Once upon a time, hard work, dedication to the company, and/or a strong union guaranteed your job for life. Today, it’s far more prudent to assume that sooner or later, you and your job will part company (if you haven’t already).
It is my firm belief-and long-term experience — that developing and maintaining a teeny, tiny business of your own, what I call an Ace in the Hole, is the best investment you can make for your future.
You don’t need to burn any bridges, mortgage the farm, quit your job, hire attorneys and accountants — or even necessarily invent a better mousetrap. You just need to pick a reasonable path, take a few well-calculated, very low-risk steps, and let your Ace grow slowly. Along the way, you’ll get two bonuses: extra income and more tax deductions.
1. Start now.
Begin by simply giving the possibility of creating an Ace in the Hole some serious consideration. My friend Al Lococo always dreamed of retiring into his own business and gave the notion a lot of thought. Eventually, Al came to believe that he really could be his own boss. So, about 18 months ago, he decided to retain his job but moonlight in a small computer business.2. Find a niche.
Your journey to entrepreneurial glory can’t begin until you have a product or service that people will happily pay you to provide. Do you already know what your Ace will be? Great. But don’t rush to place a full-page ad in the newspaper just yet. If inspiration hasn’t struck, there are lots of ways to find it. For example, skim through the yellow pages, scan the classified ads in newspapers, walk down Main Street — or through a mall. Pay attention to how others are making a living on their own, and tune in whenever you hear, “I wish there were someone I could call to ….” Then, make a list of things you know how to do.3. Stop to look and listen.
Talk to everyone you know about your idea — but don’t take everything you hear to heart. You’ll get good advice, helpful insights, and a hefty dose of discouragement. Still, great ideas lurk in strange places, and disclose themselves when least expected. Al initially decided to transfer his computer expertise into a desktop publishing business, which he named “Viable Visuals.” But, because he was flexible, and open to opportunity, Al soon found a more appropriate niche. He happened to mention his new business venture to his doctor. During a physical, the two men were chatting about computers and the doctor said, “I’d like to hire someone to make monthly backups of the data on my computer’s hard drive and to check my PC for viruses.” By the time Al’s pants were back on, he’d found a great service he could provide to local doctors …and other small businesses, including mine.Read more.
Photo by Mother Earth News.
Ace In The Hole
June 25, 2008 by Rich | 2 Comments
In Bootstrap, Niche, Startup
danakeith on June 25th, 2008 at 4:18 pm
think this is the better idea, start up with the small one.. and do the most out of it, later you’ll know that it grown two times or more than what you expected.
cassy on June 25th, 2008 at 7:20 pm
Well…talking about business, its not really easy to start. If you seek some advices, there are good advices and some discouragement you’ve heard, but this is all normal. Just believe in your self and you havn’t notice it, your already on the top.