What is Micro Business in Australia?
As iconic as the Sydney Opera House so too are the numbers of Micro Business owners in Australia. Becoming self-employed is on the increase as more and more people are looking for flexible work to life balance.
Micro Business defined by the NSW government is a business run by an individual rather than a corporation or larger company. It can have up to 4 employees before it becomes a small business. Small business can then be defined as 5 to 19 employees.
Another definition is “Solopreneur” which is a term embraced be people working for themselves instead of working for someone else.
Are you a micro business operator in Australia?
Living in Australia we are very fortunate to have the choice to be self-employed. This choice can be made at any stage of our lives.
More and more mature age workers are beginning the dream of being self-employed or going ‘freelance’ later in their lives. Microbusiness comes in many shapes and sizes.
As Australians, we desire more flexibility and there are almost endless options for people to pursue this as a choice of work/life balance. For many being self-employed also allows them to work from a home office or from a mobile office.
Are you becoming self-employed to:
- Avoid the daily commute to the office
- Be valued for your efforts
- To better use your knowledge
- To grab an opportunity to fulfil a need in the marketplace
- Create a work/life balance
- Be available for your children
- Do something new / change of career
- Plus any number of other reasons
At My Sassy Business, I come across so many wonderful new and existing entrepreneurs who are micro and small business operators. The most exciting part about my business is getting to know my client’s businesses and helping them to achieve their goals.
In the micro and small business world, there are many success stories and there are many failures too. It is vital that as part of your business planning you consider the fact that you may fail, and that is ok too.
Most people know the failure rate of small businesses and startups. It is very high, and often the main reason for this is an ongoing underestimation.
People often underestimate:
- How much it will cost – this is always more than you first consider so have a contingency plan
- How long it will take – allow for several years not just one year or 6 months
- The hard work required – once you are self-employed you are always on, there is no more 9 to 5
- The time required to put in – Once you are up and running you need to work at it and you may be working at it indefinitely
- How they will market the business – marketing is essential and you need to always be marketing your business consistently all year round
- How difficult a partnership can be – the vast majority of partnerships fail, make sure you have a robust partnership agreement in place
- Plus much more…
Success in micro business can be found everywhere, and chances are that a lot of people you do business with are also micro business operators. Hopefully, as you become a business owner you will see how important it is to support others who are also small business owners.
Remember that everyone has a different measure of success. Success can be found right back when you were looking at why you want to be self-employed. For example, if you now have a work-life balance, you are a success.
If you are a micro business operator who wants to stand out from the crowd and to be successful, take the time to contact Kelly @ My Sassy Business.
First published October 2014 - since revised
