People who started their own business - how did you come it?
People who started their own business - how did you come it?
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LosingGrip

Original Poster:

8,445 posts

177 months

Thursday 2nd October
quotequote all
Pretty much as per the thread title. Those that have your own business, how did you get into it?

I love the idea of starting my own business, but havent got a clue what I'd want to do.

Im currently in the police on Roads Policing. I've got a number if skills from there, but qualification wise nothing apart from a few GCSEs, and a diploma in Media...

(In a bit of a slump at work as well).

AB

18,784 posts

213 months

Thursday 2nd October
quotequote all
You don't need qualifications, and you very much learn as you go along, I certainly did.

I went from getting more and more involved in the running of a business as my then boss did less and less. I started spotting opportunities and ways in which things were being done wrong but I wasn't being listened to.

So I decided to do it myself.

Once you learn the basics/mechanics of how a business runs then all you need to do is find something that someone will pay you for and go and do it but in the early days work longer and harder than you did before as you start to wear numerous hats. Until a point comes when you can dish those hats out to other people.

Hoofy

78,898 posts

300 months

Thursday 2nd October
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Trained while working full time, did work in evening, then went down to a 4 day week (before it was even a twinkle in a socialist's eye) to put 1 day a week into my business (the reality actually meant I was working 5 days into 4 and being paid 4 silly ), then used some holiday to try 3 days a week (ie 2 days a week on my business) then handed my notice in. That's the how.

The what is something I'd been interested in doing since uni in the 1990s and decided to give it a go, ditching my corporate career.

You might find this useful:



(If the embed works!)

Edited by Hoofy on Thursday 2nd October 14:51

FD1338

40 posts

68 months

Thursday 2nd October
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Have you thought about FCIU? You can gain qualifications that can be used/useful after your current career.

StevieBee

14,430 posts

273 months

Friday 3rd October
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LosingGrip said:
Im currently in the police on Roads Policing. I've got a number if skills from there, but qualification wise nothing apart from a few GCSEs, and a diploma in Media.
A few years back, I met a couple of ex Traffic Officers (from Birmingham) who'd set up a consultancy business that worked with Governments, Councils and Highways, helping to shape road design to make roads safer. I met them at a Smart Cities event in Spain where they were working with Madrid Municipality. They seemed to be doing very well.

And this is key I think. Most business owners start a business that extends from their previous employment because this provides the insights and experience you need. Some may diversify later on but the start point is sticking to something they know.

Qualifications aren't (normally) as critical when you employ yourself. More important is equipping yourself with basic business management skills. Many colleges run adult learning classes for this. And you absolutely need to know your sector inside out.

So, my story is that back in 2000, I was an Account Manager for a Marketing Comms Agency. In short succession, we won a couple of highly profitable campaigns to support local authorities introduce household recycling. People needed to know how to use these new services so campaigns and information dissemination was needed. I looked into the rise of recycling and discovered that all councils would need to introduce such services over the next 10 years - and that the government had made available £40m to support them on communications. I pitched this idea to my boss that we had sufficient credentials to be a big player in this sector and that establishing a dedicated agency might be a good idea. He agreed and we launched one. I sunk myself into the sector thoroughly. Went to every conference on Waste Management and Recycling, read the Journals, started writing for the Journals and speaking at the conferences. I quickly became recognised as an Expert in Behaviour Change Communications for the Waste Sector and the company became recognised as the leading one of its type in the UK. This lead us overseas to work on international financed projects in low, middle income and transition nations, working for the likes of the UN, World Bank, EU, DFiD, etc.

I mentioned that diversification may come later. For me, that was 2019.

My business partner retired leaving me the company but the market had changed by then. All councils had household recycling services and the big projects of the past were becoming less frequent. I figured the approaches and methods to change behaviour towards waste and recycling could be applied to many other things. So I set up a brand new agency which carries on the same work for the waste sector but we now also work on projects and campaigns about road safety, childhood vulnerabilities, biodiversity, environmental protection and social care.

Film has grown to become an increasingly important part of the comms channels we use and next year, I'm launching a Film Production business with the aim of producing documentaries for streaming, one of which is already in pre-production.

Hope that's of use to you.



LosingGrip

Original Poster:

8,445 posts

177 months

Friday 3rd October
quotequote all
Thanks for all the replies. All really useful.

