of hating my work environment. Get ready to laugh…….. I tried selling cable TV services Door To Door! LOL…..LOL….LOL! I must have REALLY hated that previous job to make me try this!
I was just a kid and knocking on stranger’s doors at a time that they were just getting home from their job (that they probably hated). Out of 100 door knocks, about 95 of them didn’t answer (but I could see they were home), or they were incredibly rude.
So, to keep the money flowing and my conscience clear (living under my dad’s roof), I got another machining job. UGH!!!! Well, I changed employers a couple more times before ending up back working for my very first employer again. He was a family friend and that’s how I got the job the first time. The reason I went back to him, was that I had it with corporate B.S. and had a plan, desire, and a goal.
I was going to work with him and focus on finding a way to support myself without counting on an employer to take care of me. I was with him for another 3 years. During that time, I got married and then 13 months later was a father. That boss/friend actually wanted me to take over the business one day. I had to tell him that I wanted to be completely independent, and in a different field of interest. He supported my decision (great guy!). So, what path did I use to become an entrepreneur?
What Will Set Me Free
Real Estate was my path to financial independence as an entrepreneur. So, having no exposure to the potential of entrepreneurship other than my desire to be free, finally at the age of 27, I bought my first real estate investment.
My employer (Bill) allowed me to take a few weeks off to do the rehab on the house, and knowing nothing about rehabbing a home, it took 3 weeks exactly. It was a paint and carpet rehab, so I actually didn’t do too bad. I did replace the entire kitchen on this first rehab also. From the day I closed the purchase to the day I closed the sale was 3 months, and the profit was just short of being enough to pay off my own residence that My wife and I bought just before our wedding!
What Just Happened
When I completed that first deal, it hit me……..WTH!? Did that just happen? Three weeks of actual work created more money than I made in a year of work at my J.O.B.! The lightbulb not only came on, but it got REALLY BRIGHT! I was on the hunt for the next one ?.
A few months later, I found the next property. It was a disaster of a duplex. More roaches in that house that I have ever seen since. I hired the cleanout of the debris and carpet, and called in an exterminator, before I would work on it. I doubled my money on that deal! However, my employer/friend and I parted ways during this flip, as it was time for me to fly solo.
So that was where I started to become an entrepreneur. Would you like to know more details, like how I funded the purchase of that first deal? I will create an post or free ebook and post it here later. For now, I chose to be a Real Estate Investor, as a type of entrepreneurship. There are many other types of entrepreneurship, though, not just buying and selling houses.
With the advent of the internet and all the amazing information available to us today, the ratio of employees vs entrepreneurs is narrowing a bit. Most people wish they didn’t have to have an employer/owner. However, the main issue we have now is the level of laziness many people have these days which I’ll discuss in another post, but clearly that is not you, because you’re here on Profit Vs Wage.
The truth is, because of having easy access to people like myself and many others, it’s easy to find a solution to your problem. So don’t be one of the sad people who look for an excuse instead. Your kids are counting on your guidance and support, so they don’t have to suffer the next 40 hours a week, over the next 40 years or more. Show them a better way.
