This post was originally published on The Daily Worth
Spring is a time for renewal, and often a reboot. We’ve been inside all winter and now often feel re-energized to move forward with our lives. We can, of course, do this at any time during the year, but somehow it just feels right to do it when the first shoots of grass are shooting up and we seem to have that extra energy and focus – to get physically active, take action, and create change.
Spring is a great time to envision possibilities, and to begin to think about reinvention – in our relationships, in our career and work lives, and in our diet and exercise routines.
Here are some clues that you might be ready for a career reinvention – as a business owner:
1. For as long as you can remember you’ve toyed with the idea of owning your own business. So all these years your inner entrepreneur has been patiently waiting for you to take action. Why not unleash it? When will there be a better time?
2. You’re tired of building wealth for someone else. You don’t mind working hard –but you’d like to start applying those efforts towards your own enterprise.
3. You want more control of your future. With the uncertainty of layoffs or corporate redirection, it can feel like your future is in someone else’s hands. You have gone through more than your share of layoffs, and have vowed “never again”.
4. You want flexibility. You’re tired of being told when you have to work and being limited in your vacation time. Maybe you have small children with busy schedules, or maybe it’s just that you’re most productive from 4 a.m. to 9 a.m.? Setting your own schedule, you realize, has become a priority.
5. You’re ready for a challenge. Many of us thrive on learning new skills and knowledge. It’s been quite a while since you felt that invigorating feeling.
Maybe this spring will be a time of YOUR new beginning. To start that business you’ve always dreamt of. To stop building wealth for someone else and begin to apply all that hard work and initiative to your own enterprise.
Transitions are hard. But it helps to remember that transitions are a part of life and most of us will experience quite a few in our lifetime. The best ones are the ones you initiate yourself. Controlling your own destiny through business ownership is one of the most empowering things you can do for yourself. Is now your time?
Jane Stein is the founder of Your Franchise is Waiting, a consultancy firm for men and women exploring franchising as an alternative career path.