Do you desire a job where you do not clock in and clock out each day? Do you desire a job that is not average, and is something everyone is jealous of? Have you ever thought of ditching your day job and starting your own business? On today’s episode of the James Swanwick show, James is joined by Daniel DiPiazza, entrepreneur and author, who discusses what triggered his love of business, and the freedoms that come with it.

When Daniel graduated from college in 2009, the economy and real estate market were at a lull. He realized he had two choices, either to do the corporate route or complete a higher education degree. He, simply, did not want to do either. He began working a bunch of random jobs, and started blogging about it. Working in what he called, ‘dead end,’ jobs allowed Daniel to pick up on multiple skills including learning how to organize systematically and how to eliminate small problems in your work. Shortly after working in these jobs, he realized he wanted to start his own business.

Daniel points out that businesses solve pain points, then poses the question: what pain points can you solve? Daniel points out that often times people fear looking stupid when starting a business, but that will actually waste their time. Daniel DiPiazza teaches you how to ditch your average job, start an epic business, and score the life you want. You can read more about Daniel in his new book Rich20Something.

Key Points

• Daniel wrote Rich20Something in response to working a bunch of dead end jobs, and finally starting his own business.
• Daniel points out there are different phases you go through when starting a business, and the frustration that comes with each.
• Learning how to spread out your emotional energy is important, so you do not overstress in the first stage.
• Entrepreneurship is great, but you have to learn to be able to be comfortable with being uncomfortable.
• Daniel always recommends freelancing for those who want to ditch their day jobs and start their own business.
• Do an inventory of your skills to see what you can offer.
  • It is a great first step, as it is something you can do on the side while still working your full-time job.
  • You can start it immediately, do not need to buy product, hire staff, etc.
  • You can advertise your skill sets on a variety of platforms including social media, quora, reddit, or upwork.
• The quickest way to success is to simply improve upon something that is already available.
• 3 step validation process:
  • Is there anyone else doing it? Is there a market fit?
  • Is your competition making money?
  • What can you do to improve your product?
• Tips with starting your own business:
  • Learn to balance your freelance income with your job.
  • Have a plan A and a plan B. Let your plan B redirect your failed plan A, if it does fail.
  • It is important to learn how to communicate with people efficiently.
  • Put your product / service on the market, even if it is not perfect yet.
• Have 100 meaningful conversations with different people over the course of the year, with what you are doing. This:
  • Creates and solidifies your elevator pitch
  • Opens networking opportunities, and you will meet way more than 100 people
  • Will grow your confidence with the process over time
• Starting your own business will teach you the:
  • Importance of good leadership
  • Importance of building good systems that are not dependent on you
  • Ability to grow up, and separate your emotions from the things you are in charge of.
• When you start a business you can hire people, you can travel, you can have freedom, and you can create the life you want.

Get your copy of Daniel’s book, Rich20Something here.

To keep up with Daniel, follow his instagram at rich20something or clicking here.