Gone are the days when people struggled to acquire a full-time job, a 190-120 sq ft office space, and a decent salary. In today’s world, it’s all about working for oneself. A quick discussion with your fellow coworkers or a search on Google will tell you that being self-employed is the biggest business trend today.
To be clear, the term “self-employed” does not necessarily refers to be running your own business or selling your own product in the market. However, that’s the ultimate goal for many. Anyone who is working independently and is not committed to a particular employer for long-term is self-employed. And freelancers are certainly at the top of this list.
But what next? How can one elevate from being a freelancer or an entrepreneur? Well, let’s talk about that.
In this particular post, you’re going to get familiar with the critical differentiators between the two roles along ideas about what it takes to make it as an entrepreneur from a freelancer in eight easy-to-follow steps (or any other type of self-employed profession).
Are you ready? Let’s begin.
A freelancer v/s an entrepreneur - What's the difference?
Many aspiring entrepreneurs are under the naive impression that freelancing and entrepreneurship are the same. But here’s the catch - Being a freelancer is not the same as being an entrepreneur – it’s not even close.
The freelance lifestyle sure provides a crucial experience to those who want to become an entrepreneur. In fact, it is the first step in the entrepreneur’s journey. However, when one actually enters the “entrepreneurial mindset”, the work-life equation changes. Becoming an entrepreneur brings many faulty expectations to end. Here are a few examples:
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Expecting your work life to follow the same 9 to 5 work routine? Well, that’s not going to happen.
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Expecting entrepreneurship to give you more time to yourself? Sorry to break the bubble but you’ve bigger and better things to do now.
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Expecting to make good money, faster - just like freelancing? Seems like you’ve got a lot of investing and reinvesting to do for your new business.
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Expecting entrepreneurship to offer you the same level of flexibility and freedom as freelancing? Maybe, but you’ll also have great responsibilities on your head.
Transitioning from freelancer to full-time entrepreneur
Wondering what it takes to elevate oneself from a freelancer to an entrepreneur? Here, follow these eight simple steps.
8 Steps to Go From Freelancing to Entrepreneurship
1. Check, double-check your idea
Entrepreneurship is difficult and you can easily become a part of the entrepreneurial crowd in just about any area. However, if you want to make a difference, make sure that your idea is unique. Find a business that will not only make you successful but is something that connects you with your passion as well.
2. Learn more about your target market/group/audience
Before you start making big decisions or spending money, find what you’re dealing with. Remember, not every service or product appeals to everyone. That means you don’t have to focus on every market or audience. Instead, you have to find the ones that are right for your business model and address the subjects that turn things to your advantage.
3. Set up goals and expectations
Planning and setting clear goals to increase your chances of achieving success in the market is important. That is why it is important that you evaluate all the crucial aspects, set realistic goals, and determine the best strategies and action plans to achieve them.
4. Build the best team
You are not alone in your journey to become an entrepreneur and run a successful business. In addition to a great idea, you will need to have a great team. You will have to find talents and skills that can actually relate to your idea and are ready to give their best to make it a success in reality.
5. Learn to communicate the right way
As you’re dealing with a growing business and a new team, good communication is your only chance to make things work the way they should. Fortunately, we’ve come a long way from traditional methods (emails, texts, and phone calls) of business communication. Today, there are audio/video communication tools that make collaboration and information sharing effortless, no matter where you or your team members are. Now, the effects of evolving technology are not limited to communication. And this brings us to our next step.
6. Automate (use a work or task management tool)
Technology has made running a business easier than ever. There are literally tools and apps for every work process you can think of as an aspiring entrepreneur. The best one? Well, they all are quite impressive. From an all-in-one project management software to a task management software that makes assigning and completing work flawlessly, there are plenty of incredible tools out there that you could use.
7. Work on your network
Networking is important in any field you choose. and it's most important for entrepreneurs. Networking is how you spread the word. It's how you meet people who can bring potential skills and profits to your business. Remember, once your business model is off the ground, networking is how you will find key investors and customers for your business.
8. Take care of marketing
Marketing is a sort of modern-day networking. The core idea behind marketing and networking are the same but the approach and reach are quite different. “Marketing” is a broad term in itself. Social media marketing, search engine optimization, pay per click marketing, email marketing, influencer marketing, content marketing, and more - there are hundreds and thousands of ways you can market your business and its services across popular and profitable platforms.
These simple steps will definitely help to get you going. Follow them and you will be well on your way to becoming a successful entrepreneur.
So, are you ready to make the shift? Or do you have something that we can add to this post? Share your entrepreneurial ideas and experiences in the comments below!
