You don’t have to be a ‘hairy assed entrepreneur’ if you don’t want to

Starting up a business is not the same as being an entrepreneur – there are broader benefits which are particularly relevant in the current economic environment.

Don’t be put off by some of the stereotypical entrepreneurial behemoths that feature regularly on our television screens. For every one of them, there are literally thousands of people running their own businesses in a much less high profile way.

I take a more relaxed view of what you need to do to run a profitable business – not to get so overwhelmed with the sellotape of rules and regulations - to such an extent that you forget that you are there to enjoy yourself.

Are there some words or thoughts that really give you the ‘whirling pits’ like risk, leadership, creativity, the customers always right, nothing in my diary, selling, ambiguity, no monthly salary?

Hi there! Join the club!

So, there are risks? Yes, of course there are.

So, do you have to be a rabid risk taker, Wallace type innovator (of Wallace and Gromit fame) Alpha male or female to succeed? The statistics suggest not. Many business owners have worked out for themselves what a good business looks and feels like for them.

The important thing is to remember that you’re never alone – support is there whenever and wherever you choose to look for it.