From employee to entrepreneur...back to employee! Help!

[SolarKG]

Hello everyone,

As the title suggests I need help getting back into entrepreneurship.

The summary of my journey so far is:

• Learned about entrepreneurship and started listening to various podcasts around 2011.
• In 2013 finally made the jump into full time entrepreneurship but not just that, moved from Canada to the Caribbean
• Started a solar consulting business along with a solar blog
• Despite having some traffic, due to the Caribbean country I was in there were few monetization strategies that worked. Tried Google Ads, contacting companies for direct ad space, lead generation, directory listing etc. Very little traction. Finally created a digital solar report and sold copies at US$500 each.
• Changes in the government's stance towards solar power crippled the industry
• Put the solar business on pause and helped my wife with her aquafitness business
• Took an internet marketing course
• Took a lead generation course online and began contacting audiology clinic (they sell hearing aids) to generate more leads from their websites
• None of the 3 options above were as successful due to a variety of reasons
• Even took a course on Kindle publishing and published 3 books but again the results were small
• Eventually returned to Canada in 2016 and am stuck back being an employee

My training and knowledge is in the solar industry but I would like to build an online business where I can leverage automation and software to scale it up to something that produces enough income that I can get back into entrepreneurship and not be an employee again.

My experience of entrepreneurship really broke me over the 2.5 year period and it took me a while before I would even consider going back. But after 1 year of being an employee I'm ready to go for it again. I'm just not sure what the right approach is or what direction to go in. Any suggestions?

 

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[garyjsmith]

If you haven't already, I'd suggest reading TMF and Unscripted . If you have a growth mindset, you'll make changes that put you on the right path.

How are your finances? Can you afford to leave your current employment? Are you bringing value to people or chasing money? Be sure to look before you leap.

 

[TheRegalMachine]

Welcome to the forum SolarKG.
Not sure if MJ's books brought you here or something else but read them if you haven't.

I'm glad to hear you still have the urge to pursue entrepreneurship, but before you do go back in, take sometime to re-evaluate your past endeavors. What did I do right? What did I do wrong? What was my mindset in those moments? Was I using massive action or just enough action?
Stuff like that.
Notice I used first person pronouns.
You have to be brutally honest with yourself when doing this to avoid placing too much blame on external forces. Learn from past triumphs, failures, and mistakes.
I noticed many of your bullet points were you dipping your toe into things then moving along. You tired this and that, took courses, but what did you do after? How did you apply those courses to entrepreneurship?
I'm not gonna assume you did nothing but did you really dig in and go hard?
I'm gonna recommend you a book. The 10 X Rule by Grant Cardone.
I can see you want to act your took the steps but were they big enough and were they done for a extended amount of time.
Massive action might do you good.
Once again welcome and let's get to it.

 

[PatrickWho]

My training and knowledge is in the solar industry but I would like to build an online business where I can leverage automation and software to scale it up to something that produces enough income that I can get back into entrepreneurship and not be an employee again.

A few points:

1. There's nothing wrong with employment in the short term. You get money needed for basic necessities, and if you're lucky, you may even get the chance to learn something. Look for opportunity to learn new things on the job. MJ gave a great example of reading books on coding while he was waiting for clients. I worked as a general website developer while learning programming languages.
2. If you're interested in software, I highly recommend learning to code. It is very hard work, but it's worth it. Not only do you learn to build just about anything you can imagine, but it teaches you how to think through problems in a very methodical way. This training that you put your mind through will benefit you in all areas of your life.
3. After reading TMF and Unscripted , decide what need you're going to fill in your chosen industry and plot a course to get things done. You first have to decide where you're going before you can chose the steps to get you there.

 

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[SolarKG]

If you haven't already, I'd suggest reading TMF and Unscripted . If you have a growth mindset, you'll make changes that put you on the right path.

How are your finances? Can you afford to leave your current employment? Are you bringing value to people or chasing money? Be sure to look before you leap.

