Becoming an Entrepreneur After Graduating

business curve
Creative Commons

With graduate-entry level positions becoming increasingly competitive, more graduates than ever are considering setting up a business of their own and going down the self-employed route. But how do you get started? How do you source funding and mentorship? Here we will look at how graduates can turn their great ideas and skills into a fully-fledged profitable business.

Don’t Wait Until After Graduation

Universities often offer courses or mentorship programs in an enterprise which are perfect for aspiring entrepreneurs. These courses will help you hone your skills and learn the ins and outs of what it takes to be successful in business. These courses might also help you get in front of industry experts and potential investors who could help take your business idea to the next level.

Look Out for Incubator Programs

Hatcheries, or incubators as they’re often called, are a perfect environment for young ambitious entrepreneurs. Within an incubator, you will often be assigned a mentor and receive constant guidance throughout your time. Your idea will be tested, and you will receive feedback from experts on all areas of your business, with discussions around what will work and what will not. There are also likely to be areas where your skills aren’t as strong – perhaps with accounts or marketing – and this is where the incubator can help train you up and hone those skills.

What is Your Business Aim?

Many challenges come with setting up and growing a business. These challenges can become overwhelming at times, even for the most hardened of entrepreneurs, and discourage you from pursuing your ambitions. Therefore, it’s important to have a clear focus and aim to keep you on the right track and on course to meet your goals. Although profit and money will often be the first reason for starting a business, it’s important to have goals which go beyond this to keep you passionate about what you’re doing. These goals could be about helping people cut costs, saving the environment or simply to improve their own work life.

Going it Alone or Working with Partners?

Although going it alone as an entrepreneur means you will take all profits home and you call all the shots, it also means all pressure is on you. Having business partners takes the focus off you, meaning failures and stresses are shared as well as successes. Any business partner you do choose will need to be someone/people you can totally trust and who you can get along with even in times of extreme stress. Business partners need to compliment your weaknesses and strengths, as working with the wrong partner will cause your business to fail quicker than anything else.

Pursuing Venture Capital Investment

It’s likely that if you’re setting up a business as a new graduate you will be limited by funds. There will come a point sooner or later where you consider whether pursuing venture capital investment is right for you and your business. Venture capitalists look to invest in businesses with potential for huge growth; this doesn’t necessarily mean your business needs to be making a profit already, but it does mean investors want to see great potential in your idea and in you as an entrepreneur. It’s also hugely important to find the right venture capital investors for your business. Many venture capital investors will hold investment summits and events where you can attend and get your business in front of the right people; keep a lookout in your area for local networking and investment events which will be a great opportunity to increase the exposure of your business.

Nail Your Elevator Pitch

Honing your elevator pitch is one of the best ways to prepare for a networking event or an investment summit. Your elevator pitch is a short summary of your business which defines who you are, what you do, why you do it, your USP and who your customers are. It’s best to practice this several times before you’re in front of investors and potential mentors to make sure you are confident in your pitch.  

Similar Articles

ai-model-development

Picture yourself on the verge of exploring a massive, uncharted forest armed with nothing but a handbook and the rudimentary tools needed to blaze a new trail. This vivid imagery echoes the overwhelming feeling that engulfs tech-savvy entrepreneurs facing the daunting task of embarking on Artificial Intelligence (AI) model development from scratch.

virtual office

Virtual offices are booming in the global market, and the Indian market is rapidly shifting its physical offices to virtual offices to save money and boost productivity. This article describes the journey of virtual offices in India and why they are a must for startups and entrepreneurs.

Corporate Business

Starting a business is one of the most rewarding experiences that anyone can have. When starting a new business for the first time, try to give your new enterprise the best chance to succeed.

hotel

Scaling back operations and closing hotels have become synonymous with the pandemic right now but there are a group of investors turning these hotels into great investments.

How to Update Your Company File After Upgrading QuickBooks

QuickBooks is one of the top-rated accounting tools used by businesses to ensure swiffer financing! Are you still using an older version of the accounting platform in your system? It’s time to update the existing QuickBooks tool to an upgraded version for best use! Some of these upgrades are free & some need to be purchased!         

Man using a laptop with a cup of coffee to his left and a small desk plant to his right.

Freelancing is a great career option for creatives all around the world. Whether you’re an artist, a writer, photographer, or some other form of creativity, freelancing is a great way to share your talent with the world on your terms.

entrepreneur

If you are like most people, chances are you dreamed of being the next Bill Gates or Vera Wang at some point in your life. Maybe the world’s most successful entrepreneurs inspired you to become one yourself, or maybe you just find them to be great role models.

Coworking Space

The workspace is constantly changing. Companies around the world are constantly working to improve the spaces in which we work and the way we interact with them. Coworking has become one of the biggest innovations in the office landscape in recent years.  

Tips for Growing Your CNC Machining Business

Entering the business world is a challenging goal, especially if you are joining a market with well-established and huge competitors. One of these businesses is the CNC machining industry which is used by various businesses in using and selling their products.