Way back when I decided to stop being an employee and go out on my own, a friend was considering doing the same.

He had worked for the same company straight out of university for about 15 years at the time. He was keen to start up on his own, because he knew someone in the same field who had done so very successfully. But he couldn’t bring himself to jump. His biggest fears? Paying for his children’s education – they were at good schools – and losing his very decent house.

I told him that I was I was fed up with corporate life and had a burning ambition to stand on my own two feet. I didn’t know if there was a ‘right time’, but I couldn’t wait any longer.

Let me say right off that there’s nothing wrong with being an employee and having a steady income if that’s what you enjoy. However you might want more. To fly on your own and have an adventure.

What about risk? Yes, it’s a big risk. It’s a little like going into a casino and placing everything you own on red. Will it work? Who knows, but I’ll tell you what – it will shake you awake. Going on your own is scary. And you have to be prepared to work harder for longer than you have ever done before. In the process you will discover things about yourself that you never knew.

But what if you fail? Yes, you might. But you will also get schooled. So you pick yourself up and do it again, because this time you will be stronger. No risk, no reward.

It will always be easier to carry on doing what you did yesterday. That’s what happened to my friend. He never felt confident enough to make the leap, stayed on in the same company for the rest of his career and suffered the frustration of being passed over for promotion for reasons of ’employment equity’.

Having gone out on my own 40 years ago, I would like to offer four tips to anyone standing on the edge, wondering if they should leap.

First, does what you’re considering doing really excite you?

You only have one life. Give yourself the gift of doing something that really excites you. When you are passionate, your energy becomes magnetic. People want to help you. They want to walk the same road with you. You will need that, because mastery takes time, about 10 000 hours, they say. That’s 10 years of solid graft. Ask yourself this: Ten years from now, what would I wish that I had started today?

Two: Don’t underestimate yourself. Think of a time in your life when you’ve performed at your absolute best – achieved a goal that made you super proud. That is the real you. Believe in yourself because that is the most powerful force you can possess.

Three: Beware of the two most dangerous words: Not Now. You might say to yourself: First I’ve got to pay off a loan, first I’ve got to get a bonus, first I’ve got to get married, first I’ve got to pay for schools. Eventually Not Now becomes Not Ever. It will never feel like the right time. It will always feel too early or that you are not ready. It will always be easier to carry on doing what you did yesterday. Remember, fortune favours the brave. Not the foolish, the brave!

Fourth and last: Life is an internal battle, not an external one. On one side is fear and doubt and peer pressure telling you what you can’t do. On the other is you, your truth, your soul, your heart talking to you and telling you what it really wants.

There are not a million decisions to make, only one: Are you going to allow yourself to be the person you want to be and live the life you want to live?

To end on a lighter note, If you are old enough you might remember the advert for cane spirit: ‘Stay as you are for the rest of your life, or switch to Mainstay!’ Only I’d suggest you switch to your dream, and save the Mainstay for when your business is solidly in the black.

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