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A business owner is someone whose main intention with entrepreneurship is to set up a business and then allow it to run without him. Someone who is self-employed, on the other hand, is someone who uses his unique talents and abilities to provide specialized products or services.

Both are paths to entrepreneurship, and both truly add value to other people's lives. But Path A will give you more freedom than Path B. Simply put: a business owner can take a vacation and still earn from his business, while someone who is self-employed does not earn anything if he doesn't work.

 

If you're currently on Path B and would like to start moving towards Path A, here are five steps you can try right now:

 

1. Make a firm decision and focus on one big strategy: Decide on your particular niche, or unique selling point (USP), or specialization. Many self-employed individuals become overwhelmed because they become involved in too many things, accepting any project, client or marketing opportunity that comes along.

It's a good thing to want to help everyone. But the problem with being able to "help everyone" and "do everything" is that you will end up doing everything for everyone.

2. Have a Big Picture in your mind about the ultimate direction you want to take, and let it guide you in making your important decisions. You can also look at this strategy as "starting to build your brand."

This might, at the start, mean having to pass up on what seems to be very good opportunities and projects. But if they don?t work directly with the niche you're building, those ventures will simply take time away from the projects that don't pay much now, but will become integral parts of your brand in the future.

3. It's true that you need to pay attention to your money resources and limit your expenses during the start-up phase. But a leveraging mindset can guide your decisions about what's necessary and what's not.

For example, hiring someone to process all your business papers might seem like an unnecessary cost. But if this will save you from costly mistakes and delays, and if you will be able to use that time to improve your business processes, then it can only be a worthwhile investment.

 

Gather these bits and pieces of data and experiences in your business, and begin documenting your processes.

5. Finally, begin to think like a coach and mentor rather than an implementer. Many self-employed people are very wary about revealing trade secrets to other people, and so are unable to develop a team to take over their business. What they need to realize is that each person they hire also brings with him or her trade secrets that they learned from other people or developed themselves, so any employer-employee relationship is really a win-win situation.

After all, a huge part of growing a business is really about growing people, and -- as that old Chinese proverb says -- this is the kind of legacy that lasts for generations.

Aileen Santos is an internationally certified Work-Life ReInvention Coach and A-Ha! Trainer who helps overwhelmed leaders and entrepreneurs achieve balance and success in the things that truly matter. If you want more "LightBulb Moments" of clarity & direction for your own situation, sign up for her free tips at LightBulbOnYourHead.com.