Ready, Set, Go!
Taking the Plunge
to Business Ownership Working as a franchise coach for countless people, I have learned what is required to take the plunge into business ownership. From management consultants to business executives to corporate refugees, I have helped them navigate through the next chapter in their lives through franchise investment. While every client is different, they each face the same fears: the fear of the unknown. Leaving what most people consider the safety and security of the familiar and walking straight into the unknown feels scary. What are the stressors? What are the risks? Do I have what it takes? These questions run through the minds of most of us when we are consid-
34 The Franchise Woman
ering a drastic change in career path. As a former telecom executive, I am very familiar with the comfort and Am I ready for perks of a corporate career a change? – the bonuses, the raises, the 401k. I also know the deep frustrations of Most of us try to make the best of where we are. We feeling that you are under rationalize that it “isn’t that bad” while talking continually someone else’s thumb, about the things that drag us down in our jobs, wishing for the attending endless and weekend and dreading Monday. Does this sound familiar? Does unproductive meetings, this sound like a person happy in her career? A wonderful career being buried under orga- is so much more than the money it brings. I believe, in fact, that nizational bureaucracy, it is about those things that money cannot buy – time spent and getting caught up in on hobbies and interests, freedom to spend an afternoon at interpersonal politics. the playground with your daughter, independence from the rat-race of ever more possessions. So here is the question: how much are you willing to compromise before you Below, I share the 5 quesare ready to forge your own path? Are you ready tions I ask all my clients. for a change? Answering these questions will help you as you embark on your personal journey from the familiar to the unknown.
