I think most people, at some point, have dreamt about starting their own business. What is sexier than being your own boss, making your own decisions, and creating something meaningful that allows you to provide for your family and pass on to your future generations? Personally, this thought consumes me way more than it should, and I know it does the same for countless others.
However, I hope it is no secret by now that this dream statistically only becomes reality for an extreme minority of people who start a business. For some reason, we focus on the minority, and we dream about having a successful business anyway. Maybe we think the statistics won’t apply to us, or we think we are subject to different rules than the rest of the masses. This is the exact same reason people still buy lottery tickets, raffle tickets, sign up for sweepstakes, etc. You have a better chance of being mauled by a polar bear AND a grizzly bear the same day than winning the lottery. “So what? Powerball is at $150 million and I want to put my name in the hat”. We have some strange tendencies simply being human.
People will continue to dream about entrepreneurship despite odds, probability, or what have you. They will impulsively create a business (hey, an LLC is cheap and business cards are fun to create!), only to have the motivation behind the intention fizzle out and collapse – leaving them right where they started. I know this all to well. Why? Because it has happened to me dozens of times! It has been extremely frustrating, and it has taken time to train myself to shut down the impulsive optimistic aspect of human nature, and focus on whether or not a business venture is worth the incredible amount of effort it takes to get it off the ground (heck, I’m still in training).
So what really stops us from achieving the visions we have for ourselves? Why can’t we stick with things that we start?
I have learned that the most difficult part of entrepreneurship is delayed gratification, coupled with the risk of getting no gratification at all. Phew. That’s scary.
Picture the experts in their respective fields. It could be anything – a violin player, computer programmer, athlete, etc. We all know it takes a long time to become an “expert” at something. But what if somebody told us, “after you practice your craft for 100 hours, a switch will flip, and you will all of a sudden find yourself successful – fame, fortune, whatever it is that you envision success to be”.
Would you do it? SHOOT YEAH YOU WOULD!
What about 500 hours? What about 1,000 hours? What about 5,000 hours?
My guess is, most people would still do it. They would practice their craft day in and day out because they know that once they hit that magic number, they will bask in the glory of success.
Entrepreneurship doesn’t have a switch. It could cruelly leave you practicing your craft indefinitely. Some people will “make it” after 231 hours, some people will make it after 8,000 hours. Some people won’t make it at all.
So, how can we start a business and stay motivated? Well, that’s still a million dollar question up for debate, but I think there are a few things that can protect us from crashing and burning:
- Enjoy what you do – If you might be stuck doing something, you might as well enjoy it.
- Be prepared to pivot – Don’t insist an idea is a good one if there is no market for it. Make adjustments.
- Don’t overspend – Damaging yourself financially with a business venture can set you back years (or more!). Don’t do it.
- Listen to others – We have all latched on to our own ideas, which may not always be good ones. We need reality injections and outside opinions.
- Don’t do it for the money – The most successful people are driven by purpose, not dollars. Dollars are a by-product of purpose.
- Acknowledge setbacks – Stuff is going to happen, and things may get harder before they get better. Prepare yourself mentally for it so that you can overcome it.
To all you that are working on your business right now with no end in sight, embrace the grind my friends and stay strong! Hopefully someday we will see each other on the other side.
