Leaving corporate and the comfort of a high-paying job to venture into entrepreneurship takes courage. This path is challenging, but if you are tired of working in corporate America, building a personal brand can support your business goals. 

I found success in entrepreneurship after quitting by creating a true-to-self brand and coaching women entrepreneurs on how to build personal brands that reflect their multi-passionate, vivacious selves.

This is what I have learned and what you can do to quit your job and start a profitable personal brand. 

Know When it’s Time to Quit and Why You’re Quitting

Before you ask yourself “how do I get out of corporate?”, check in with yourself to know why you want to quit. 

I knew I was ready to leave my job when I realized I didn’t envy anyone at my job. If you are constantly crying, your health is suffering, or are no longer finding joy in what you do, these may be signs you are not in the right place. 

You may be dealing with workplace bullying and are in a toxic work environment. Recognizing this may help you realize you do enjoy working in corporate but are dreading your current job. In this case, it is important to create a strategy to find a new job with a work culture you enjoy rather than start a business. 

If you are deciding whether the entrepreneurial journey is for you, there are a few things you can ask yourself to see if it’s the right fit for you.

Here are 5 questions to decide if entrepreneurship is for you:

Do you like consistency in your days? 

Entrepreneurship requires flexibility because your day to day will look different. Some days you may be taking care of backend work, other days you will be working with clients, and on another you may be learning a new skill for your business. 

In this journey, I’ve come to realize balance doesn’t exist, but, rather, it is about understanding your priorities. Sometimes you will need to focus on healing and others on growing your business. Prioritizing your needs is at the core of building the lifestyle you want and a business that lasts. 

Do you need recognition? 

If you are doing the work for fame, this is not for you. While we know the names of great entrepreneurs, none of them got there overnight. It may take years before your work is recognized. You should be driven by a bigger purpose that motivates you when your hard work goes unnoticed. 

Do you hold yourself accountable? 

It’s great to be your own boss! You don’t have anyone telling you what to do, but that also means you don’t have anyone telling you what to do. This means no procrastination or lack of discipline. You are responsible for keeping yourself focused and completing your tasks. 

[Bonus Tip: To help you in this task, remember to invest in tools that keep your work organized as you grow your online business]

Are you comfortable with “failure”?

Not everything you do will give you the results you expect. That’s the reality of entrepreneurship. You have to be willing to take those lessons, grow from them, and pivot. 

Starting your business starts before starting your business: it starts in your mind. You need to have the right entrepreneurial mindset.  

Are you comfortable with not pleasing everyone? 

Starting a true-to-self brand means you have to be comfortable speaking your mind even if others don’t agree. 

Your business is not built for everyone. It is built for your ideal client, and your ideal client will respond to you. Don’t blend in!

If you have decided that you are ready to quit for entrepreneurship, a key step in your exit strategy is setting up a financial plan. 

Create a Financial Plan and Say Goodbye to Corporate

To create a personalized financial plan take into account your lifestyle and your business goals. Take the time to calculate startup costs for your business. This will vary depending on the type of business you want to start, but knowing this information will help you better prepare.

Once you know your business expenses, take into account other expenses that you will need to grow such as investing in coaches, courses, and tools that will support your success.  

Knowing these details will help you create a realistic budget. Here’s an overview of the steps you need to take to create your budget:

• Create financial goals for yourself and your business. 
• Track your current expenses to better understand how you spend your money. 
• Keeping in mind your goals and your expenses (present and future), create a budget.
• Include an emergency fund.

[Bonus tip: Review your financial goals and budget on a regular basis to build the life you want. Check this complete checklist to create a budget that helps you quit]. 

Having your finances in order will remove financial anxieties and free up your mind, so you can focus on creating a brand that is true-to-you.  

Building a Profitable Personal Brand

Before we delve into how to build a profitable brand, let’s discuss WHY you need a personal brand. The answer is simple: business resiliency. 

A personal brand allows you to attract people who connect with your core message, so you stay visible and recognizable even if your business products or services change. 

There are various details that go into creating a profitable personal brand, but here are three main factors to consider.

Identify Your Brand Values

The first step in creating a personal brand is identifying your values since these will guide how your personal brand looks and sounds. 

For example, if you are someone who appreciates humor, this will impact how you express your brand voice. 

The same is true when you choose your brand colors. As an example, I chose my colors with the intention of creating a cohesive instagram feed as well as creating a feed that reflects my brand’s personality and core message of living a vivacious, freedom-filled life.

Create a Brand Strategy that Speaks to Your Ideal Audience

A brand strategy is the roadmap for your brand because it is built on your values, and it tells others why you are doing the work you do and who you serve. Because of this, it speaks to your ideal client at any point in their awareness journey. 

When you first start, you can start creating a clear brand strategy by sharing your journey and the lessons you are learning along the way.  (Try using these customizable branded Canva templates to keep your content consistent with your brand strategy!)

As you share your journey, keep in mind your why and who. This may vary from uplifting your community financially or helping more women achieve freedom. 

Sharing how your journey is moving you towards the impact you want to create or how your experiences motivate you will keep your brand focused.

[Bonus Tip: Having this core message will also help you identify content pillars for your instagram strategy]

The goal of your brand strategy is to connect with your ideal audience on a deeper level, so you are memorable and so they trust you when you present your offers. 

Turn Your Skills into a Profitable Brand

To ​​make money with your brand, you need to have a clear solution and offer. By sharing your journey as part of your content strategy, you know your audience aspires to have a similar lifestyle as you. 

The question is, how are you helping them achieve the same goal? If my core message is about freedom, and I want others to experience freedom, I need to offer a solution that guides my clients towards it. 

This is in fact what led me to build my brand development coaching program. 
If you are a freedom-obsessed woman who aspires to live a vivacious life, join the waitlist for my brand development coaching program or see if a customized social media branding package is a better fit for you.