StevieBee said:
A few years back, I met a couple of ex Traffic Officers (from Birmingham) who'd set up a consultancy business that worked with Governments, Councils and Highways, helping to shape road design to make roads safer. I met them at a Smart Cities event in Spain where they were working with Madrid Municipality. They seemed to be doing very well.
This is what I cant get my head around, how do you get into those type of jobs?

Whilst I dont have any qualifications, ive got alot of skills within the police and they will be transferable im sure (well maybe not TPAC training!).

Somethings to ponder smile

Simpo Two

89,820 posts

283 months

Friday 3rd October
quotequote all
LosingGrip said:
Pretty much as per the thread title. Those that have your own business, how did you get into it?

I love the idea of starting my own business, but havent got a clue what I'd want to do.

Im currently in the police on Roads Policing. I've got a number if skills from there, but qualification wise nothing apart from a few GCSEs, and a diploma in Media...
I'd been made redundant from an advertising agency, so my business was based on the subject from there that I liked the best and was good at. I had client contacts, supplier contacts and knew how to do what I was doing. Even then it took 4-5 months on the sales trail before the first cheque arrived, and a few more before I could make a living from it.

Basically the world won't come to you, you have to go out and find it. You may find that policing the roads isn't so bad after all.

And if you see a green Aston flash past, you ain't seen me smile

danb79

12,186 posts

90 months

Friday 3rd October
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I started back in 2009 after taking a few months off after redundancy and then decided that I could do the job much better running the business as I see fit; working to my terms etc

Had its ups and downs until 2020 when the lockdowns killed me off; had 2020 off, tried to re-launch 2021; struggled hard for the year and decided early 2022 that I'd had enough; applied for a number of jobs and landed a role with Meta of all businesses!

Took VR from them end of June this year; had a month off for R&R and set up business again, mainly as an interim project to keep my mind busy whilst my body's doing its best to kill me and hopefully come the New Year I'll land another salaried role; unless my business takes off better than I imagined etc

StevieBee

14,430 posts

273 months

Saturday 4th October
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LosingGrip said:
Thanks for all the replies. All really useful.

StevieBee said:
A few years back, I met a couple of ex Traffic Officers (from Birmingham) who'd set up a consultancy business that worked with Governments, Councils and Highways, helping to shape road design to make roads safer. I met them at a Smart Cities event in Spain where they were working with Madrid Municipality. They seemed to be doing very well.
This is what I cant get my head around, how do you get into those type of jobs?
It comes down to the subtle things; a conversation with someone, reading something, seeing something....something that sparks a thought that turns into an idea which leads to a business. It's often the case that ideas come when you're not looking for them so there's also the need to just keep your eyes and mind open.



Shnozz

29,584 posts

289 months

Saturday 4th October
quotequote all
StevieBee said:
It comes down to the subtle things; a conversation with someone, reading something, seeing something....something that sparks a thought that turns into an idea which leads to a business. It's often the case that ideas come when you're not looking for them so there's also the need to just keep your eyes and mind open.
I would also say it’s rarely the first business idea is the successful one. Too many folks procrastinate before starting a business thinking they need to have it all mapped out to perfection before making the leap.

Yes, you need some idea of what you will be doing to make an income, but in my experience the successful business at the other end quite often looks very different to the one that started, or the concept behind it.

You’ve got to be alive to looking for opportunities outside of where you originally aimed, and flexing to leverage them.

Acorn1

2,140 posts

38 months

Saturday 4th October
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I got fed up with being a minion in a corporate co.

Whilst being a star performer, rarely got recognition for it and promotion seemed like a long and dreary path.

Took the plunge in 2001 and never looked back.

There’s been some high times and some very low times (2007 to 2009) but stuck with it.

I have a large client base now and whilst I won’t be a millionaire I am very comfortable.

You just can’t beat being your own boss.

bad company

20,987 posts

284 months

Saturday 4th October
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Have you thought about looking at franchising? I did that many years ago starting a recruitment business. There was a dispute between the franchisor and franchisees leading to a major split. By then I had been running the franchise for a few years giving me the skills, experience and contacts to start my very own niche recruitment business.

https://www.thebfa.org/

Edited by bad company on Saturday 4th October 10:11

Simpo Two

89,820 posts

283 months

Saturday 4th October
quotequote all
StevieBee said:
It comes down to the subtle things; a conversation with someone, reading something, seeing something....something that sparks a thought that turns into an idea which leads to a business. It's often the case that ideas come when you're not looking for them so there's also the need to just keep your eyes and mind open.
I heard this described as having a 'curly mind', and it's very true. Always looking for a new angle, a better way, or putting two problems together to make an answer.

