Everyone is an Entrepreneur

The following is a post I wrote recently about business in general. It does not specifically address blogging or internet marketing. I’m publishing it here, because I hope it gives you an idea as to where I’m coming from and why I’m involved in internet marketing to begin with. Knowing the “why” is a powerful thing! Let me know what you think!

Something just occurred to me. I naturally think of myself as an entrepreneur. Mostly because I own businesses; that’s kind of always been the way I operate. Even when I’ve had jobs, I’ve always had a business in the works. It’s how I think…it’s always about “how do I build something out of this idea I have?” or “would this be something of value to others?” But not everyone thinks that way, do they? Perhaps you don’t think of yourself as an entrepreneur. Maybe you don’t own a business and you don’t WANT to own a business.

I want to communicate that I believe this is a dangerous way to think. You ARE a business owner, whether you think you are or not. Whether you run a very small home based business, a large publicly traded company, or whether you work for someone else, it doesn’t matter. You have expenses, taxes, income, assets, a balance sheet…you are a business, my friend!

The Power of Learning Basic Business Skills

Now just because you are a business does not mean you are an efficient and profitable one. But the point is, you can be! By learning about business, you can take control of certain things in your life that can make a great deal of difference for you. Everyone can benefit greatly from learning basic business principles like cash flow management, the definition of assets and liabilities, how to write up a balance sheet and profit and loss statement, etc. This really is basic stuff, and it’s amazing how many people (even business owners!) do not know how to do these things. Trust me; it’s not overly complicated, and a little discipline goes a long way. If I can learn to read a financial statement, you can too! And something amazing happens when you learn these business basics…you begin to make different, more profitable and sustainable decisions about your money!

The World is Changing

Why do I care to write about this? It’s compelling to me right now, because I see so many things changing around us. Few would disagree that we’re in a time of significant change. Technology and a major financial crisis are working in tandem, reshaping our world daily. As these things unfold, this is some of what I’ve seen…and I’m sure you’ve seen it too:

1. Job security no longer exists
2. Instead of working for one company for 30 years, most people have dozens of different jobs throughout their careers.
3. Recently, millions of people have lost their jobs. Millions more have lost half of their nest egg in the stock market, if not more.
4. Entrepreneurship is on the rise.

More and more, fending for yourself seems to be the order of the day. Employers don’t take care of us anymore. Neither does Uncle Sam. It’s no secret that social security does not offer any substantive retirement benefit, and as the years pass, most of us are learning that we shouldn’t even count on that as part of our retirement plan. So what are we to do?

Here’s what we do: we become financially competent. We learn to take care of business ourselves, because it’s obvious that no one else is going to do it for us. We need start to think of the lives we run as businesses, because that’s what they are. Financial competence is mandatory now. This didn’t used to be the case. In today’s world, you need to know how to manage your cash flow. You need to keep a close eye on your balance sheet. You need to know how to invest. Throwing your money blindly into a 401(k) isn’t going to cut it. We need to learn what we’re doing. You, me…we’re all entrepreneurs. We’re all investors. It’s not really a choice. And the sooner we wake up to that and start taking the reigns of our financial lives, the better off we’ll be.

Does this scare you? Do you disagree? I honestly think the days of employeers taking care of us are over permanently. Financial competence and personal accountability are mandatory. What do you think?