The key difference in starting a Freedom Business over a standard business is a shift in what kind of value it produces

The key difference in starting a Freedom Business over a standard business is a shift in what kind of value it produces for the entrepreneur who starts it (you). Rather than producing value in exchange for money, you build something that creates more personal freedom for yourself. In most cases, this means you earn money and time. It may also mean you earn connections and prestige.

I haven’t set an alarm in years. Hell, I haven’t even kept a calendar since I started traveling in 2009. I’ll generally sit down for a nice, slow breakfast while checking my email, reading the news, catching up on what’s happened in the world since I closed my eyes the night before. Then I’ll think through my day; should I grab lunch downtown? Maybe go and have the final fitting for some shirts I’m having tailored? Meet up with some friends and explore the local museum? Take in a movie? Just sit around and read? Every option is on the table, and it can be tricky sometimes to decide what to do as a result, but this is a good problem to have. Often I’ll take a walk around the neighborhood, exploring the nooks and crannies I haven’t yet seen and then head back home to write when I have a few new ideas and directions I think might be fun to explore. Each afternoon I head over to the gym (if I have one where I’m living at the time) or go for a run or work out a bit at home, and then it’s free time again. I’ll finish a book or Skype with a friend or just lay perfectly still and think. Dinner and my evening are the same, with the option to go out and party or stay in and work on my personal projects usually seeming equally appealing, and both are also equally likely to get my attention for the night.

If you’re working a job that you need in order to continue paying the bills, work out a financial plan that will set you on a course to pay off your bills while building up a buffer fund (so that when you start your Freedom Business, you’ll have at least a few months’ worth of expenses in the bank for the transition). If you’re still learning a particular skill set you’ll need to make it all happen, work on supplementary skill sets at the same time, so that when you’re ready, you’ll be more than ready.

Most Freedom Entrepreneurs eliminate the need for a balance altogether, however, by integrating their work into their life. Rather than doing their best to segregate the disparate aspects of their life, they aim to unify them.

Start a Freedom Business by Colin Wright