Retiring from the military can be an exciting chapter of life for some, as this means freedom from spontaneous military orders and being closer to your loved ones. Whether you are a current military member or a veteran, you and your family members can get amazing health, educational and recreational benefits, but this requires you to get military verification which is not a problem since you can easily and quickly verify your military status from SCRACVS.
What’s even a bigger problem for most of the former military members is what to do next with their life to get sufficient earnings. As soon as military members transit to civilian life, getting “normal” employment can be a challenge because the set of skills and level of education required may be quite different.
Even if they do get a corporate job, it may be pretty hard for them to adjust to the timings, nature, and role of the job. Therefore, entrepreneurship can be an excellent fit for veterans.
There are numerous examples of veteran-owned businesses which are tremendously successful today. For instance, Nike, FedEx, and Walmart were founded and created by veterans and are considered one of the top businesses.
Reasons Why Military Veterans Can Be Great Entrepreneurs
There are certain sets of skills and qualities that are required in order to become a successful businessman. And this is one of the reasons why many ex-military members qualify for a great entrepreneur. This also allows them to have flexible working hours and be their own boss. Anyway, the reasons why entrepreneurship is a good fit for veterans are listed below.
Exceptional Decision-Making Skills
As a businessman, you need to take both short-term and long-term decisions, which can be quite crucial for the success of a business. At times, you don’t even have enough resources, time, or even information to make the 100% accurate decision and this obviously comes with risk as well.
Veterans are already well-trained for this skill during their training in the military. They know how to make quick decisions confidently and stand by them until their successful execution.
Therefore, veterans can make efficient and quick decisions to ensure their business doesn’t only survive but also thrive.
Veterans Possess Creative Thinking Skills
At the time of the service of military members, they are required to come up with solutions to problems and even provide innovative ideas to get through an issue with ease.
Businesses also require you to think ahead of your competitor and come with unique ideas to differentiate your practice for a competitive edge. Moreover, every other day, businesses have to face problems and this requires the owner to provide reasonable solutions.
Hence, veterans can implement the same skills in a different scope and flourish their business.
Excellent Teamwork
Businesses require you to work together as a team and allow everyone to generate their own ideas without feeling “left out”. You also need to trust others and communicate with them for mutual benefit. The better the team, the stronger will be the base of a business.
And veterans are already well-trained in this aspect. In order to make a mission successful, all the team members have to unite and work together as a single unit. No matter how different personalities everyone has, a veteran has to cooperate.
Leadership Experience
Leadership is crucial for the success of a business as this factor allows the employees to stay motivated and outperform themselves. A leader of a business leads the entire team and at the same time supports them to perform their best. They help the company achieve its strategic goals without ever going off track.
While veterans are also trained enough to be one with their squad when on a mission, they become excellent entrepreneurs and walk side by side with their team members to allow the company to reach the peak of success. This way, the employees remain loyal and work hard for the brand.
Performance Under Pressure
Running a business doesn’t mean that everything will be super smooth. There will definitely be a few instances when you have to be vigilant and active to take a viable step to prevent your company from a major loss.
For instance, if, for some reason, an important order is not delivered to your major customer in a timely manner, this can make a normal business person panic and make the wrong decisions.
Whereas, on the other hand, veterans are already trained for this as their job has always required them to respond to spontaneous situations while being under pressure, so they can take a better step at times like this, which can be essential for businesses.
Staying Dedicated
Being in the military requires you to stay dedicated to your job. It’s more like a lifestyle, as it requires a great deal of commitment. You need to sacrifice a lot as well, like relocating every other year or staying away from your loved ones.
This is the same case for business owners. They need to sacrifice in order to take their business to the heights of success. At times, you need to work late hours or even work on the weekends instead of relaxing or attending an important meeting even if you don’t feel well.
This commitment to business can be given by a veteran as they are well-acquainted with such scenarios. This allows them to turn their businesses into prospering ventures.
How to Make Transition from Military to Entrepreneurship Easier?
Irrespective of the skills veterans possess for entrepreneurship, they may still feel a little confused and unsure regarding how to take the first step and make the right decisions when establishing your business.
You don’t need to worry much about it as you can get a qualified mentor to help you with starting a business and give you advice on the kind of business you want to establish.
You can also join short business courses to help you get accustomed to basic business strategies and planning. Moreover, if you know any veteran-turned-businessman, you can contact them and ask them to guide you.
