You’re sitting in your cubicle, bored out of your mind. As usual.

You wonder whether you could ever feel satisfied and challenged at work. You wonder whether it’s normal to feel this restless.

I mean, your job sounds good on paper (no one knows that the coordinator in your title just refers liaising with your boss). Heck, you applied because the description sounded pretty awesome (tracking media mentions means mastering Google tools, right?!).

But then after just a few months — or even a couple of weeks — you realized this isn’t a dream job (turns out playing around on Google all day, every day gets boring). Now you’re contemplating what comes next.

News flash: Your inner entrepreneur needs some love.

It’s not a secret that Generation Y is a highly entrepreneurial generation. We’re fulfilled when we get to take ownership and build things. We have great ideas and we want to contribute. Waiting is tough. We want to dive in and make our mark today.

So what’s the solution? Jump ship and start your own business? No. That would be hasty and could create more problems than it solves.

Just because you’re entrepreneurial, doesn’t mean you should be an entrepreneur. But it might.
So take a plunge and move on, but focus on finding a job that requires you to be entrepreneurial rather than diving head first into full-fledged entrepreneurship.

Large Company vs. Small Operation

That means working at a company where you aren’t closely managed (read: you have to be a self-stater), and you’re given a lot of responsibility from day one. You can’t rely on job descriptions to guide you to these positions. You’ll have to do some real research and investigation. Lots of places say they want entrepreneurial employees, but a lot of companies aren’t set up to allow employees to be entrepreneurial.

Small businesses or start-ups tend to be goldmines for real entrepreneurial positions, but there are some major companies that offer these opportunities too. Often with a smaller operation, you’ll be thrown into your responsibilities without a ton of formal training. If you work with a large business, it’s likely that a company-sponsored training will be offered at some point.

There are pros and cons to both, but either option will give you the benefit of being entrepreneurial without the risks inherent in starting your own business.

New, Unfamiliar Terrain

Now if this post is resonating, you should also consider seeking an entrepreneurial job that’s a little outside your comfort zone. Maybe you’re in marketing, but the job that is going to give you a lot of accountability is actually in sales.

Go for it. If you really think entrepreneurship might be the route for you, you need to get comfortable wearing many different hats. Even if venturing along an entrepreneurial path ends up pointing you in a different direction all together, taking a job that forces you to learn other skills is never a bad thing.

Also, a truly entrepreneurial position won’t be defined too clearly and/or allows a lot of room for growth and flexibility within your role. So you can bring your strengths and learn new skills.

Maybe that’s just what you need.

Originally posted here