Throughout the world, there have been stories of countless layoffs due to undersizing, the financial crisis and weak economies. For all of these newly-unemployed, some take re-skill training to cope with a different and unfamiliar job market. There are others who have taken a sizable separation or early retirement package and think it is sensible to go on retirement. But for a few, they have taken this turn of events into something positive and opted to start their own business.

Starting your own business may be a daunting task. This is specially true for those who have no management experience, training nor skills. What’s worse is that even veteran managers have a hard time adjusting from a corporate environment to becoming entrepreneurs themselves. However, what is going for these people is the will to start anew and from scratch, a company which they can call their own.

It may be surprising for some that there is a surge in tech startups in Finland. Looking deeper this should not be surprising at all as most of these new companies were started by former Nokia employees who were just recently laid off. This pleasantly surprising side-effect has become a boon to Finland’s economy.

You do not need to have a very big business when you start one of your own. You can start a local franchise or a service bureau or a home-based business. Whatever business you may want to start, remember one of the most important things to consider is if it is inline with your interests. Another thing to consider is the capitalization needed to start the business.

Most businesses, even big ones, start from a small office or even from the kitchen or the garage. A lot of computer companies, both hardware and software, started out that way. The majority of internet companies also started out from the home. The major advantage of a home-based business is that it keeps the costs down. That includes saving on gas, power, water, heating, phone and internet costs. Additional savings can be realized when you already have a computer, scanner, printer and a fax machine. Saving money at the onset cannot be over-emphasized, as studies have shown that most businesses start turning a profit on the third year of operations.

Beyond the obvious advantages of a home-based business, there are also the work hours. Starting your own business is no joke. For the most part, you will be spending a lot of hours at work just to organize the company. Initial marketing and sales efforts will have to be done non-stop until the business starts making a profit. The good thing about all these efforts, is that the business owner gets to reap the full benefits of his work. The real job satisfaction is in working hard in making the business a success.