Can You Go From High School to Entrepreneurship? Yes!

There is no one-size-fits-all path to success. While college is a wonderful way to pursue the career of your dreams, it certainly isn’t the only way. If you’ve got a gung-ho spirit and a drive for success, you can begin thinking about creating your own business right out of high school. By following some tried and tested rules, like the ones laid out below by the Hilliard Area Chamber of Commerce, you can make your dreams of becoming your own boss a reality. 

Get Ready to Deal With the Public

Business ownership is a great way of life. You’re delivering products, hiring people, impacting the economy of your community, meeting new people, solving problems, and taking charge of your own life. 

But, it takes some preparation to hone your entrepreneurial skills, and a great way to begin is by getting a job in the same industry that you’re considering for a business. If you want to own a restaurant, for example, try spending time waiting tables or working as an assistant in the kitchen. Or if you want to create your own line of clothing, find work in a small boutique, and get to know what customers are looking for. In addition to getting more information about your business, you get real-world experience dealing with the public. 

Start With a Working Business Idea

It’s important that your business idea is something you’re excited about developing. It should be something you have a real passion for and that speaks to your skills and talents. 

Of course, it should also be something that solves a problem for consumers or provides a service. For example, do you enjoy pets and think you’d like to own your own pet shop or doggie daycare? Visit similar businesses in the area to see if they’re thriving, staying booked up, and generating income. Then see if there’s a particular niche you could fill. 

Whatever you think is working, try that, then just take it up a notch. You may have to start as a pet sitter and dog walker to earn startup capital, but you’ll also be building up your client and customer base, so win-win!

A Business Plan

This is one of the most important steps you can take, and it shouldn’t be rushed. Your startup business plan will lay out step-by-step how to get from your idea to actually having a working, successful business. Many businesses that fail did so because they left out this most important step. A business plan is a roadmap you create yourself that indicates all the steps you’ll need to follow to take your business from the idea phase to a real working company. 

Stay Organized with PDFs

It's important to ensure that your startup business documents are always organized and easy to access. PDF tools are a great way to do just that, as you can store information in one place and make it easy to find the exact information you need quickly and easily. With PDF tools, it’s easy to convert hard copies of documents into digital formats, making them easier to share with prospects and colleagues. Plus, with these tools, you can split, merge, rotate, and remove files as needed. PDFs can also help secure your data by providing powerful encryption capabilities for confidential documents. Whether you're a small business owner or a large corporation, PDF tools are invaluable for creating an efficient document management system.

Marketing Your New Business

Everyone is aware of the power of social media, and its impact on marketing is remarkable. Using social media platforms to build brand awareness is something all companies, both large and small, are taking advantage of, and the good news is you probably already have a large social media presence from which to launch.

It’s important that you frequently add engaging content to your social media pages, your website, blog, and YouTube channel to keep your clients and customers tuning in. It’s an important way for you to build a relationship with your audience and build trust and familiarity with them.

Becoming an entrepreneur right out of school is something that people have been doing for ages and successfully, too. Especially for those with learning disabilities who may find college more challenging.  But with hard work, research, and following tried-and-true methods, you, too, can be one of the success stories.