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How to Find Balance in Business Ownership & Your Career Transition

We have interviewed thousands of people over the past several years and have made it a practice to review this simple exercise with all our franchise candidates:

Picture three cups sitting on the table in front of you. Each cup represents a life factor, and is labeled as follows:

Make Money

Let's clarify each cup or category.

Making Money - For some people making a lot of money is their goal - they want to be rich. For others, money is a means to an end and once they have enough, they are not driven to make or earn more. Are you more concerned about immediate income and quick cash flow, or are you patient and willing to grow a business that has future equity value? It's best to ask yourself, "What are my thoughts or feelings about money?"

Passion - This is a little more complex. It is divided into two camps. The first group must love what they do and are seeking fulfillment in the actual job, product or service they deliver. Every day they want to wake up and say, "I love what I'm doing." They follow the often heard mantra, "Do what you love and the money will follow." Our observation is that this person tends to identify who they are with what they do. The other side of passion is the thrill of being an owner or entrepreneur. They love the business of being in business for themselves. In this situation, what the job or business does is secondary to what it does for them. They may own a window cleaning business and it is boring, but they are thrilled at the challenges facing them each day in growing a thriving operation. Another person may be a teacher, who is stuck in a school system, but they are thrilled by the thought that they could be making a difference in the life of even one student.

"A Bin There Dump That Franchise Can Provide You the Ideal Work/Life Balance, Discover More Here"

Quality of Life - This is a little harder to define. Each person has issues and needs that are encompassed by phrases such as:

  • "I want to have control over my time."
  • "I want to work with my family member."
  • "I want to choose who I work with."
  • "I need to have a say in major decisions, and not be forced to implement programs that I feel won't succeed."
  • "I want to control my destiny, and I'm willing to take responsibility for my choices."

What are some topics you would define as quality of life factors?

The Ten Tokens - You now have 10 tokens to place into the cups corresponding to the importance you place on each category. For example, if making money is really important to you, place more tokens in that cup. The remaining tokens must be divided between the remaining two cups. It's amazing how this exercise works with couples. Each may allocate their tokens the same way, or differently. A lively discussion always ensues.

Money

The last part of this exercise is related to what is called the primary driver. Which factor - money, passion or quality of life must come first in order for the others to happen? One partner within the couple may place more emphasis on passion, since he/she is currently trapped in a profession he/she strongly dislikes. He/she may place 5 tokens in the passion cup. His/her mate may see things differently, and place a priority on making money, knowing that if they have money, the other issues will resolve themselves. His/Her issue is security first, fun second. He/She may place 5 tokens there.

So what's the purpose of this exercise? To find out if Bin There Dump That is the ideal franchise you must include a broad number of factors. By identifying, defining and prioritizing these issues, you will make sure you end up with the best solution for your career change. Try this with your mate, life partner or significant other. Let us know how it went.

How to Transition From the Workforce to Your Own Franchise

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