To most people, finding and securing a career is the utmost priority after formal education. To be hired and deemed as the most deserving of a position among a stream of applicants, that is the aim and goal to start one’s travel towards success in life. But a few years down the line, throw them a question whether or not they dream of starting a business of their own and more often than not, a major chunk of this so-called successful workforce heads would eagerly raise their hands in agreement. Throw them another question as to whether or not they are ready to chuck their employment status and start one now and many, if not most, will suddenly pull back their hands in hesitation.
Why have they not started a business if they really dream of starting one? Now that is the question.
While this website is abuzz with starting and established business owners and entrepreneurs, we all know that somewhere behind them are the anonymous faces are aspiring people who also wish to follow their lead. This article will attempt to explore what the hindrances are to one who wishes to take that first step towards business ownership success.
First is the financial aspect. Given the security of a job and thus the regularity of the receipt of a paycheck, fat or thin, people ask themselves if by giving up their current bread and butter position, this new venture – a business entirely of their own – will this duplicate the amount they are currently enjoying or maybe even surpass it? After all, in the age of mortgages, monthly bills, fast-paced lifestyles and health care protection, will one really be able to sustain one’s self without a regular salary? And the more important question is, how long or quick is the return on investments? This is the first, and to most people, the most glaring of all hindrances to starting businesses of their own.
The next to face is one’s self-confidence. Am I really good enough for people to want to get what I will offer? What if someone out there has better skills than I? One writer once said that on his first few years in business, he’d always dread client feedback and would be almost always convinced that every project on his lap will be his last. If one is not self-confident enough, there are only two ways one can go – either sink in desolation and prove unproductive or strive harder enough and actually make it.
The third boulder is the fear of failure. To most people, childhood was spent being taught that failure is not an option. Putting a lot of weight on what other people would say if one does not achieve success at the first strike in launching a self-employed career is what feeds this fear. Unknown to many, the successes of our times are a result of a lot of trials and failures. To achieve perfection, coal must undergo the test of fire first to turn into a diamond.
Somewhat connected to the fear of failure is the next stumbling block: peer pressure. Amongst the ranks of employees, if one expresses a desire to start one’s own business, the usual retort by colleagues would be, “Why drop a perfectly comfortable, nicely-paying job for something uncertain as that?”
Difficulty in determining passion, that’s the next problem for failure to launch one’s own business. Almost everyone agrees that for a job to cease being a job, one has got to love what he is doing. Same goes with starting one’s own trade – passion has got to be in it because without passion, perseverance won’t be coming in next.
Last but not the least is courage – or the lack of it. It doesn’t matter if you have the savings, the self-confidence, the tolerance for other people’s opinions, or if you have a sufficient enough experience to start on your own – if you don’t have enough courage, you are bound to stay within your current comfort zone. Reality check: starting a business on your own can indeed be daunting.
In a nutshell, the one thing that stops most aspiring business owners from proceeding is cold, paralyzing fear.
Agreeably, some fears are well founded but then again, most apprehensions are irrational as well. Like all things unknown of which fear emanates from, this sickening feeling can be alleviated with the proper education, planning and information gathering. Make the unknown known so that fear can be controlled, if not eradicated. The key is to identify what stops you from realizing your own business dream first. Once identified, categorize and understand these fears and determine if they are indeed real or otherwise. Lastly, muster the courage to actually deal with them appropriately. Once these fears are laid to rest chances are, one will be ready to start a whole new exciting business life of which one could call his very own.