getahead Guide to Career Advancement
So, You Want to Strike Out on Your Own?
“You’ve got to figure out what problem you’re solving. Entrepreneurs, regardless of what they’re solution is, are about solving problems.” — Greg Hilton, Tminus6
Local Resources for Entrepreneurs By Rodney Welch
I
f you’ve got a great idea for a small business, let’s get the bad news out of the way first: The odds are against you.
“The current statistics say if 100 people start a small business today, in three years, 95 won’t be there,” says Tom Ledbetter, assistant vice president at Midlands Tech’s Enterprise Campus. “It’s a hard task. It is the hardest work you will ever do — to start and run your own successful small business.” “I always hear it when I talk to people,” says Al Leister, chapter president of the Service Core of Retired Executives (SCORE). “‘I’m tired of working for someone else.’ And I say, I don’t want to tell you this, but the hardest person you’ll ever work for is yourself.” “You have to say, ‘Am I willing to put the time into this?’” says Anna Kemper, who co-founded the Columbia interior FreeTimesGetAheadAd 52314_Layout design firm MACK Home with Marnie1 5/28/14
Clayton. “Because it is extraordinarily time-consuming.” “When you own the business, you are never really truly off,” Clayton says. “You’re thinking about it or answering emails or making plans all the time.” There are a lot of if’s in getting started: if there’s a market, if there’s financing, and if you have a back-up plan should everything go south. “You’ve got to figure out what problem you’re solving,” says Greg Hilton of the University of South Carolina-based Tminus6, which provides mentorship to startups. “Entrepreneurs, regardless of what their solution is, are about solving problems.” The good news is that South Carolina, 2:11 particularly PM Page 1 Columbia, is in very much and
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of an entrepreneurial mood, and has been for some time. “I think that it has really grown significantly in the last five, 10 years,” says Fred Monk, president of ECI/Find New Markets. “It’s taken awhile to catch on, but I think there is an understanding in economic development today that growing our own businesses is essential to economic development success.” Back in the 1980s, Monk said, South Carolina was focused on big companies and was considered a terrible place to start a small business. That’s changed, as new businesses have created demands for others. The arrival of BMW in the Upstate spawned new technical suppliers. The growth of Policy Management Systems Corporation in the 1990s helped create an information technology sector for the insurance industry; BlueCross BlueShield’s demand for IT personnel eventually led, in turn, to the creation of IT-oLogy to train a new generation of IT and computer professionals. Not only that, there is the USC/Columbia Technology Incubator, which seeks and develops early stage technologies, and
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has spun off new initiatives to encourage entrepreneurship. Meghan Hughes of EngenuitySC says “there’s a new energy around entrepreneurs” in the Midlands, and she can see it in recent graduates who are staying put in South Carolina, to see if they can make a go of it locally. While there’s no guarantee of success, the Midlands area offers a broad range of local resources for anyone at any stage of the entrepreneurial track, whether they’re just investigating what it takes, or are ready to go full steam ahead.
Small Business Administration (SC Chapter) sba.gov Offers a variety of information, including on-line video tutorials, for anyone thinking of starting or expanding their own business. For more information, call 765-5377. continued on page 34
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MIDLANDS TECHNICAL COLLEGE CORPORATE AND CONTINUING EDUCATION
Accounting & Payroll Specialist • Audio Engineer • Building Construction Manager • Computer Technician • CNC Operator • Forklift Operator • Industrial Electrical Technician • Medical Office Specialist Industrial Mechanical Technician • Interior Decorator • Pipefitter • Small Engine Mechanic • South Carolina Manufacturing Certification (SCMC) • Truck Driver CDL • Welder • Clinical Massage Therapist Desktop & Server Administrator • Database Analyst • Web Developer • Office Administrative Specialist • Cardiac Care Technician • Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) • Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) Medical Billing and Coding Specialist • Patient Care Technician • Phlebotomist • Cake Decorator • Customer Relations Specialist • Floral Designer • EKG Technician • Landscaper and Horticulturalist Lean Six Sigma Green Belt • Locksmith • Personal Trainer • Photographer • Project Manager • Veterinary Assistant – And more added regularly.
June 4-10, 2014
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