Every day, a lot of people wake up with intentions of being independent and having their own business, but the ultimate question is, do they have what it takes to start a business?
Over the years, a lot has been said about business, and this has left some people with certain notions and ideas about business. These ideas are certainly not true and might even discourage anyone from starting his/her business. Contrarily, there are some theories and truths about a business that you will find encouraging aside from these untrue beliefs. In this context, we will be clearing up some of these myths and misconceptions about business ownership (the information embedded below will also help anyone who is already into the business).
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Truth be told, there is obviously nothing wrong with staying on your job; however, a lot of people find business more interesting and rewarding as it gives you the opportunity to do whatever you want as you like (sadly, it’s not a venture for everyone). Starting and owning a business requires a lot of commitment and patience. A lot of people fail and back out because they were expecting too much from their business even in the first year (thereby ending up with some untrue beliefs).
It takes two times the same effort to start a business than to keep it running. In business, you will learn different strategies, like using relationship marketing to link up with your customers. If you are indecisive about starting a business due to the misconceptions, untrue beliefs, and myths that you have heard, take a look at the ones outlined below and realize the truths. Hence, you can proceed with making an informed decision about your future.
Table of Contents
1. Business owners don’t have a personal life.
One thing that has been said often is that business owners do not have a personal life because they work 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. To work continually means you will have little or no time for your friends, family, and leisure activities. Although business people can work long, grueling hours and stay committed to what they do, it is not true that they do not have a personal life because their business does not allow it.
One great advantage of being your own boss and staying in charge of running the affairs of your business alone is that you can always schedule your time to your benefit. This does not in any way say that you should always take time off whenever you want, but it implies that there is availability of time for social and family activities that you might be interested in. Time management is one of the keys to a successful business.
Business owners always establish a proper working routine so there is no trouble finding free time; this is why they can have over a hundred things to do and they will get it all done. Entrepreneurs also engage in multitasking, which often helps them get a lot done within a short time range. To make this possible, what they do is:
- Schedule specific times to check and answer emails.
- Prioritize their to-do list.
- Put their phone on silent.
- Getting off social media unless it is business related (for personal use)
- Not answering emails and calls while they are working on a task
- Efficient use of your time.
- Working on the most important tasks first.
- Getting back to work.
This shows that business owners master their time management skills, so they have more time for their personal lives.
2. Business requires lots of risks.
Business owners take risks. This does not necessarily imply taking lots of unwarranted risks or putting their business and money at constant risk at all times. What anyone should first ask is, Are there any risks connected with starting and running a business? Of course, the answer is yes.
It is a whole lot of risk to venture into a new thing you probably have never tried out in your entire life (this time your hard-earned liquidity is involved, so if you fail you lose your money too). However, business owners learn how to take calculated risks by trying to balance the reward and the risk to be taken. Anyone not willing to take high risks will most likely not have high returns.
Also, business people are not gamblers; if there were no risk connected, everyone would be doing it. Gambling is solely dependent on luck; no entrepreneur runs his business on luck. You cannot depend on luck to run your business; of course, you may have good and bad luck in your venture, but your calculations matter in the result you will get.
Lastly, business owners learn from mistakes. There are times (especially at the beginning of business) when entrepreneurs take some risks that end up not too well. Not all ideas that seem good are really good. What they do is learn from these mistakes and make it a key to preventing them from getting into a similar trap. So, business requires risks, but not only the calculated ones.
3. Business owners are only motivated by money.
Would anyone go into a business if they would not be making a profit from it? Not. However, financial gain is not the sole motivation for business owners; in fact, it is not even on top of the long list.
To achieve a lifelong dream is usually the basic motivation for business owners, and then financial stability comes second on the list. To be financially stable means that one is comfortable and can also make ends meet; it does not in any way mean a person is rich or buying a Bentley.
In truth, money is truly a motivator, but it is not as important as people have assumed. Interestingly, how rich a person is can somehow affect how happy the person is; therefore, you cannot blame the entrepreneurs and business owners who are motivated by finance.
One motivation that has been underrated and less mentioned over the years is leaving a legacy. Business owners usually care about leaving a legacy, either by changing their surroundings by introducing something new or by leaving properties behind for their children to look over after their demise. They always want to leave a legacy with their business and make it last after their death; this motivation is more important to business owners.
Lastly, business owners share a motivation in common, and that is freedom. If asked, 8 out of every 10 business owners you meet will tell you that being their boss is one of the things that motivated them to start a business. Now that they are in the business as their boss, they have to keep it moving because they are both an employer and an employee. Money is not the only driving force in business.
