More and more, people are seeking freedom from the conventional 9-5 job. And beyond the 9-5, entrepreneurs and corporate employees alike are looking to earn their living in a way that is more flexible, that offers better control of their time, that in addition to being freer, is just more fun. If these things are important to you, sometimes even more than money, then maybe the lifestyle entrepreneur life is for you.
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What Is A Lifestyle Entrepreneur?
A lifestyle entrepreneur is someone who moulds their career around their preferred lifestyle rather than the other way around. In other words, a lifestyle entrepreneur is someone who works to live and does not live to work. Digital nomads, whom you may be familiar with, are an example of lifestyle entrepreneurs.
A lifestyle entrepreneur is concerned just as much with the quality of their life outside work as with financial rewards. They differ from typical entrepreneurs in that they decide what kind of life they want to live and then build their business around it, while other entrepreneurs build their life around their chosen business.
However, as uncertain as it may seem, it is entirely possible to earn a fantastic living as a lifestyle entrepreneur in any part of the world. It’s not easy and it’s not for everyone, but it doesn’t hurt to consider this as a viable option for your career path.
This means that your chosen occupation, be it an e-commerce business or a farming business, doesn’t have to be something you are in love with. It means that as long your career is built around your life and not the reverse, you’re a lifestyle entrepreneur.
See also: Starting A Business Without Passion: Only For the Passionless
No doubt, this is not a conventional way of life. For the most part, especially in poorer regions of the world, financial security and survival is king. Still, for some, freedom, relaxation and flexibility are all aspects of survival, all qualities of living a good life.
If your motto sounds something like “I want to live like every day is my last”, read on. We will show you just how to craft the lifestyle entrepreneur path you’ve always secretly wanted.
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Becoming A Lifestyle Entrepreneur
Identify Your Passions
Is there something you have always wanted to experience or something you enjoy doing in your spare time? Travel? Photography? Good Food? It is possible to combine your business with your passions. In fact, doing so is a way of moulding your business around your preferred lifestyle.
Think Up Ideas That Align With Your Passion
For example, if you love to travel, you could build a thriving online community based on your adventures. You can take inspiration from Katchie Nzama, the popular South African travel blogger who quit a conventional job to pursue her dream. She travelled the entire length of the African continent – twice. Her blogging career is now the source of her livelihood, and she gets to work in a way that does not feel like work.
See also: How To Become A Travel Consultant
Research Your Ideas
From your list of passions, pick out a few ideas. Here, you want to do the research necessary to decide if an idea is financially viable for your lifestyle. Additionally, it’s important to make sure that your chosen business will allow you the level of freedom you want for your lifestyle. If not, you might want to keep looking.
In general, you want to measure flexibility, income potential, and market value. entrepreneurs.ng has published a comprehensive guide on how to conduct market research. It includes useful tips on how to understand customers, scope out the competition, and understand the market. Check it out for more valuable suggestions!
Consider Freelancing
If you are still unsure about where your skills and passions lie, consider freelancing in the meantime.
A freelancer is an independent contractor. He or she works independently in a self-employed capacity for a single company or for several clients at once, without a long-term contract. As a freelancer, you can charge by the hour or by the project and even more, you wouldn’t have to register a business as you are working in your own name.
Most freelance jobs are to be found in writing, tutoring, marketing, graphics design, and web development. If you have skills that are marketable, do not hesitate to seek out freelance jobs that align with your schedule.
Freelancing allows you to work from the comfort of your home, a library, a coffee shop, or any public space in which you are most at ease. If you are someone who still places value on semi-formal workspaces, ReDahlia workspaces offer private and open space offices with super-fast internet!
Draft A Business Plan
The business plan is the foundation of your business, but it doesn’t have to take too long to make. After researching your business idea, you should know exactly what is involved in getting started. Essentially, your business must have a website and a way by which others can contact you professionally.
Your business plan should answer these questions:
- What exactly is my business about?
- What services or products will I provide?
- How will I deliver these services?
- What equipment do I need to get started?
- How will I fund my business?
- When can I start to expect profit?
- What kind of clientele am I targeting?
- Who is my competition?
- How do I market my business?
- How can I troubleshoot any problems that might come up?
You want to make sure that your business is going to solve relevant problems and that it will be lucrative enough to support the lifestyle of your dreams. Be sure to check out our comprehensive and easy-to-understand guide on crafting a great business plan.
Develop A Price List And Marketing Strategy
When setting prices for your products and services, be sure to charge what you’re worth. However, you shouldn’t charge so much that your target audience will be unwilling to pay for it.
When it comes to marketing, social media is the most important tool. Combined with a business website, which promotes your brand, this is how you sell yourself. Email marketing, blogging, and online videos are also useful ways a lifestyle entrepreneur can market their services on their own time.
Ideally, during your market research, you would have defined a customer persona. A customer persona is the typical profile of a potential customer, and it addresses characteristics like age, gender, occupation, and income.
Outsource Where Possible
It’s a good idea to outsource any extra work to a virtual assistant, to manage the less technical aspects of your business. These include social media management, customer service, blog writing, and bookkeeping. This is especially important when your business starts to grow and your client base with it. Delegating part of your workload allows you to live the lifestyle you want and is also a smart way to refresh your brand when you need to.
See also: The Benefits of Exercise To The Entrepreneur
With these 7 steps, you’re well on your way to becoming a fun, free, and flexible lifestyle entrepreneur. Choosing the life you want, especially one as unconventional as this, is not always easy. However, it goes without saying that hard work, in the beginning, will reap rewards sooner than you think.
Let’s create visibility for your brand today and put your business on the world map. Contact us today to make your brand the preferred choice among our audience of entrepreneurs and business leaders.
