That was the message that stayed with me after hearing Pamela Slim speak yesterday at the EWN meeting–the season opener attended by nearly 100 women (a few guys, too) business owners. She is the author of Escape from Cubicle Nation: From Corporate Prisoner to Thriving Entrepreneur. Her message on branding came down to a succinct mantra: Amplify who you really are. And let people know who that is.

Hearing how she went from 3 blog readers to over 20,000 in a period of four years was riveting. One night, she said, she wrote a diatribe to America’s CEOs airing her thoughts about  everything that’s wrong with corporate America, then forwarded it to Guy Kawasaki. He asked her to edit her rant to a bulleted list of 10 items, which she did. Guy posted her article on his site and overnight, her readership zoomed to 20,000.  Opportunities came pouring in.

So here’s my opinion: Anyone who wants to should work for him/herself. And my top ten reasons to be an entrepreneur:

  1. It’s one of the greatest freedoms you have in this country
  2. You have the opportunity to create your own future.
  3. You get to make as much or as little money as you want/can.
  4. You have the prospect of bringing the gifts you’ve received to market in whatever form they take.
  5. You are rewarded for your ingenuity, hard work, conscientiousness, creativity, uniqueness.
  6. You can change course swiftly and respond to the market conditions.
  7. You determine with and for whom you want to do business.
  8. You can become as big as you wish or stay as small as you like.
  9. You get to choose which 8-18 hours a day you work!
  10. Your relationship with your boss can be the most gratifying experience in your life.

Guy, are you listening?