Haven't finished the books completely but am aware of the mindset.

Good question about the finances. We took a fair amount of savings out when we moved to the Caribbean in 2013 and used up all of it while starting two businesses in the 2.5 years. When we returned to Canada in 2016 we moved in with my wife's parents to build back up our finances more aggressively. Not a situation I would have liked to be in but it was a necessary sacrifice.

There was a time when my business wasn't bringing in any income and my wife and her business was carrying all our expenses. This burnt her out and she hasn't gotten back into business or employment for a year since we moved back. Now the shoe is on the other foot and I am the one carrying all our expenses so no leaving my current employment is not an option.

I never was a money chaser until I started to hit rough times with the business, even then I was always trying to add value. I can see myself starting to slip down that dark path of chasing money right now. I know that it is not sustainable to carry all the expenses on just my employment and I want the freedom I had temporarily while I was an entrepreneur, which could lead me to foolishly prioritize money over value. It's like I was in prison (employment), escaped (entrepreneurship) and then went back to prison. Now all I can think about is escaping again, but this time for good. Reminds me of Prison Break.

 

[SolarKG]

Welcome to the forum SolarKG.
Not sure if MJ's books brought you here or something else but read them if you haven't.

I'm glad to hear you still have the urge to pursue entrepreneurship, but before you do go back in, take sometime to re-evaluate your past endeavors. What did I do right? What did I do wrong? What was my mindset in those moments? Was I using massive action or just enough action?
Stuff like that.
Notice I used first person pronouns.
You have to be brutally honest with yourself when doing this to avoid placing too much blame on external forces. Learn from past triumphs, failures, and mistakes.
I noticed many of your bullet points were you dipping your toe into things then moving along. You tired this and that, took courses, but what did you do after? How did you apply those courses to entrepreneurship?
I'm not gonna assume you did nothing but did you really dig in and go hard?
I'm gonna recommend you a book. The 10 X Rule by Grant Cardone.
I can see you want to act your took the steps but were they big enough and were they done for a extended amount of time.
Massive action might do you good.
Once again welcome and let's get to it.

Thank you for the welcome.

I spent a long time evaluating what happened. I literally sold everything I had and packed my belongings into 2 duffle bags and moved to another country. My strong belief at that time was that the solar industry and conditions were prime for the solar industry to grow in that country. Friends, family, past employer, coworkers etc wished me all the best. When things didn't work out as expected I learned from the experiences. I was working at least 14 hour days pretty much 7 days a week. I took massive action with cold calls, site visits, emails, connecting on LinkedIn, building a website and reaching first in Google. I took a beating at the end of it all, health was a mess, lost 20lbs (and I'm slim to begin with), and almost lost my marriage. But through it all I learned.

I realized after writing the summary that it can look as though I jumped from one thing to another but I didn't provide the details.

Solar blog: Created an informational website from scratch and with my own content. Quickly ranked number 1 in Google for a variety of search terms related to this island and the solar industry. At first I didn't want to "sell out" by putting ads on the website but eventually decided that I was creating valuable content and if there were related products that would benefit the reader and monetize the site I would do it. Started with Google Ads but since there are very few advertisers online in this country the return was low. Contacted local businesses to offer ad space, but they were old fashioned and only wanted to stick with radio and print. Offer a lead generation service to 3 companies i.e. someone expresses an interest in solar puts in their contact details and requirements and the lead goes to 3 companies. The companies took the leads but refused to pay. Created a directory page and (since this is not something the country is familiar with) offered a low price of $30/month per listing. Companies did not want to pay. Eventually decided to serve my readers better to simply post the directory anyway for free. The same day a company not on the list called to complain that his company wasn't added, yet also refused to pay the measly $30. As a result of the website, started receiving calls and emails from developers from the US, UK and Canada who were interested in the solar market. Seeing that the website was free they tried to get free consulting from me. Learned from this experience and put all the information into a report and fully automated it so that people would funnel in from the website, then see the link to the report and some would purchase it. Whenever someone would call for free consulting I would point them to the report for purchase.

