Entrepreneur by accident

I have become an entrepreneur by accident.

How does one become an entrepreneur by accident? I mean, aren’t entrepreneurs supposed to be visionaries who have it all planned out from day one? They are these amazing individuals with the ability to foresee trends, stay ahead of the curve and hustle hard to meet their goals. At least that’s what popular media tells us.

I remember reading ‘Outliers’ by Malcolm Gladwell. The whole crux of the book was that famous entrepreneurs, more often than not, became so due to a perfect combination of timing, background, environment and upbringing. I mean, it sure helped that these individuals worked hard, but hard work alone was not the key factor in their success – there were many other things that contributed to their wealth. In other words, they were at the right place, at the right time, with the right sort of skills. 

I wish I could say the same about myself.

At some point all of us fantasise about being our own boss and owning our own business. But more often than not, paid employment offers a certain sense of security and a small amount of prestige – especially true if you are a migrant worker landing your first job in a foreign country. I was that migrant worker, happy to land a job and happy to entertain my fantasies of self-employment, but nothing more. 

Even though I was not an entrepreneur myself, I had worked with many enterprising individuals in the past. These were my students that I taught accounting to, colleagues I ran training with and even clients who came to me for business advice. But I had never considered myself an entrepreneur, merely an assistant to, or facilitator of entrepreneurship. I was making some real progress in my career as a migrant in NZ, working my way up the accounting career ladder, finally landing my dream job as an accountant/apps advisor with a small but ambitious accounting firm in Hamilton.

They were an amazing team. I loved my bosses who were driven, ambitious and had great plans surrounding app advisory – plans which I had the skills to help them implement. I felt useful and most of all appreciated. Until three weeks later the COVID-19 financial crisis hit and I was laid off with no recourse, as per the trial period clause. They said they didn’t expect any advisory business to come in. They couldn’t afford paying me. They weren’t sure if they could apply for the wage subsidy and if I had stayed on beyond the 90-day trial period it would be harder to let me go then. Needless to say, I was disheartened. Or perhaps being disheartened is an understatement. I was crushed.

I wish I could say I understood why they did what they did – but I don’t. I’m not a business owner and I don’t have people working for me. So I won’t make assumptions about the inner workings of their minds. Such things are beyond my control and I have resolved to not let such things get to me.

Being unemployed at the cusp of the COVID-19 financial crisis is a difficult position to be in. Businesses aren’t hiring, everyone is in lockdown and no one seems interested in spending any money. In such a situation what does one do?

The only thing that anyone can do – is to keep pushing forwards.

My first fall back was my personal website – this one you are reading right now. I’ve kept this website up since August 2019, mainly using it as a means of enhancing my public profile to better help me land jobs (it’s been quite useful in getting me employed). After spending a mandatory day feeling sorry for myself, I picked myself up and immediately began blogging about the COVID-19 crisis.

I blogged about what I knew best – helping small businesses navigate the financial crisis. At the very start of my unemployment, I made a public resolution to blog everyday for 30 days. And surprisingly enough I was gaining new readers, more comments on my blog, more engagements on my facebook page and more people messaging me, telling me that my work had helped them greatly. In the first two weeks of being unemployed, I managed to increase my blog readership to 2,340 monthly views in March 2020 from a paltry 200 views in the previous month.

I knew I was onto something and that I needed to seize the initiative and do something about it. Therefore, now I am working hard on strategies to monetise this blog – so that I can continue producing free, useful, inspiring and timely content for my readers. I’ve been reaching out to software providers like Xero and Pocketsmith for sponsored content and affiliate links. I’m also currently working on a pay-what-you-can business advisory and accounting support service (which you will definitely hear more about later). I’m also dedicating an hour of my time everyday to reading some good, inspirational books on becoming an entrepreneur and making the most of it.

So there you have it. I never planned to become an entrepreneur. It just sort of happened by accident. Whether or not this turns out to be a blessing in disguise, only time will tell. But for now, all I can do is focus on what my strengths are, work on things that are within my control and trust that I am well-prepared for whatever else comes my way – because that is what a Victor does. 

Having that Victor mindset is important – because to be an entrepreneur, I have to think like one.