With the banking industry roiled beyond recognition, many Wall Streeters will be looking for a fresh start in the coming months. The financial services industry slashed 130,000 jobs in 2007 and another 111,000 already in 2008, according to Challenger Gray & Christmas, a placement and consulting firm in Chicago.  More than a few bankers, analysts and traders will take their capital (what's left of it, anyway), skills and connections and brave the world of entrepreneurship. How will they fare? More important, what can entrepreneurs learn from ex-Wall Streeters who took the plunge in the past?  "A healthy appetite for risk and a strong background in analytics will certainly help [former financiers] succeed as entrepreneurs," says Paul Bernard, a Manhattan-based executive career management coach. However, he warns, "If you're not ready to be married to your business, or can't face the idea of not having an income for the first two years, this might not be for you."  In Pictures: 10 Wall Streeters Turned Entrepreneurs  Talk to former finance types and you get the sense that, indeed, they may well have a leg up, for a host of reasons: ability to handle long hours; willingness to take risks, a solid of understanding of core business issues like accounting, strategy and marketing; and, corny as it sounds, an indomitable will to win.  "After working on Wall Street, I felt like I could conquer the world," recalls John Childs, 48, an investment banker at Dean Witter Reynolds (later swallowed by Morgan Stanley (nyse: MS - news - people )) before getting laid off in the 1991 recession. Childs spent the next six years counting beans as a CPA in Crescent City, Calif., but never could shake his entrepreneurial itch.  So, in 1998, he dumped $250,000 (assembled from a $95,000 home equity loan and a fistful of credit cards) into an Aaron's furniture and electronics rental franchise--all this while having six kids to support and zero background in electronics. Good bet: Childs now owns 12 Aaron's stores in the Portland metro area.  Better yet, he is now pouring $1 million of his savings into four Hand & Stone spa franchises slated to open next month. Child's advice to aspiring entrepreneurs: "Be of the belief that failure is not an option."  Clearly, Wall Streeters can be too cavalier about risk (witness the burgeoning credit crisis). However, having an iron stomach does come in handy, especially for those who don't assume the government will bail them out.  Josie Natori would agree. While Natori climbed the ranks to become the first female vice president of investment banking at Merrill Lynch (nyse: MER - news - people ), she craved a bit more creativity in her job. When she received a box full of embroidered blouses from a friend in the Philippines (her native home) in 1977, another friend in New York, who happened to be a buyer for Bloomingdale's, suggested Natori tailor the blouses into nightgowns. Never mind that Natori knew nothing about fashion or design.  Still, she decided to take the plunge. With $150,000 in savings, Natori launched a new line of lingerie and later expanded production by setting up a factory in the Philippines. Today, the Natori Company features clothing, lingerie and home goods ranging from $48 for a pair of ladies' underwear to $2,700 for a silk blouse. "Owning your own business is not for everyone," she says. "You have to be able to stomach the risk 24 hours a day."  Then there are the hard skills--such as managing by metrics--that Gary Colton, 48, has in spades. After 10 years of trans-Atlantic travel as a partner with Fisher Capital (an affiliate of private-equity king Kholberg, Kravis, Roberts), Colton left high finance to coach high school wrestling and enjoy more time with his kids.  Not long after, his grandmother took a nasty fall and needed an in-home companion. Colton and his wife, Marla, a registered nurse, were unsatisfied with the caregiver, so with $100,000 in savings they decided to launch a ComForCare Senior Services franchise in March 2007.  Colton's private-equity training prepared him well. Example: He assiduously tracks all client referrals by source--hospitals, veterans associations, funeral homes and other clients--to keep a handle on marketing costs. "The key to success is efficiency," he says. "So keep track of the return on all investments."  For all the great business training that a banking career can deliver, you don't need a few years on Wall Street to learn what Anshuman "Shu" Vohra figured out the hard way. In 2004, after a few years spent working long hours in the mergers and acquisitions departments of JPMorgan Chase (nyse: JPM - news - people ) and several other boutique banks, Vohra decided to launch a premium gin company. He spent two years planning his strategy and stumping for capital before quitting his job.  But while Vohra's old college tennis teammates came through when it was time to write checks, many of his other friends and a few former banking colleagues left Vohra high and dry, delaying the launch. Bulldog Gin finally hit liquor store shelves in early 2007, though the company has yet to break even.  "Make sure you have all agreements with investors in writing," says Vohra, 30. "Everyone's friends when shaking hands, but things can get pretty sour from there."  In Pictures: Secrets And Snags To Franchising Success  In Pictures: Nine Ways To Recover From Failure  In Pictures: How Self-Made Titans Got Their Starts
The ability to cope with risk and work insane hours comes in handy. Take it from these former financiers.