Introduction

You've been working in the same field for 20 or 30 years.
The rat race is getting to you.
You're bored, tired, burned out.
You're looking for a change.
You start to wonder what else is out there.

Sound familiar? Millions of Americans find themselves in the same predicament. And at one time or another, many of them (you perhaps?) consider moving to some remote locale, living simply, and starting a business. The dream business, however, isn't always the same. It may be a bar in Key West, a surf shop in Costa Rica, a winery in Napa, or a ski shop in Aspen, among many other possibilities. Perhaps it's not a new business that populates the dream, but a new locale -- you visualize your accounting firm in Vermont, your restaurant in Maui, your dental office on Bainbridge Island, or your consulting firm just about anywhere. Regardless, the dream may remain just that -- a dream. For whatever reason, whether lacking funding, know-how, or just plain old energy, your plans may not have gotten off the ground. You stay in your job, and count the years to retirement.

If you are feeling dissatisfied, you are certainly not alone. Consider that a whopping three-fourths of U.S. workers are either actively or passively looking for a new job at any given time, according to the 2006 U.S. Job Retention Survey, conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). For those who voluntarily left their jobs in 2006, the motivating factor was often less about money or career opportunities, and increasingly about the need for a change. "Ready for a new experience" was the second biggest reason that employees left their jobs in 2006, according to the survey. That reason moved up from a distant fourth place just two years earlier. Similarly, "Career change" also moved up sharply, to fifth place in 2006 from eighth place in 2004.

Those statistics suggest that Americans, or at least a good percentage of them, are becoming increasingly tired of the rat race. They are deriving less and less satisfaction from working in corporate America, feeling bored and underappreciated, fed up with an increasing lack of job security and the perception of poor management. They are also finding it harder and harder to balance work and life issues, according to the SHRM survey.

Some U.S. companies are getting the hint, and are initiating new programs specifically designed to retain valuable employees -- merit bonuses, career development opportunities, flexible work schedules and telecommuting, child care, and more vacation time. For instance, American Express encourages workers to switch jobs within the company after 12 to 24 months, so they don't get burned out. Timberland pays employees to work up to 40 hours at volunteer jobs outside the company. Genentech, like many other companies, rewards employees by making them shareholders -- 95% of Genentech employees own shares in the company. Still, they have been unable to stop the flow. Increasingly, Americans are striking out on their own -- setting up small businesses or sole proprietorships, becoming contractors, working from home. The number of independent contractors in the U.S. grew to 10.3 million, or 7.4% of the total employed workforce in 2005, and up from 6.4% in 2001, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Meanwhile, temporary workers have also been steadily climbing, to 1.8% of the workforce in 2005 from 1.1% in 1990.

Daniel Pink, author of Free Agent Nation, points out that fewer than one in ten Americans now work for a Fortune 500 Company, and that the largest private employer in America, by body count, is no longer General Motors, AT&T, or even Microsoft -- it's Manpower, Inc., the temporary employment agency. According to Pink, an increasing number of Manpower's workers are choosing temporary work because it offers a better work-life balance, not because they cannot find permanent work.

More and more entrepreneurs are setting up shop -- not in the big metropolitan areas where they have been pursuing their livelihoods, but in paradise -- the resort towns, mountain communities, island retreats, and beaches of the world -- where keeping up with the Joneses gives way to pursuing a certain quality of life. For example, the number of wineries now tops 5,000, up from less than 3,000 in 2000, and the number of bed and breakfasts now numbers over 20,000, up from just 1,000 in 1980.

Meanwhile, another major trend -- the aging of America -- is contributing to the increased focus on living in paradise. There are 78 million baby boomers in America, and they started hitting retirement age in 2006. However, many of them are not even considering "retirement" in the traditional sense of the word. The number of Americans aged 65 or older who have remained, or plan to remain, in the work force is rising, from 10% in 1985 to 13% in 2002, and a projected 16%, or 26.6 million workers, in 2010, according to the U.S. Department of the Census and the AARP Foundation.

While many of those workers will continue doing the same type of work they have always done (except perhaps less of it and on their own terms), many others are looking for a change, both in career and lifestyle. For many of those individuals, a small business in paradise is the perfect solution -- offering recent retirees the career change and active involvement they seek, while also providing a quality of life they always dreamed retirement could offer.

A Road Map to Turning Your Dream Into Reality

This book is about turning a dream into reality. But not so fast -- running a small business in paradise isn't always, well, paradise! As with any other worthy goal, launching a business successfully takes careful planning and meticulous execution. Further, it may take years before the start-up headaches are over and you finally hit the comfort zone of operating an established, successful business. Despite the challenges, many have succeeded in creating their businesses in paradise. Is it for you?

Reading the next 13 chapters may help you discover the answer. As a quick preview, Chapters 2 through 5 focus on personal stories of individuals and couples who have taken the plunge into paradise, including:

• entrepreneurs in particular industries (bed and breakfasts and wineries)
• individuals who became business owners (of a candy store, a Caribbean bar, and a marketing consulting firm) somewhat unexpectedly, either being offered an opportunity or creating a business in response to life's circumstances, and
• people who have transformed their passions into businesses, including a restaurateur, a gallery owner, a photographer, and a surfer.

In addition to recounting the real-life experiences of these business owners, these chapters provide insights on how they've managed to overcome obstacles, build successful small businesses, and integrate those businesses into their lives and livelihoods. After sharing in these entrepreneurs' experiences, the rest of the book delves deeper into the various aspects of setting up a small business, and factors to consider that make businesses in resort or tourist destinations different from others. These include:

• a ten-step plan for getting started with your business in paradise, including making sure the business is a good fit with you and your loved ones, learning more about the business and locale you are considering, putting together a business plan and financing, and creating a backup plan (Chapter 6)
• issues to consider when choosing a business location and negotiating a lease (Chapter 7)
• ways to make the most of the seasonal ups and downs that paradise businesses usually experience (Chapter 8)
• tips on working with both a seasonal and a year-round workforce (Chapter 9)
• how to develop a marketing plan with an emphasis on community involvement, the key to getting your business established in a small community (Chapters 10 and 11),
• an introduction to the tax and legal issues you'll likely consider in setting up your business (Chapter 12), and
• how to make starting a business a component of a responsible financial plan, as well as enhancing your lifestyle (Chapter 13).

Throughout, you'll read more stories of other entrepreneurs who have pursued their dream, and gain practical guidance about what worked for them. As you see what others have done, perhaps you will feel more confident that your dream could be your reality, and be inspired to get started.