8 ways to go from employee to boss

Franchising is full of people who worked at a brandand then bought their own piece of it. What drove their successes? Eight of them share their biggest lessons.

- By Kim Kavin

At some point in their career, every worker has probably thought: I wish I were the boss.

In franchising, people often achieve that dream. They might start as a cashier, manager, or in some role at the corporate office, and then rise up to buy a unit of a brand themselves.

This is no accident. Franchises are always looking for qualified franchisee candidates who appreciate their brand and are dedicated to its success, and many of them encourage their best employees to pursue that path. It's part of the DNA of franchising. Some brands even have apprenticeship or financing programs to help their team members achieve the dream of business ownership.

So, what's it like to go from employee to boss? And what's required to make the leap? On the following pages, eight people share the biggest lesson they learned and what enabled them to finally say what so many others want to say: "I'm the boss!"

Lesson 1/ Ask for more.

Sam Cleavenger's first job, at age 16, was with Jeremiah's Italian Ice. He worked his way up from prep boy to general manager and then marketing manager for the brand. When he turned 24, he partnered with his dad and opened a store of his own. Today, he's working on opening more stores and has 12 partners underneath him opening stores, too.

"Something that separated me from my peers would be always asking what you can do to excel," he says. "I would always ask my manager what I could do to have more responsibility. Before I became a general manager, I said I felt like I was doing great, and I wanted something more. I said I wanted to take on more leadership. I think it's the simple fact of asking. A lot of people sit back and wait and think people are going to ask them. I think you have to vocalize that you want to grow."