by Marvin L. Storm

Created on: June 14, 2009   Last Updated: June 16, 2009

The very first thing you learn about becoming a smart investor is not to put all of your eggs in one basket. In traditional employment, you not only put all of your eggs in one basket, but you hand that basket to someone else. You have absolutely no control over the outcome.

That is my definition of true risk.

Typically, those who prefer traditional employment make an argument that goes something along these lines: I'd really like to start my own business or get into a franchise, but I'm just not ready to take that much risk so I'm going to take a job with Intel.

Successful entrepreneurs understand risks. They study, quantify and manage them. Above all else, however, they do not fear them.

Being an employee clouds a person's view and prevents them from truly evaluating risk. There are too many agendas and risks in the workplace that can have career changing or ending impacts. Everything is skillfully masterminded by someone else.

A risk that is understood, quantified, and managed is not really a risk at all. It is the risks over which you have no control that are the most dangerous.

It used to be that an employee could comfortably work for an employer until a certain age and then discover an income pot-of-gold upon retirement. This is rapidly becoming history. Corporate employers who once used golden handcuffs to keep talented individuals shackled to their desks now use a wooden plank to eliminate what is now considered outdated.

For years, entrepreneurial pursuits were considered foolish and risky.

Consider this, however. Millions of people are being tossed into the ditch as a result of 'right sizing.'

Remember Enron? Tyco? WorldCom? Delphi? United Airlines? It was these companies, along with many Internet companies, that were making headlines just a few years ago. Today it is hundreds of mortgage companies, banks, investment brokerages, and the Big Three Automakers. The list goes on.

Becoming an entrepreneur is one of the surest ways to protect your future and make sure you are rewarded for all of your hard work. If you have confidence in your talents and skill set, the entrepreneur mindset may be your only avenue to keep and increase your income earning ability.

In fact, entrepreneurship will significantly increase your income earning potential and provide a golden parachute that you can control, and not some corporate goon who will help you to the door and shove you out, sometimes without a parachute at all.

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