Aquafitness business: Managed the website, social media, videography, cold called hotels and doctors to inform them of the benefits of aquafitness. Contacted various pool locations to find the one with the best rent and facilities.

Internet marketing course: The course ended up being about spamming people and offering them low quality digital products. But I did learn about landing pages, email marketing and affiliate marketing.

Lead generation course: Contacted over 100 audiology clinics and set up demo lead generation light boxes integrated with surveys and email marketing (learned from the IM course). Was one of the top 5 participants in the course who actually implemented the solution on client's websites. Here I must admit I could have pursued further. Audiologists are very busy, like doctors, and it was difficult to schedule time for them to make a decision. One audiologist loved the idea, received leads that converted into sales, but didn't want to spend money on the service.

Kindle publishing: Published 3 books on Amazon. Did some marketing and although there are sales that trickle in, the amount of time spent promoting the books wasn't worth the outcome.

The biggest lessons I've learned are: You can't help people who don't want to be helped. Find clients or customers who are able and willing to pay for the service or product. (I've had my share of customers who were too "poor" to pay or too cheap).

Thanks for the book recommendation.

 

[SolarKG]

A few points:

1. There's nothing wrong with employment in the short term. You get money needed for basic necessities, and if you're lucky, you may even get the chance to learn something. Look for opportunity to learn new things on the job. MJ gave a great example of reading books on coding while he was waiting for clients. I worked as a general website developer while learning programming languages.
2. If you're interested in software, I highly recommend learning to code. It is very hard work, but it's worth it. Not only do you learn to build just about anything you can imagine, but it teaches you how to think through problems in a very methodical way. This training that you put your mind through will benefit you in all areas of your life.
3. After reading TMF and Unscripted , decide what need you're going to fill in your chosen industry and plot a course to get things done. You first have to decide where you're going before you can chose the steps to get you there.

I see employment as a means to an end. I was reminded just how unpredictable it could be when a coworker was recently let go. He was there in the morning saying hi to everyone at 9am and by 10am he was fired and walked out. By the afternoon all his things were packed in boxes and his desk cleared by HR. Reason? The company had restructured and his position was made redundant. It was a huge shock to everyone.

The irony of the situation is that I am working with a huge multinational company that is a leader in the solar energy industry. The small solar company that I had worked with for 4 years got bought over by this global brand. When I came back to Canada I connected with the old owner of the small solar company and got a position at the larger company. I'm back working with most of the same people I left in 2013. Sort of returned with my tail between my legs when I first restarted. It definitely provides the income for the basic necessities and I am learning more about the industry as the technology is always changing.

There could be a way to create some type of software for the solar industry that focuses on lead management or project management. It might be a bit tricky to market since I am in the industry and my employer might not approve, also I think there is a cause which states that any IP that is created while I am employed there belongs to them. But I am sure there are ways around that.

About coding, when I was in my first year university I failed C++ with 23%. 2 years later I made up the course by taking Java and got 96%. I guess my thinking changed but it was significantly easier with Java and I actually enjoyed it. The course I took with lead generation also trains people to create SAAS apps and generally steers them towards outsourcing the coding itself. It is something I would be interested in learning but I've heard the time is better spent figuring out what is required and then get it coded at a low cost.

I knew this before joining the forum, but I really just need direction at this point. Reading the responses and even writing back my own ones has highlighted that. I know I am capable of hitting a target, I do it all the time at work, but at the moment I am not aiming at anything.

 

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[Vlad Shcheglov]

Haven't finished the books completely but am aware of the mindset.

Good question about the finances. We took a fair amount of savings out when we moved to the Caribbean in 2013 and used up all of it while starting two businesses in the 2.5 years. When we returned to Canada in 2016 we moved in with my wife's parents to build back up our finances more aggressively. Not a situation I would have liked to be in but it was a necessary sacrifice.

