Recently I was reminded of the conversation my brother and I had about how tough entrepreneurship can be. Thinking back to how a lot of the stories I heard about being an entrepreneur, it’s very glamorized and all you hear about is how great it is to work for yourself. What you don’t always see or hear are the stories about the struggles that come from being a business owner. So, I wanted to share a few lessons that I’ve learned (still learning) as I continue in this world of entrepreneurship.
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THINGS I WASN’T PREPARED FOR WITH ENTREPRENEURSHIP
ENTREPRENEURSHIP ISN’T FOR THE FAINT OF HEART
It’s a roller coaster ride of emotions. Seriously. Working for yourself is tough and a lot of work. Entrepreneurship is something you should be absolutely sure that you want to pursue before you take the plunge. You have to be your own cheerleader every day, and some days I don’t want to cheer for myself. Unless you start a business with other people and/or have a ton of capital to outsource a lot of the stuff you don’t want to do, you are wearing multiple hats until you make enough profit to hire a team. So that means, learning how to market the business, doing all the admin work, learning new systems and applications that you’re unfamiliar with, and anything else that goes into running your business.
There’s also a lot of late nights and working through the weekend that you have to be prepared to do. In addition to the hours you have to put in, you’re also having to pay for your own benefits, something that were significantly less with a full-time job – healthcare, a steady paycheck, and a 401k.
BE READY (AND SAVE FOR) ALL THE UNEXPECTED COSTS THAT YOU HAVE TO PAY
This is one of the most important things that doesn’t get talked about a lot when it comes to entrepreneurship. There are so many things that you have to pay for when you start a business – entity fees, all the costs of designing a website, photographer, supplies (if your business is product-based), and yearly business fees (accountant, taxes, lawyer, etc.). I just wasn’t prepared for the amount of money that I had to shell out when I first started or even the yearly fees that I incur to maintain the business. While you can write it off on your taxes, if you don’t have the means to pay those fees, that’s a barrier to even begin. While you don’t necessarily need to have all those things finalized when you start a business (I was working for a year before creating my LLC for my business back in 2020), it’s a great thing to have to protect yourself and your business.
PERSEVERANCE – IT’S NOT JUST A VIRTUE
There are days when I question whether I made the right decision, especially when I pitch myself and the answer is no. Running a business can be tough when you also own a second creative business, run a blog, have a social life, and have multiple clients. I’m choosing to persevere because I know what I want my future to look like, and in order to achieve it, I have to do things I don’t always want to do. On those days that I find it absolutely tough, I remember my why – doing the work that helps my clients achieve success, building generational wealth, and financial freedom.
I hope that I didn’t scare you away about entrepreneurship. The truth is, while some days can be super tough, I am really glad I decided to start. Because I see the work that I’m doing for my clients and the relief I bring them is really worth some of those bad days. My take-home message from all of this is to be 100% sure that you’re ready for all the challenges that come with having your own business.
HAVE YOU CONSIDERED ENTERING THE WORLD OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP? WHY OR WHY NOT?
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