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4. Business owners raise money from venture capitalists
Not all business owners raise their funds from venture capitalists; in that regard, where do business owners get the funds to run their company from? Looking at the top funding sources across the globe shows venture capital money on the list; however, the likes of credit, personal loans, family, and friends far outweigh funding from a venture capitalist. This means if you want to be a successful entrepreneur, you have to put your own money; you cannot hold onto finances from angel investors, banks, or even VCs.
Of course, you don’t want to let yourself down after risking your money, time, and effort in your business and not turning out well. However, this is not a criterion to consider taking loans from banks; rather, motivate yourself to keep up with what you have and produce good results.
So, the belief that running a business requires venture capital is untrue. For instance, Hewlett Packard, which is worth over 30 billion dollars today, said they started with about 600 dollars. This is amazing! This does not connote that you can turn a 600-dollar business into a multi-billion-dollar corporation; rather, it means you do not need much money to start a business; just some personal savings and credit might help.
5. Business owners have great ideas.
In this age, a lot of people do not venture into a new business enterprise because the business does not require you to have an ultimate unique idea. Creativity comes when a person looks into what exists and creates something of his own; an instance is Uber and Lyft. Uber was founded in 2009, while Lyft began operations in 2012. Looking at these two businesses, one will understand that they are similar and almost the same, so the question is, are the founders of Lyft, not business owners? Of course, they are; using an existing protocol to create their concept does not change anything. So what makes business owners is their creativity, not that they have great ideas.
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6. Anyone can own a business.
Across the world, over 7 billion humans are dwelling on all of its continents. What are all these people doing? Well, a lot of them are not entrepreneurs and some will never be entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship is not for everyone; if you give people a hundred reasons to start their business, they will still find one reason why staying on their job is a better option.
For instance, in the United States, immigrants are more often seen diving into entrepreneurship. This is because it takes several risks, confidence, and a certain kind of mentality to uproot yourself from your source to settle in a foreign land. Such people will have their eyes on opportunities that do not exist where they came from, unlike the natives. Also, understanding that business is a risky venture, out of fear of losing some people will never consider trying it.
7. Business requires formal training and education.
Another fallacy about having a business is that it requires having some degrees or studying entrepreneurship or business. Business is a venture built on several skills like time management, communication, good customer relations, and many more. Statistics show that only a quarter of successful businesspeople graduate from college. This does not mean you should drop out of school; it only connotes that learning and understanding business is more important than having certificates in the study.
8. Business owners are young.
This is a wrong business belief, as when it comes to making money and entrepreneurship, there are no age limits. A lot of people might have reservations about starting their business due to their age and the myths they have exposed themselves to. The truth is, that age is not an excuse for starting a business.
If you seem to yourself unhappy about the state of your current job, take no chances to start a business if you have the funds, mentality, and resources required to be a business owner. What really makes the difference is the location and not age. For instance, the average age of a business owner in the United States is 40, while 47 is in the United Kingdom. So what could be holding anyone back? Get started and keep rolling.
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9. Business owners do not quit until they succeed.
Truth be told, the way of thinking of business owners is to not settle for failure; however, the reality is somehow different. Business owners will fail, and they know that, but what they rather do is keep doing what should be done while also anticipating the best days.
Debunk the false belief that business owners do not quit until they succeed. There are times when entrepreneurs leave one business venture for another because one business has failed. What they understand is that the failure of one business does not have to stop them from starting a new one and keep rolling.
10. Business ownership is genetic.
No one is born an entrepreneur; people train themselves to be. If business ownership is genetic, then why do children fail in businesses they inherit from their parents? If your entire family runs a business, it does not mean you will succeed; it does not mean you will fail either. A breakdown of the parents-to-children business transition shows that:
- 30% survive to the second generation.
- 12% survive to the third generation.
- 3% survive to the fourth generation.
The reason for the failure is nothing but a poor succession plan.
Undoubtedly, running a business is not easy; this is why it leaves many misconceptions and myths about what it looks like to run one. Running your own business does not mean you will not have time for your family; in fact, entrepreneurs are good at giving themselves and their families good treats by going on vacations. They don’t tend to have a good personal and social life because they possess amazing time management skills.
Also, one cannot say that because there is a risk or there are risks associated with starting a business, you should not delve into it. All that truly matters in venturing into business is taking time to understand what you are getting into and putting the necessary measures into place. Putting aside the myths, misconceptions, and false beliefs about business, one of the best actions any employee could take is leaving his/her job for a business.
