The 2020’s are known as a decade when more and more people are becoming an entrepreneur or at least considering it. The employment market is a shambles and artificial intelligence is stealing jobs on left, right and centre.
There isn’t much left to do for many of us but try freelancing as a way to make money. That’s what I realized when I was left without a job in 2020.
When walking out of the office for the last time I promised myself that I would never work for anyone else ever again. I’ve always had major authority issues, and it shows while I’m employed.
I had no idea what freelancing meant in practice, what was required to be one or even what service I would offer for potential clients. But I took the leap of faith into the unknown and noticed once again that taking risks always pays off!
Today I’m sharing my recipe for those who are wondering how to become an entrepreneur;
- what one must consider
- the steps to take to ensure you succeed from the get-go
- and how a lot of what you learned at school or from your parents about running a business is NOT true.
7 Steps to Becoming an Entrepreneur
If I was able to build a business that has more than sustained me, there literally is no way that you couldn’t do it as well! My entire life I thought being an entrepreneur is the last thing I could ever be.
It was never an option because of the false narrative around it. A narrative that I learned at school and at home that revolved around the following falsehoods:
- entrepreneurs work 24/7
- there is never time for vacations or weekends off
- they are exhausted and eventually burned out
- a bankruptcy is inevitable especially if you don’t have a rich family to back up your business
Becoming an entrepreneur by accident quickly showed me that every single one of these points was WRONG. Maybe they were true still in the 90’s before the internet revolution. But we’re in the 2020’s now and it’s a completely different world.
These days all you need is a website and a social media channel or two to get your business running. After all of that is sorted, it’s time to check the following 7 steps.
For a website you need a hosting service; get 10% off from your chosen hosting plan using code OUTLANDISH10 at
Lyrical Host
Step 1. Start with a mindset check
Etrepreneurship has become a much wider and a much more available career option thanks to the Internet. But one of the biggest restrictions many face in terms of opting for it, is their own mindset and its limitations. I would know; I grew up convinced that I don’t have what it takes.
As it turns out, I do have what it takes! And then some. Unfortunately the best way to test whether you do as well is to take the chance and start freelancing. Spread your wings and see if they can carry you.
More on the subject: Why Autistic and Neurodivergent People Are Better Leaders Than the ‘Average Joes’
It also shows you whether your lack of self esteem, the need to compare yourself to others 24/7 or low confidence are holding you back. If you can’t accept the fact that you’re enough and you can do it, nobody else will either. In that case perhaps entrepreneurship isn’t a path for you.
Because there’s no going around it, becoming an entrepreneur is not a walk in the park. You DO have to take action even when you don’t feel like it and you definitely can’t give up. Making enough money to get by and have something left over can take months or years. And it’s your job to NOT allow any of it to stop you.
Instead, get comfortable with releasing all control and not knowing what awaits behind the corner, and most importantly, enjoy the ride!
Step 2. Join freelancer platforms
Once you’ve established that you’re ready to take the risk it’s time to get to work! Now, depending on what you’re actually offering there are a multitude of ways to go about it. If you make jewellery, you probably need to set up an online store, etc.
But if you’re a service-based business or a freelancer, I would recommend starting off on freelancing platforms or check out Jooble’s remote job listings. Sites like Upwork and Fiverr offer millions of projects for a variety of industries.
These projects are a brilliant way to test your skills and find out what you really want to do/offer on the way to becoming an entrepreneur.
- The downside with these platforms is that they charge massive fees from your earnings.
- Also, you can’t transfer your earnings to your own account until you’ve accumulated more than $100 worth of income.
- Many projects on these platforms pay very little so getting to that amount can take a long time.
But if you’re willing to invest the time into those smaller projects at first you can establish long lasting business partnerships. It worked for me in the beginning! I still work with one client that I discovered on one of these platforms.
Step 3. Try different things
When becoming an entrepreneur you have to get comfortable with trying new things and doing things differently. Especially if you, like me, don’t know exactly what it is that you’d like to do/offer.
Take on short projects to see how well you perform with different types of tasks and topics. This will help you determine what you would like to work and grow with in the long run.
