For some reason, the word entrepreneur has had this scary connotation surrounding it, especially for those about to be a college grad. It could be that there is uncertainty, there is debt, and there is lack of benefits. When you are worried about how you are going to pay off your student loans while trying to move into your own apartment, pay your car bills, and your cell phone, oh and begin to save money, the unstable, questionable job of being an entrepreneur seems far from ideal. I felt the same way, until I realized I could gain more opportunities faster by going out on my own.
At age 22, I quit my [not so awesome] design job, moved to a new town with 3k to my name & created TwinFin Media. Which let me add, at the time was just a name, a blank website, no business plan, no clients, and a huge risk! I was ready to get things started, and create my dream job.
More and more millennials are ditching the 9-5 concept and starting their own business, just like me. But why?
1. We're embracing the realty
Most of us graduated or will be graduating right into a terrible job market. So us millennials are understandably wary of corporate America. Why would we put our fate in someone else's hands? This realty that we are living in has kind of forced our hand in the direction of entrepreneurship. Instead of sulking and becoming full time cover letter writers in our parents basement, we are taking action and making things happen!
2. We're capitalizing on our tech fluency
We grew up on computers and cellphones. We were the 12 year olds on Myspace coding our own themes and editing all of our profile pictures. Needless to say we are pretty fluent when it comes to technology, and we are able to keep up with trends and increase our skill set with the ever evolving world.
3. We want to work the way we want
We are all about flexibility. So being a able to determine our schedule, is a very appealing part of being an entrepreneur. Having more of a workload than if you weren’t the boss doesn’t stop many millennials. They still would rather that, than a cubicle at a 9-5.
4. The low risk doesn’t scare us - it motivates us
Starting a business at 22, 23, 24 comes with very low risks. Yes, millennials still have bills to pay, but we usually haven’t started a family yet or even bought a house. If our business failed, we wouldn’t be in as much financial trouble as we would be ten even twenty years from now.
5. We have the resources at our fingertips
Starting and running a business has never been easier than it is now. All that’s needed is simply a WiFi connection. Between all of the social media platforms, blogging platforms, easy website platforms such as Squarespace, Shopify, and Etsy, we have all the needed resources that allow us to start a business with little startup cost. That’s exactly what I did.
While becoming an entrepreneur is a lot of handwork and dedication, it’s pros definitely outweighs it’s cons for millennials. We would rather seek the opportunity on our own terms than deal with the odds being stacked against us post grad. So lets not be afraid of the start-up business process, and rather revitalize our dreams and pursue our passions through self employment.
