You can become an entrepreneur in many different ways.

You can be working as an employee when you realize there’s a better way to do the job. So you quit and start your own business. If you’ve been a great employee, your old boss might help you get things rolling.

You may realize from the time you’re in school that you want to do something new and different that doesn’t involve going to an office every day or following somebody else’s orders.

You might start small, not thinking that the service you’re providing or the product you’re making will become a sensation. Then it explodes and demands all the time you have.

Need some ideas for the kind of business you can run? Check out these examples.

But one thing is the same for every entrepreneur. Before you can get a business off the ground, you need a plan.