Acorn1 said:
I got fed up with being a minion in a corporate co.

Whilst being a star performer, rarely got recognition for it and promotion seemed like a long and dreary path.

Took the plunge in 2001 and never looked back.

There s been some high times and some very low times (2007 to 2009) but stuck with it.

I have a large client base now and whilst I won t be a millionaire I am very comfortable.

You just can t beat being your own boss.
I would just temper that with two things. First, you have to be good at marketing and sales. Some people just aren't. Second, not everybody is comfortable 'being their own boss'. Some people need to be given structure, organisation and tasks to thrive. Not everyone can cope being out on the open plains of self-employment scavenging for food. But I would say that every £1 you earn from your own wits and good judgement is worth twice the £1 you get for sitting behind a desk doing what you're told.

For me it was easy as I was redundant, so had nothing to lose by trying. Cashing in a reliable job that pays the bills to try is a different matter. Ideally the OP would overlap them so he can see how it goes before jumping.

lizardbrain

3,183 posts

55 months

Saturday 4th October
quotequote all
LosingGrip said:
Pretty much as per the thread title. Those that have your own business, how did you get into it?

I love the idea of starting my own business, but havent got a clue what I'd want to do.

Im currently in the police on Roads Policing. I've got a number if skills from there, but qualification wise nothing apart from a few GCSEs, and a diploma in Media...

(In a bit of a slump at work as well).
As long as I can remember, whenever I've had a job, pretty much every single subtask I would complete, something in the back of my mind would be thinking 'I wonder if I could turn this into a business'

If this doesn't come naturally, you could try and force the same kind of thinking on your day to day... something will likely crop up. Then once you have picked something you can go into spy mode and spend a few weeks researching from behind enemy lines.

The more niche the better. You can pry open a gap and expand later

Simpo Two

89,820 posts

283 months

Saturday 4th October
quotequote all
lizardbrain said:
As long as I can remember, whenever I've had a job, pretty much every single subtask I would complete, something in the back of my mind would be thinking 'I wonder if I could turn this into a business'
I can see the sign now:

'LosingGrip Roads Policing Ltd in partnership with Blogshire County Council. Keeping you safe'.

Anything but that please!


lizardbrain

3,183 posts

55 months

Saturday 4th October
quotequote all
Simpo Two said:
I can see the sign now:

'LosingGrip Roads Policing Ltd in partnership with Blogshire County Council. Keeping you safe'.

Anything but that please!
The trick is to realise that businesses are made up of many small pieces. Some of which an individual can do more efficiently than a large company which is less focused.


Edited by lizardbrain on Sunday 12th October 16:35

Simpo Two

89,820 posts

283 months

Saturday 4th October
quotequote all
Lizardbrain's on the right lines. Most traffic cones mark off perfectly good chunks of road anyway. So get a lorry and go along chucking them all in the back. The motorists of GB will love you as the country starts moving again, productivity rises, growth increases, tax take increases and we all live happily ever after smile

That's the country fixed. Now, what shall I do this afternoon? spin

Unreal

7,742 posts

43 months

Friday 10th October
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'Running a business' especially a small one is pretty generic but certain areas are more important at the beginning, the first of which is how you will obtain customers.

IME it's pretty rare for people to leave one area to become-self employed in something completely different. That tends to happen more with people making a big lifestyle change like going from investment banking to breeding Alpacas. A lot of those people can treat it as a hobby, much like 'downsizers' it's much easier if there are no financial pressures. £3M Chiswick house to £300K Welsh smallholding. Tough gig, not.

Anyway, in the OP's case, I'd be looking at where his Force employ contractors and thinking about whether he could do a better job and if he could acquire some of those skills at the Force's expense before he leaves.

Geoffcapes

1,003 posts

182 months

Friday 10th October
quotequote all
Unreal said:
Anyway, in the OP's case, I'd be looking at where his Force employ contractors and thinking about whether he could do a better job and if he could acquire some of those skills at the Force's expense before he leaves.
This^^^

LosingGrip

Original Poster:

8,445 posts

177 months

Unreal said:
'

Anyway, in the OP's case, I'd be looking at where his Force employ contractors and thinking about whether he could do a better job and if he could acquire some of those skills at the Force's expense before he leaves.
Ive given this some time over the weekend, and there isnt anything that is jumping out but ill keep thinking.

Annoyingly ill need to get any business interest approved by professional standards before I can do any of it.

Im still waiting almost six months for them to approve my driving instructing request...