When it comes to entrepreneurship, there’s this misconception that you’ll be rich in a matter of weeks. However, the truth is that your hustle will ultimately determine your success. I am sure you’ve heard many “motivational speakers” or “business gurus” tell you that entrepreneurship is this great thing, and that you’ll become a millionaire just like them. Yes, they’re selling you this great dream, and yes entrepreneurship is awesome, however, you’re not getting the whole truth.
The truth is that there’s so much to being an entrepreneur, and it’s not as easy as it may seem, and it does take a lot of hard work, dedication, and most importantly patience. This is why you should consider reading this article before you take a leap into entrepreneurship. So before you go on this amazing journey, here are a few things that you were not told about entrepreneurship that will be useful to you.
1. You’ll Need to Pay Special Attention to Your Mental and Physical Health
If you do decide to become an entrepreneur, your very first step before taking this journey should be to prepare yourself both mentally and physically. Starting a business requires a ton of hours of you planning out your business. You’ll have to come up with a business concept, a business plan, figure out the financials, and the launch of your company, and that’s only the beginning stages.
Once your business is off the ground, the first few months are crucial, and you’ll need to oversee every part of your business to make sure that things are running smoothly. During the first year of your business, you may need to kiss your days off goodbye. You’ll probably find yourself burning out a bit, but remember it will be totally worth it when your business has a successful first year.
2. Do Not Expect to Become Rich Overnight
Have you ever noticed how some successful business people do not discuss their struggles during the beginning of their business venture? Yeah, not many people talk about this, which is unfortunate because it leaves a lot of aspiring entrepreneurs thinking that they’ll become rich fast. The truth of the matter is that you may not see a profit for quite some time, and that’s okay because it’s normal for that to happen.
At this point, you’ll probably miss the joy of receiving a steady paycheck every two weeks. The first few months of your business are all about gaining back that investment. You’ve probably invested thousands of dollars into your business to get it running, now it’s time to earn that money back, which means you won’t be seeing a profit for quite some time. During the first few months, you’ll probably think that your business is failing because you’re seeing so little profit, but that’s okay. It happens to almost every entrepreneur. So if you start a business and are not seeing any profit, do not worry. Give it some time!
3. Uncle Sam is Serious About Getting His Cut of Your Profits
Part of being an entrepreneur is also being a part-time accountant and tax law attorney. When you start off, you might not have the funds to hire an accountant to handle your tax work, which means you’ll have to. Doing your taxes as a business owner is completely different from doing your taxes as an employee and just looking at a W2. In cases like this, it is strongly advised that you read up on your state tax laws and federal tax laws for business owners, since they can be quite complicated. One thing is for sure, if you do not pay your taxes, the IRS will come after you. Therefore make sure you pay your taxes accordingly.
4. Health Insurance is a Pain
Congratulations, you’re an entrepreneur now! This means that you can kiss your affordable healthcare goodbye and prepare yourself to pay some hefty premiums. Now that you are an entrepreneur, you’ll need to seek health insurance on your own., With that being said, you’ll be courted by many insurance companies with little coverage and high premiums. You may want to jump on this when your current insurance is about to expire, so that there is no lapse in coverage. A good word of advice here is to not settle and do extensive research to see which company best fits your needs.
5. It Will Sometimes Be Lonely
This may be one of the most difficult things to grapple with as a new entrepreneur. The truth is that your family and friends will not understand your new venture, which is normal. They’ll probably talk you out of it, saying that it’s too risky, or that you should stick to your high paying office job. Your friends will have a hard time grappling with the idea of you not being able to go out on Saturday nights, and you’ll find your circle getting much smaller.
A great way to get rid of that sense of loneliness is to surround yourself around with like minded individuals; you can network with other aspiring entrepreneurs, and entrepreneurs who have been in business for quite some time. Surround yourself with people that have a full understanding of your vision, and give legitimate advice to help you grow your business.
It’s Going to Be Okay
Entrepreneurship will make or break you, and only the people with the right mindset will be able to succeed in this journey. It will be difficult, tiresome, and confusing, but it will be so worth it when you can finally call yourself an entrepreneur, and work on a passion instead of working to get a paycheck.
Although the things discussed in this article may seem a bit discouraging, it is best that you get the full picture instead of just half of it. This article is not written to discourage you from becoming an entrepreneur, but instead to prepare you for what to come, and the hard work that comes along with it. It’s an exhausting journey, but the successful outcome will be so worth it.
Pingback: 7 Useful Tools for Entrepreneurs - StartUp Mindset