Surviving the Three Pitfalls of Business Ownership
The morning sun sheds its brilliance and warmth on your sleeping face. 10:00 a.m. 10:15 a.m. 10:30 a.m. Finally, after half an hour of lying in bed, you decide to get up and start your morning routines. Your work day officially starts fifteen minutes later as you stumble to your computer, still wearing what you woke up in, coffee in hand. And so goes the life of the entrepreneur. You get to decide when, how long, who with, where and what you work on. No boss. No politics. While this idyllic life might be the reality for some entrepreneurs, it certainly isn't guaranteed. In reality, every entrepreneur has a unique experience depending on their decisions and plain, old luck. And while good luck may be hard to control, making good decisions isn't. To maximize your decisions, you have to understand that entrepreneurship has its shadows-unforeseen challenges you may not learn about until you're deep in the trenches of operating your own business. The good news is that by becoming aware of these shadows as early as possible, you can structure your business for success. Let me then shine some light on the major challenges entrepreneurs face so that you can confront and effectively navigate them. Think of your business as an experiment where the outcome is uncertain, but where you'll be sure to gain valuable experience no matter the results. Beware of betting the farm when you don't have to. In entrepreneurship, you create a hypothesis (that is, a product), and you test it by marketing it to a potential market. As you continue to experiment with different business strategies, you'll be able to create better products and a better business. Since it's going to become such a huge part of your life, be sure to choose a business idea your passionate about, one that gives you a lot of enjoyment, one that you might even do for free, given the opportunity. Think about partnering with good friends. Pick an industry and business structure that fits with your desired lifestyle. If you're doing something you don't enjoy or that's terribly stressful, you may end up thinking of it as a chore, especially when times get tough. Without the support of your friends and family, it will be that much easier for you to throw in the towel if the going gets tough. To help you find the resolve to continue, be sure to set realistic expectations and be prepared and committed to continuing on your entrepreneurial journey, no matter what. Reprinted with permission from Entrepreneur.com. Copyright © 2005. Michael Simmons is the author of the best-selling book, The Student Success Manifesto: How to Create a Life of Passion, Purpose and Prosperity and an award-winning entrepreneur. He is also one of America's top youth motivational speakers for college campuses. Read his online journal at young entrepreneur journey or click on the following link to download his free success ebook.
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