Goodbye Corporate Hamster Wheel, Hello Entrepreneurship

After spending years racking up airline miles and hotel points pursuing a career in the consumer packaging industry, Ron Hill opted to stop living out of his suitcase and explore the possibilities of entrepreneurship.

Hill spent his career in the corporate world working for companies like Constellation Brands, The Dannon Company and Colgate-Palmolive. Each new position required his family to relocate and typically necessitated copious amounts of business travel. Like many other hard-working Americans, Hill suffered from Battered Career Syndrome®. His career offered little job security and high employee turnover. With one child in college and another nearing the end of high school, Hill wanted an opportunity that would allow him to invest in his family’s future and provide financial security.

“I’ve always tried to approach new situations with an open mind. I’ve always felt that being open to change gives me a chance to see the larger picture. And sometimes good things happen,” said Hill.

Hill started his career ownership journey with Tom Sheffield of The Entrepreneur’s Source®, with his mind open to different possibilities. The Entrepreneur’s Source is the nation’s leading career ownership franchise. The Southbury, Connecticut-based company specializes in strategic, personalized coaching for people looking to transition out of their current career and find their path to self-sufficiency at no cost. The pair worked together to discover Hill’s Income, Lifestyle, Wealth, and Equity goals to guide his journey.

“My goal was to find out what his desire is and his hope for the future,” said Sheffield. “It was my job to evaluate whether he wanted to get back into corporate America, or if he felt it was time to steer his own ship.”

Hill appreciated his career ownership coach’s dedication to making his journey a family affair. Sheffield frequently checked in with Hill to ensure he was including his wife’s feedback in his decision-making process. DeAna Hill is a college professor at Drexel University.

“Sheffield frequently emphasized how important it was to make sure my wife was part of the conversation,” said Hill. “He always wanted to make sure it wasn’t just me making the decisions, and his strategy helped me come to decisions based on what my family needed.”

After determining Hill’s I.W.L.E. goals, Sheffield helped show Hill the various opportunities that were available to him, including staying in the corporate world, starting his own business or turning to franchising.

“Tom is a good guy,” said Hill. “I felt like he was straightforward and honest during our conversations. I really appreciated it. Even in a different setting, had he and I met at a conference, we would have talked.”

Ultimately, Hill determined franchising would provide him with the opportunity to achieve his entrepreneurial vision without the headaches of being an independent operator. “I decided to turn to franchising because I wanted to have resources and support. Franchising provides you with the opportunity to own a business, but there are aspects of the business that you don’t have to focus on. You have support from the parent company, and franchising offers a proven business model,” Hill said.

Hill opted to sign on with HomeTeam Inspections, an industry leader in home inspection services. HomeTeam Inspections assists buyers, sellers and real estate professionals with a wide variety of home and business inspections, including pre-listing inspections, mold tests, indoor air quality evaluations and standard home inspections.

The company fit with Hill’s vision and values. It also offered the low start-up costs and flexibility he desired. HomeTeam Inspections provided Hill with the opportunity to achieve his income goals and ensure he had an investment for the future. He was interested in pursuing a franchise that would allow him to take a hands-off approach once the franchise started to flourish.

Hill is diligently preparing for the launch of his new career in early August. Starting a new career during this unprecedented time prompted Hill to set conservative goals for growth, but he is cautiously optimistic about the future. “The one thing for certain in this economic time is that everyone needs a home, and people are still buying houses,” he said.