And because technology and industries change, die and are born so fast these days, you may need to be prepared to adapt to different kind of work at some point of you career as a business person.
I’ll give myself as an example:
- started off blogging and creating content around travel and sustainable fashion
- moved on to write social media captions for all kinds of businesses and industries
- got my first major content writing clients from the cryptocurrency and blockchain industries
- evolved to writing about technology from a wider perspective
- added gambling content to the mix
As you can see it’s quite a leap that I did within just 3 years as a self employed superstar. And as such I can guarantee that as long as you have an open mind and are willing to do a bit of research there’s nothing you can’t achieve!
Step 4. Get your pricing in order
Now, this is the stickiest part for many of us on the way to becoming an entrepreneur. Especially women struggle to set prices that actually match their skillset and capabilities. In other words, we undersell ourselves. And that should be a thing of the past in 2026!
Make sure you don’t step into this pothole and do some research on pricing for what you offer:
- Google country specific metrics on how people price different services
- Check job sites for salaries offered for similar work
- Visit competitors’ sites to see how much they charge in comparison to the industry average.
And make sure you slap that voice at the back of your head into silence! You know, the one that’s telling you nobody’s gonna bite because you charge so much. Always remember that men charge much more even though they are much less capable, so stand your ground, gal!
If your service is on the more pricey side (as in, hundreds or thousands per service/product) I recommend considering payment plans:
- give early birds a discounted price to encourage people to sign up
- increase the price after the ‘early bird’ offer expires
- offer payment plans so that people can pay larger fees in 3 or 4 parts (don’t allow these to stretch to 6-month-long plans!)
And once you’re an established entrepreneur raise your prices once a year. You should get a pay rise once a year as an employee, so why wouldn’t you allow yourself that right as an entrepreneur too?
Step 5. Engage services that support your business
In an earlier article I listed issues that solopreneurs struggle with, and one of them sure is having to be the jack of all trades. Becoming an entrepreneur you quickly find out you need to cover everything from
- selling to
- accounting to
- marketing to
- production to
- running errands, etc.
As things start cropping up it’s time to start considering aspects of your business that you can afford to outsource.
- Do you prefer to focus on your business instead of promoting it on social media? Hire someone else to do it for you.
- Do you need equipment? Rent them instead of investing in your own.
The first thing I outsourced even before I was making any money was accounting! There’s one authority I will not mess with and that’s the tax man. And since I live in a country where I get plenty back for my tax money, I actually like paying taxes.
Step 6. Register a business!
Once your business is up and running, as in, you have clients and money is starting to flow in, it’s time to register your business! Now, becoming an entrepreneur does take some paper work, but at least where I’m from, once it’s done, it’s DONE.
Check your national services that are available for setting up a business to see what is required for the registration process. These processes differ from one country to the next even within the EU.
And don’t forget to check if there are government paid benefits available for new businesses. Things like seed money, start-up funds, etc. It doesn’t cost you anything to apply for funding: nothing to lose, everything to gain!
Once your business is officially up and running, REMEMBER TO CELEBRATE!
Step 7. Actively manage client relationships
Last, but certainly not least, always manage your client relationships with care, patience, maybe even humour. And remember that clients that treat you badly should not be your clients.
Becoming an entrepreneur means that you have all control over what kinds of people you deal with. It’s hard to say no to clients that pay well even though they treat us with complete disrespect.
But that’s what we must do! There are always better clients out there waiting to find you but you won’t notice them if all of your energy goes to appeacing the awful clients.
Once you encounter your first bad client you won’t forget them. But they can become your reminder to make better decisions for yourself in the future. There are no failures, there are only lessons!
Bad clients make us respect the ones we like to work with even more. And when we like working with certain people they tend to stick around for a looong time. The one client I mentioned earlier is my longest and biggest client partly because we have a similar sense of humour.
It’s a joy to wake up in the morning knowing that there is client work that I like to do with a client I appreciate and respect. ♥
Follow me on Instagram and use #styleoutlandish to showcase your style! I’m always on the lookout for outfit inspiration. Get to know me better by listening to my podcast, Random Rambles. If you wish to work with me, check out my services here!
