Stop saying “I don’t want to work for anyone else”
Entrepreneurship is undoubtedly on the rise. As the tech wave continues to expand we see the barriers to an entrepreneurial lifestyle crumble down. This is both a blessing and a curse. As I write this, I feel like a crotchety old man.. I assure you that I am, but I am also a senior in college. I’ve taken 2 separate semesters away from school to start companies that have been accepted into accelerator programs. After my return to campus I noticed a delightful explosion in entrepreneurship but a unnerving amount of the phrase “I don’t want to work for someone else,” buzzing around campus.
My entrance to the entrepreneur lifestyle happened when I was 19. I walked in on the first day of the accelerator program and realized I didn’t know anything — but drive and passion lead me down the path to figuring it out. I didn’t do it because I wanted to be rich, I didn’t do it because I wanted to be in the spotlight, I didn’t do it because I didn’t want to work for somebody else, I did it because I absolutely loved what I was doing and what I was building. I did it because the product of my team and my labor was something that would keep me up for hours at night just so that we could bring a dream to fruition. This is entrepreneurship.
What people hear when you say it:
When someone asks you why you want to be an entrepreneur and you respond with, “I don’t want to work for someone else” a lot of things go through that person’s head. (I’m assuming you’re talking to someone who matters to your network or business, not your mom.)
Firstly, it makes them question your motivations. If the first thing out of your mouth isn’t about your passion for people, a product, or anything relating to an actual business, then you’ve immediately shot yourself in the foot with your first impression. Why would I want to do business with someone who isn’t focused on their product?
Secondly, why can’t you work for someone else? What makes you so hateful towards a person giving you directions?
Take a second here and stop because THIS IS HUGE.
Let’s get this straight — You are always working for someone else. There has never been a business in the history of the world that was successful without customers. We NEED other people. If you can’t work for someone else, what makes me think that you can work with someone else. At the end of the day, your customers are your boss, your investors are your boss, your users are your boss. They’re the reason you’re able to pay your bills, so you better make them happy.
I understand the benefits of owning your own business. It truly is incredible to forge your own path in the world and wonderful to not have to deal with the bureaucracy of a large corporate job. At the end of the day business, to me at least, is about making a difference. It is about taking a problem and solving it in a way that has never been thought of before. These are huge endeavors that will consume your life and if you’re doing it because you can’t deal with management, you better rethink your lifestyle choice.
Disclaimer:
I’m not here to claim that I’m some kind of all-star super-successful entrepreneur. I’m not. I’ve had 3 companies, all of which at this point have been closed down. These aren’t failures — we set out to send a product to market and we did exactly that. Sometimes (often-times) it doesn’t work, so you realize that moment, rip off the bandaid, and move forward to the next thing. I’m simply here to challenge your thinking behind why you’re choosing to be an entrepreneur.
