Often what people see are successful people who quit their jobs and open their businesses. Yet there are so many challenges that people who quit their job to start their own business face.
Rarely do successful businessmen and women candidly talk about the failures and obstacles that they encountered in their journey of starting and running their business to success. The result has been a misguided narrative about running a business, which makes many people call it quits at their jobs without much considerations of the ups and downs of running one’s business, only to give up along the way.
Many are blinded by the great benefits yet for every benefit, there is a downside that may not be apparent. So you have quit or intending to quit to start your own business, expect to take the sudden responsibility of being the boss , becoming financially vulnerable, getting exposed to too much freedom & independence, and intense market barriers & competition.
Read: How to Start and Run New Business when Pregnant
What Happens When you Quit to Start your Business
1. You have to Take Responsibility as the Boss
Exciting huh? You are the boss and you call all the shots when you are running your own business. There will be no longer anyone putting demands and expectations on you as compared to when you are employed. Whatever you do is absolutely up to you because this is your business.
The independence includes the hours and days you choose to work, your products and services, your choice of employees, and your office location, among other things. You will be the only person issuing commands and directives especially if you have employees working under you compared to when employed.
However the downside of this aspect is the responsibility. Unlike before, the success or failure of your business is on you! As a business owner, you are the business and this is a major weakness you need to be prepared for. As the boss, you will be called upon to solve issues on competition, employees, bills, breakdowns, employee problems, and customer problems, which can be quite stressful.
Most importantly you will be held accountable for each and every single decision and action you make about your business and you will take responsibility for your every action.Your employees will wait on you to give directions on most tasks in the office. You will have to do the unpleasant tasks, like firing employees.
Read: How to Run a Business with your Husband
2. You Become Financially Vulnerable
There are many financial benefits of running your own business. It sounds good to be the owner of a business as it means that you get to keep the majority of the profit. As such your earnings in your business are high compared to what you can get out of employment. As such you are more likely to make financial headway in your own business than in your employment.
However in comparison, you bear all the financial risk. While you were cushioned in your employment, you are now exposed. While your salary was guaranteed, it is no longer the same with your business.
While making profits and losses in a business is normal and expected, many entrepreneurs do not expect that it can be constant and prolonged. You will have financial vulnerability, especially in your first few months/years until your business stabilizes. In fact, little to no income is what you should expect in your first year of business.
You will have cases of good revenues and others with total losses. As such you will make good money in some periods and total losses in others. Many also don’t expect that at some point you even stand to lose all the investment you made in your business.
Read: Reasons you Need to Keep your Job
3. Your Time and Independence Becomes Limited
Being your own boss comes with a lot of freedom and independence. You live an easy lifestyle in terms of flexible working hours, and location among others. You don’t have to report to work if you don’t want to and take a break if you feel like it.
But equally running a business can be very demanding. As the boss it means taking extra load at time and most time, you will be expected to put in more hours than you would in employment. You will even frequently work outside office hours to serve your clients.
You may also no longer have the freedom to take time off. As a result, you end up so exhausted and lack time for yourself and getting a work-life balance become a challenge.
Read: Making Time for Yourself While Working
4. You Face Intense Market Barrier/Competition
You have a chance to start a business in the field you love and enjoy. You have the chance to follow your passion and in life and this is a major advantage of running your own business in comparison with being employed. You do not have to put up with a career and job that you hate.
But what makes a business successful is being able to stand out in the market against all the competition and meet an unfulfilled need in the market. But it does not always happen that what you like doing and you are passionate about is a good business idea. It simply satisfies you but may fail to make it as a business.
Marking a curve in the market is hard and you will face difficulties in breaking even. In addition, it may be a business in a competitive field where it is difficult to make a mark. Therefore you may fail to get satisfaction from implementing your ideas and watching your business grow.
Last Word
Success is for people who dream and actualize their dreams. Most importantly success is for people who push for their goals against all adversities. What am driving at is that these challenges in self-employment should not stop you from going after your dreams.
So start your own business if it is your goal. What is critical is remaining objective all the time and finding effective solutions to these challenges. What can you learn from running your own business? What can you change to make the journey more pleasant?
The road to success has both ups and downs and you can safely sail through as long as you are anchored by your determination, which is all you need to run a business successfully.
- Develop a concrete business plan
- Practice accountability, and transparency
- Remain focused and objective
- Hard work and consistency
