MANAGEMENT • 4 MIN READ

The 6 Levels Of Entrepreneurship

Are You Stuck Working “IN” Your Business?

We live in an age where it’s easier than ever to become an “entrepreneur”.

The barriers are low.
The opportunities are vast.

Almost anyone, anywhere in the world can create their own business in a matter of days.

And look, this is great. I love the world we live in today, and I’m excited about what the future holds in entrepreneurship. If it weren’t for this easy barrier, I’d likely still be in a cubicle in the corporate world…

But with so many people calling themselves “entrepreneurs” these days, the word has become diluted; and it’s created a certain mindset that doesn’t lead to sustained, long-term business success.

It also makes entrepreneurship feel like the end goal.
Well… it isn’t — and in this article I’ll explain why…

You see, there are 6 levels of entrepreneurship, and our job at 2X is to help hustling entrepreneurs become successful CEOs. These are two totally different ball games.

And the business owner (who is the king of the castle) is even one step further…

But let me explain.
Here are the six levels of entrepreneurship…

1: Hobby

Most “entrepreneurs” begin life as a hobbyist.

You find a passion that lights you up, and you discover something you’re good at. So you start doing it in your spare time, and you may even build an audience.

The thing is… you aren’t making much money (if any money at all).

You’re having fun and you’re meeting great people, and you can trick yourself into thinking you’re an entrepreneur. But unless you’re making consistent money, you are NOT an entrepreneur.

My first online business was not a business at all. It was a hobby for the first 9 months, and an expensive one that took a lot of time.

After a hobby, most move then into stage 2…

2: Freelancer

Here, your hobby begins to take off, and on occasion they pay you for your expertise. You charge a little and are getting essentially paid for your time.

You are, however, building confidence and starting to think this could become a genuine business.

But at this stage, you aren’t super serious just yet. You aren’t 100% all-in, and you’re just trying to figure stuff out. You’re essentially have a job (or jobs) where clients are your bosses.

You’re taking any business that comes to you trying to make it as an entrepreneur, and then you level up to solopreneurship…

3: Solopreneur

This is where your journey takes off, because this is when your business becomes real.

You start to take it seriously and have made the decision to go all-in as an entrepreneur.

BUT… you’re doing it all yourself.

The life of a solopreneur is hard. Both time and money is at a premium, and you feel like you don’t have enough of either. For the first time you appreciate what it means to really “hustle”.

Maybe you love it at first, too, because you’re learning and “grinding” (which has been made cool on Instagram), and you’re growing more than ever.

But you’re getting tired and finding it hard, and EVERYTHING falls on your shoulders: marketing, sales, operations, finances, admin, and of course, the actual work you need to do to keep the money coming in.

You’re overwhelmed and just can’t seem to get ahead. You spend your days spinning plates, because you don’t feel ready to hire a team (financially or mentally). But once you let go of this limitation and fear, you’re ready to level-up to true entrepreneurship…

4: Entrepreneur

At 2X we tend to work with Entrepreneurs (on occasion, solopreneurs). At this stage you have a validated offer and a genuine business that brings in income.

You also finally gave up the superhero cape and have a team or resources that you use so that you don’t have to do everything all yourself anymore.

And although your team is small, they still require a lot of YOUR time.

As such, you “hustle” harder than ever, working at least 70 hours per week. Again, part of you loves this because all those successful entrepreneurs you follow talk about how “hustling” is the only way to the top.

You know that hard work is essential… So you figure the more hours you work, the more success you’ll achieve…

And look… this can happen — and I know a lot of successful people who live this life.

(hell, I lived this life for YEARS until I learned there was a much better way)

But calling yourself an entrepreneur is not the point. That’s not the end goal.
And dreaming of being an entrepreneur shouldn’t be your dream, either.

Because although an entrepreneur can have fame, money and success, they rarely have freedom to enjoy it.

And once you get ‘here’, you begin to realize this…

You realize you’re stuck on the ‘hamster wheel’ and it’s leading you to burn-out and lose sight of your vision and purpose.
You realize that more hours isn’t the solution.
You realize that even though you have a team around you, you’re still relied upon to do most everything yourself.

You’ve learned what it takes to get stuff done, but you still feel capped and you KNOW there just has to be a better way.

I know this feeling all too well, spending a few years in this stage and never quite making the leap to a sustainable, successful, scalable business that didn’t require me to hustle non-stop.

More hours isn’t the answer, and once you reach this stage as an entrepreneur you’re then ready to evolve into the next stage of entrepreneurship.

At 2X, this is our main job – to help hustling entrepreneurs become successful CEOs…

5: CEO

Becoming a CEO is the hardest level to progress to.

It’s a mentality, and one that as soon as you make it will forever change your business.

In Level 4 (being a hustling entrepreneur), you quickly realize that there has to be a better way, and that way is by becoming a CEO.

A CEO works ‘on’ the business and makes the key decisions…
A CEO protects their time and stops being the bottleneck in the way…
A CEO thinks of strategy and systems, not more hours as the solution…
A CEO leads from the front, managing the team and not getting in their way…
A CEO strategizes and ensures everyone works off the same plan and vision.

In 90 days or less, we transform entrepreneurs into CEOs through our 2X Accelerator Program.

We help our clients escape the ‘hamster wheel’ so they can spend their time on what they NEED to, leveraging their greatness and building a business that can run without them.

This stage is where a “hustle” officially becomes a true business. This is where you can really scale and start to reap the rewards of why you started into entrepreneurship anyway.

Then, from this level there is still one more above it. And that is the business owner…

6: Business Owner

This should be your new, ultimate goal.

At this level, you have a rockstar team in place that’s outperforming your expectations.

They know where they are going, and they don’t need you to tell them. Best of all, you’re no longer the bottleneck in your business, or the person getting in the way of your world class team. You know longer are the key one responsible for decisions, and you can have residual or passive income coming in.

So… what is it that you do as a Business Owner, exactly?

Well… you’re living the lifestyle you’ve always dreamed of, for starters, ONLY doing the work you need to and that brings the most impact (and value) to those you serve.

You Are A Business Owner Who Owns Your Business And Life, Rather Than Having “It” Own You…

When we work with people at 2X, this is the direction we take them in. We help them see the only way they will ever have the impact they desire is if they evolve into a business owner.

This is where success exists — not just for your business, but for YOU as a person.

So let me ask you…
… where are you on this ladder? What stage are you in?

It’s important you’re honest and embrace where you are, because only then can we come up with the best strategy to help you work your way up.

At 2X, we’re passionate about helping you take the leap from level 2, 3 or 4… to the CEO and Business Owner levels.

Not everyone is ready to take this step…
But at a certain point, you realize you cannot do all this alone.

You need a team…
You need processes and systems…
You need to work ‘on’ your business, not ‘in’ it…
You need to get out of the way and create something that can thrive without you…

And you need help to put all this into action!

If this is you, and you are ready to level-up to CEO and beyond… we can help.

We help 6 and 7-figure hustling entrepreneurs level up their life and business in our 90-day hands-on coaching program.

We help optimize your business model and strategy right from the start. Then, we ensure you add the right processes, systems and team so that your goals become a reality.

And because this isn’t a standard training program that only teaches you what to do… our world-class coaches hold you accountable each step of the way.

Stop being a superhero. Follow the proven path to success, and scale your business faster than ever.

If you’re ready to take this step, click below to apply for a 1-on-1 call to talk about your business and the path to rapid growth: