Downsize your boss-is it possible?

How about this for a change: you call a meeting with your boss and tell her that you are sorry to have to tell her this, but she is being downsized and you are afraid you are going have to let her go? Is this one of your recurring dreams? If it is, perhaps you should consider franchise opportunities as a way to help make that dream become a reality.

Franchise consulting companies get requests almost daily from people looking to make this very dream a reality—for many it will happen! Current estimates suggest that a new franchise is opened every 5-8 minutes right here in the good old United States. I can personally assure you that all of those folks are not displaced Wall Street tycoons looking for another outlet for their millions. Clients from all walks of life and a variety of financial and employment backgrounds are considering franchise opportunities. Somewhere in the process we learn they are frustrated by lack of control of their own destiny and they have decided it is time to take control! We applaud these people and we even have a name for them---entrepreneurs.

Could a franchise opportunity be the answer for you?

Let’s talk a little about franchising. For starters, franchising itself is not an actual industry. Franchising is a business system, but in today’s language it is not uncommon to group businesses together that use the business system known as franchising. Just to expand that idea, latest estimates suggest that there are approximately 3,000 franchise companies operating in the United States. These companies represent about 30 primary categories and hundreds of sub-categories. What does that mean? Well, it means there are a whole lot more franchise opportunities than McDonald’s and Burger King. 3,000 companies and the numbers are growing every day. It is estimated that approximately 3- 5 new franchise companies enter the arena each month. Like any business, some will survive, some will not.

Now is a good time to talk about business survival. You can work hard at your job and get the annual national average salary increase of approximately 3% -3.5% (unless you are a Wall Street or Oil Company Exec—then of course, you can get millions—but I digress). That’s right—the national average for annual increases is right around 3-3.5%. What does that mean to you? Well, if you are currently working hard and making $10.00 an hour and you get that 3.5% increase you will go from $10.00 per hour to $10.35 per hour. Now, the math works like this; you just went from $400 per week to $414. ($10 x 40 hours = $400, $10.35x40 hours=$414) So, you waited a year and you got a $14 per week raise. Over 52 weeks (until your next raise) you will make an additional $728 per year. Gas prices are currently increasing about 10-15% a week and food prices are right behind that. Granted times change and this is what it is today, but the income figures we used represent pay raise targets for the past several years.

We do not intend to minimize the role of the working family by any means; we just want to point out that working as an employee is not always the best way to become financially independent. In their book, “The Millionaire Next Door, The Surprising Secrets of America’s Wealthy” by Thomas J Stanley PhD and William D. Danko PhD published by Longstreet Press, they note the following: “Interestingly, self-employed people make up less than 20% of the workers In America but account for two-thirds (or 66.6%) of the millionaires. Also, three out of four of us who are self-employed consider ourselves to be entrepreneurs.” We think this is a dramatic finding and when compared with the information above about hourly wages increases, this becomes a glaring statement.

We understand that self-employment is not an option for everyone, maybe not even for most. As the authors mentioned above noted, self-employed people represent only about 20% of the work force. But that number is growing and franchise opportunities are part of the reason for that increase. No longer does being self-employed require one to go out on the limb all alone. That is still an option of course, but with franchise opportunities available at a variety of financial levels, the gates are opening wider.



What is my guarantee of success with a franchise?

The old saying; nothing is guaranteed but death and taxes---well for the most part that appears to be true. The latest mortality studies show that death is pretty much a 100% certainty, the taxes---well, let’s not go there right now. The fact is there is no guarantee in anything we do, but some things can be done to reduce risk of failure. This is the point where we need to discuss business survivability or success, so let me get on track with that thought. There are many thesis papers and lofty academic debates on both sides of the aisle on the topic of successes of franchises versus self startups. However, there is little argument that a franchise offers an existing business model, business startup assistance with site selection, lease negotiation assistance, proprietary operating systems and in many cases a recognizable name. It is common to say that franchising is an opportunity to be “in business for yourself but not BY yourself.” Having support staff available that has already dealt with issues a new franchisee will confront is a comfort that many take to heart. There is also little argument that franchisors (the actual franchise companies) in business for 3 years or greater will typically perform dramatically better than a self start up in the same industry.

There is no magic formula or guarantee when starting a business. Those that succeed will be the ones that are willing to spend the time and effort to make the business/franchise work. Starting up the business with a support staff already behind you is an undeniably attractive and motivating factor available with a franchise opportunity.

If you are tired of only dreaming about downsizing your boss, then perhaps now is the time to take the next step. Franchise consultants are ready and willing to assist you as you explore franchise opportunities. Face it; you know you would do things different if YOU were the boss; is it time to see if you can make those dreams come true? It is frequently said that acquiring a franchise opportunity represents “being in business for yourself but not by yourself.” Let the entrepreneur spirit loose to explore!

In our next article in this series, we will discuss ways to determine if franchising truly is an option for you. Good luck and hope to see you there.

Downsize your boss-is it possible? - To learn more about this author, visit Mike Callahan's Website.

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