6 Ways to Prepare For a Successful Business Career

On Apr 18, 2020

Whether you want to open your own business in the future, or you are looking to find employment in the business sector, it is important that you know the steps that you need to take in order to advance your career and ensure that you are fully prepared for a career in business.

If you are looking to start your entrepreneurial journey, here are some top tips on what you should do before taking the first steps on your career ladder.

1. Take an Online Degree

Although many entrepreneurs have not received official qualifications, taking a BA or Master’s degree in business (or a related subject) can be important for those without any former knowledge or experience of business. Not only can they help you to understand the inner workings of businesses and their operations, but they can also help you to hone the appropriate skills that you need in order to be able to hold your own in the world of business.

Whether you have just left high school or are looking to return to education, one of the best options for those who want to gain a business qualification is to take an online degree. Online degrees are excellent options for entrepreneurs as they give you the flexibility to run a business or work within your industry while you are studying towards your degree. This allows you to implement your knowledge in a practical manner immediately. If you are considering the options that are available to you, Suffolk University Online is a business school that focuses on training the next generation of business people and can help you to learn from the very best in the industry.

2. Build Up Your Professional Network

Before you start out on your business career path, you need to ensure that you have ample support behind you, and you can do this by building up your professional network. This will ensure that you will be able to get instant custom and quickly build up your client base when you open your first business, as well as ensuring that you can hear about job opportunities and positions as soon as you graduate. Not only will a successful networking strategy allow you to be able to form partnerships and find investors at these events, but you will also be able to gain mentors who can help you to advance your business career as quickly as possible and help you to make in-roads into the industry.

You can find networking opportunities by:

Joining professional organizations
Attending networking groups and events
Creating a business social media account or using LinkedIn

3. Research Your Industry

Even if you are not planning to open up a business within your industry immediately, it is paramount that you conduct frequent research on the markets and competition that you will need to face throughout your career. Not only can this give you a better understanding of the business world (which is needed in order to be able to apply your individual skills) but it can also help you to be successful in terms of building a business and standing out from other job applicants. You can research your industry by keeping up to date with business journals and publications, following the stock market and other financial indicators, and watching TED talks and other recorded speakers who often share their knowledge of the latest events in the industry.

4. Develop a Business Idea

If you are planning for your business career to follow a trajectory that eventually ends with you opening your own business, you need to consider developing your business idea as early as possible. For instance, many business schools focus on helping you to create a business plan while you are still an undergraduate, therefore enabling you to build up this business as soon as you have graduated. To do this, you should consider the following:

Finding a mentor who can guide you through the process
Conducting frequent market research
Honing in on your own skills and interests
Creating a business plan

By doing this, you will be able to change your business idea over time, and ensure that it is prepared for when you are ready to embark on the experience of opening your own start-up.

5. Work for a Renowned Business

However, the only way that you will be able to truly understand the business world and how it works is to find work within a renowned business, such as Amazon or Google. This will allow you to hone your skills in a practical environment, shadow senior business people who have a deep understanding of business, and allow you to see how real businesses operate on a daily basis.

The information that you learn here can then be applied to your own business or any company that you run in the future. Additionally, working for a large and recognizable brand can be a deal-breaker when you decide to apply for a business role, with many employers looking for applicants with in-depth knowledge and real-world experience in the business. Therefore, when you are studying towards your business degree, it is important that you consider looking for a part-time job within a company, or that you start applying for graduate schemes and positions throughout the final year of your course. This is especially important if you want to work for a specific company or are looking to apply for certain roles in the future.

6. Get Leadership Experience

If you are looking to head straight to the top of your career ladder, you should consider getting leadership experience from the outset. There are a number of ways in which you can prepare for leadership roles in the future. These include:

Taking a Master’s in leadership or business at a renowned business school or college
Shadowing your superiors
Taking on management responsibilities within the workplace
Volunteering in a leadership position outside of the workplace
Watching webinars and using other online resources

By doing this, you will be in a better position to be able to apply for promotions within the workplace when they are offered and you will not fall under the trappings of educational barriers, which often prevent otherwise adept individuals from being able to gain more responsibility in the workplace. You will also be prepared for the demands of owning your own business, such as leading employees who rely on you and making problem-solving decisions.