I had lunch last week with a small-business owner who’s now a successful entrepreneur. She was sharing with me topics which might be of interest to her as she’s focusing on growing her business.
So, of course, we discussed her background and how she became a business owner. Additionally, we reviewed the “usual” topics of access to capital, finding good talent and how to pursue new business from potential clients.
Bottom line, entrepreneurs know how to work hard.
For example,
- Starting a business by developing and pitching a business plan
- Establishing and building relationships by constantly networking
- Identifying funding strategies and access to capital, when appropriate,
- Developing and leveraging revenue streams focused on business growth, and
- Making tough decisions, when necessary, to sustain your business.
However, as the conversation continued despite long tough hours and hard work, it became clear there are many benefits of being a business owner.
My lunch partner’s face lit up when she talked about how much she loves being her own boss. She mentioned how she had a daughter to take care of and post-divorce, she wanted to ensure her daughter’s growth and stability.
Now, her daughter’s blazing her own career path along the East Coast.
As she started to identify business opportunities, “lifestyle” benefits were identified which enabled her to do things she normally couldn’t do when she wasn’t her own boss.
For example,
- Flexibility: the ability to control your schedule within reason. Yes, you’re still in business to meet customer expectations and demands, but you have the opportunity to adjust your schedule when and where necessary.
- Decision making: the buck truly stops with you as the final decision maker. The decisions you make as an owner really impact your areas of growth and investment opportunities.
- Balance: While entrepreneurs can put in excessive number of hours, you have the ability to define what balance looks like in your life. In other words, you dictate what’s important to you.
- Talent: surrounding yourself with good people is always important. Finding talent to complement your skill set is a plus and watching those individuals grow, prosper and thrive is an even better feeling.
- Culture: As the leader of your company, you can establish the overall culture. You lead by example, but how you implement drives your culture. Think about it, you can drive how your company acts and works.
- Fun: Work’s not always fun; however, you can make it enjoyable. As your own boss, you will work hard and you can do it in a way that’s fun for you.
Let’s not sugarcoat this: Running your own business is no easy task, but if you’re a go-getter who’s looking to have control over your life and business decisions, entrepreneurship might be for you.
Stop thinking about it and begin doing something about “controlling your own destiny.”
Good luck!
