March 29th, 2009 by Jan Shimano

There is no doubt that a major shift has been occuring in the business world over the last little while. In light of the severe economic times, more and more people are stepping out of their comfort zone and starting their own home-based business. This has, indeed, created a new age….the age of the new entrepreneur.

The question that then begs to be asked, is whether this is a wise decision. If you know any entrepreneurs yourself, then you will agree, that for the most part, they have very big ideas but their budgets don’t quite match. The result of this is that many of these businesses have been very limited in their ability to compete with their larger competitors when it comes to marketing.

That being the case, the new entrepreneur, with little funds to spend on marketing, has to be creative. Enter Web 2.0. Now small businesses can take full advantage of this free avenue of getting their name and brand out there for next to nothing. Web 2.0 comprises of the social networking media. This includes YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Squidoo and literally hundreds more websites that are all free.

These are not the only free avenues to get your message out there for the internet world to see. A great way is to have your own blog….in fact, I would say that this is essential. I recommend Wordpress.org. This way you will host the blog yourself and have complete control over it and it’s content. Another very effective way to generate free traffic is with articles. This article you are reading right now is an example of that.

Sometimes fear or plain ignorance holds a person back. It is important to work on your mindset and get clear as to why you want to have your own business. If you do not have a strong enough “why”, then when the going gets tough, and it undoubtedly will, you will probably not hang in there. As far as ignorance is concerned, this is one of the easiest obstacles to overcome. There is so much free information out there just for the taking. You will have to do a little research on the Internet but you will find all sorts of help waiting for you there.

I also highly recommend you get your hands of some well known books. You will need both instructional and motivational books. I have bookcases full of them and to me they are priceless. Just a little tip here…I have found many of my most treasured books at the local thrift stores. They usually have a book section and quite often it is even categorized for you. Check out the self-help section. I have picked up some of my favorite books for just $1.00 to $3.00.

Even though you can become your own boss with very little financial investment, there is still going to be an investment….not of money….but of your time, hard work, perseverance and patience. Yes, this is indeed the age of the new entrepreneur. The experts have gone on record as saying that more millionaires will be created in the next ten years, than at any other time in history. Don’t let this golden opportunity pass you by. Believe it or not, right now at least one in eight households in the States has their own home-based business.

There is no doubt in my mind that there has never been a better time than right now to become an entrepreneur.

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