There was a time when my business wasn't bringing in any income and my wife and her business was carrying all our expenses. This burnt her out and she hasn't gotten back into business or employment for a year since we moved back. Now the shoe is on the other foot and I am the one carrying all our expenses so no leaving my current employment is not an option.

I never was a money chaser until I started to hit rough times with the business, even then I was always trying to add value. I can see myself starting to slip down that dark path of chasing money right now. I know that it is not sustainable to carry all the expenses on just my employment and I want the freedom I had temporarily while I was an entrepreneur, which could lead me to foolishly prioritize money over value. It's like I was in prison (employment), escaped (entrepreneurship) and then went back to prison. Now all I can think about is escaping again, but this time for good. Reminds me of Prison Break.

Yes brother, I feel you. I'm in the cell myself. Ready to pull my hair out. Let's destroy this prison.

 

[SolarKG]

Yes brother, I feel you. I'm in the cell myself. Ready to pull my hair out. Let's destroy this prison.

Hi Vlad, what industry or niche are you targeting?

 

[Vlad Shcheglov]

Hi Vlad, what industry or niche are you targeting?

I've been in construction/electrical field for the past 10 years. But to answer your question, I am not sure yet. I feel like the smart thing to do is to look somewhere within construction industry.
1. Lighting is another area of my concern, It feels like anything that can hold a light bulb is considered a "chandelier" now days. I hate lights that blind me. It feels like Im facing an oncoming traffic every time I walk into the room. LED's don't change much, they are usually even brighter. But I feel like this would't be a fastlane for me. It would be more of a hands on, manufacturing, boutique type of business.
2. I've done some car flipping in the past too. Buy from auction, fix, sell. But its over saturated too. I feel like. Not a fastlane thing.
3. Uber for construction workers/builders sound good too. But i don't know if there is any use for it. There are already a few but they suck (Takl, Clipcall). I would have to learn a lot to build this one.
So to be honest. I've just been bouncing ideas back and forth for the past 7 years not settling with one. And these are just a few that I wrote above. It feels like all of them have a lot of CONS., to them.

 

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[JasonR]

Your entire thread you are focusing on yourself. "I" want this. "I" don't want that. "I hate" being an employee.

You need to learn that, to have a successful business, you need to focus on customers and what they want.

Focus on picking a product and needs instead of your current situation or what you want.

Read MJ's book(s) if you haven't. Then come back and post here what you've learned from them.

 

[Vlad Shcheglov]

Your entire thread you are focusing on yourself. "I" want this. "I" don't want that. "I hate" being an employee.

You need to learn that, to have a successful business, you need to focus on customers and what they want.

Focus on picking a product and needs instead of your current situation or what you want.

Read MJ's book(s) if you haven't. Then come back and post here what you've learned from them.

@JasonR , if you could please share from experience. How do you find a profitable idea to execute? Don't you relay on your own observation and gut feeling, and then somehow try to seek confirmation of a need from the market place?
In other words: isn't it "I, I, I" at first (I'm doing this, I'm feeling I should be attacking that industry) is normal and after your feedback loop comes back you can start bouncing off your potential audience/costumers?
I'm trying to learn here. Thanks.

 

[JasonR]

How do you find a profitable idea to execute? Don't you relay on your own observation and gut feeling, and then somehow try to seek confirmation of a need from the market place?

This is everyone's "million dollar" question. You need to FOCUS on this question and start figuring it out for yourself. It's unlikely someone is going to just gift you a profitable idea...

 

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[SolarKG]

Your entire thread you are focusing on yourself. "I" want this. "I" don't want that. "I hate" being an employee.

You need to learn that, to have a successful business, you need to focus on customers and what they want.

Focus on picking a product and needs instead of your current situation or what you want.

Read MJ's book(s) if you haven't. Then come back and post here what you've learned from them.

Thank you Jason, I needed that reality check.