Don’t just start a business because you want to escape the J.O.B. Seriously. Don’t.
It seems these days that everyone on Instagram and Facebook is a self-proclaimed “entrepreneur.”
Their posts are all motivational quotes, fancy memes, and pretty branded images that make it look like they really have their shit together.
They claim many titles such as speaker, author, coach, coach of coaches, branding expert, social media expert, etc., and behind the scenes they are simply just wanting to have control over their own self worth while not actually accomplishing what their perfectly packaged brand states.
Claiming you’re an entrepreneur without ever actually DOING the work is like claiming you’re an athlete while sitting on the couch, pounding a 2L bottle of soda and playing video games.
It’s not just some fluffy title one throws around because it sounds cool.
The real journey will be a knock-out, drag-out test of your will and persistence that not everyone is truly capable of.
And that’s okay.
The best of the best know their limits and call bulls*t on themselves often.
The posers know their limits and validate them daily by making excuses to why they cannot take action…yet.
I’ve worked from home for about 12 years now and I’d be lying if I said it was the easiest thing I’ve ever done and that it’s been the most glamorous life.
Honestly, it’s been tough AF.
The journey to dialing-in my flow has been daunting and stressful and yet…somehow so very liberating. See, I chose this path because I had hit the top of the pay ladder at Gold’s Gym as a trainer and the only place to go was sales…which would take me out of training clients and into commission-based management.
I wanted more from my life and for my clients so I rented space at a private training studio and built a business from my home office while training clients at the studio.
I’ve worked more all-nighters than I can count.
I’ve hit rock bottom more time than I can count.
I’ve hit highs that were so high I didn’t even recognize myself anymore.
And overall, I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
And so…
I’m writing this article to address some things that have been coming up in a LOT of consultations and conversations I’ve been having lately with self-proclaimed “coaches” and “entrepreneurs” who are struggling to get their business off the ground. The reasons they want to start or have gotten started are completely misaligned with actually running a successful business so they are already in the red at the starting line.
Is this you? A list of excuses to take the leap…
Vive la resistance: Most people want to work from home or for themselves because they don’t want to “punch a time clock” or have to answer to authority. I can assure you, if THIS is the main reason you take up self-employment or entrepreneurship, you WILL fail.
Running away from structure into a world where you have even more structure AND a need for discipline is not the way to go. You’ll have to wear all the hats at first where as in a job you have only one or two.
Most people don’t realize that the grass is ONLY greener where you water it. 😉
I’ve lost newbie trainers after a few months of working with me because they thought that they could make more working for themselves. Having NO clue how to run or build a business, they crash and burn after only a few months.
Funny thing about this…
The ideology of “I could do it better on my own” is typically used by people who lack self awareness and discipline in their own lives such that they don’t want to be called out for slacking or procrastinating.
My dear friend,
Without the discipline to pull YOUR life in check, working from home will feel like you are going in circles with no progress or momentum toward anything you really want.
Your clients, your business, will keep you up at night while it grows…just like a baby…and you’ll have to answer to things you have no answer to at times. You will have to hold yourself accountable even when you just want to slack off.
The Martyr: Another reason I hear people wanting to start their own business is because they want to “help people” and yet, they lack the very necessary foundational principles of self care in their own lives such that they serve from an empty cup more times than not.
It goes like this…
You’re a martyr. You already give to everyone. You give so much to everyone that you have become the go-to person for everything under the sun.
However, you give so much to others that you rarely have time for yourself.
You think:
“Maybe I could do this for a living. I mean, I’m really good at giving advice (or baking these cookies…or making this craft…etc.) and I could make a ton of money by doing it.
Maybe…I could be a coach!”
Please don’t.
If you’ve never charged for your ‘advice’ or service to others and have no clue how to take a stand for yourself, you’ll have ZERO capacity to actually sell what you’re offering.
You’ll end up giving away so much for free because you have yet to make the leap from scarcity to abundance.
Then there are those solo-preneurs: who think they are superman/superwoman and can do anything, anytime, anywhere. And, maybe they can!
However, it doesn’t mean it’s the most effective use of their time.
So they’ll spin their wheels…
Go in circles…
Over analyze what they think is expected of them…
Attempt to juggle all the roles and all the tech and all the communication and all the sales…
And battle between doing what they love vs what they THINK is supposed to be done first.
Which are never one in the same.
Nothing gets done. Well, not effectively anyhow.
And finally, there’s the perfectionists: The ones who feel like they have to get it right from the start or there’s no use in even starting. They feel doomed to fail if just one thing does not match what they believe others expect of them.
Just ONE more cert and I’ll feel comfortable enough to go out and coach.
Just ONE more tweak to my site and it will be ready to launch.
Just ONE more…to make me feel WORTHY of doing what I set out to do.
My friend, that day will never come. I assure you.
It’s the intrinsic self worth that deems us worthy, not the validation of a properly taken and highly scored standardized test.
All of the people on this list get stuck in the planning process for YEARS with their dreams resting comfortably in the Land of Someday.
If you have ever wanted to work for yourself…
There are a few key things I’ve discovered that may help you cut the learning curve and create actual momentum that lasts longer than your push-pop on hot summer day.
1- Don’t wait for the perfect time. NOW is the best time because it’s the ONLY moment you have control over.
My first crack at coaching started in just two weeks. I jumped in head-first back in 2004 and surprisingly booked enough clients in just those two weeks to quit my culinary job. The greatest successes I’ve had have been in times where overthinking was not allowed.
When the inspiration hits…run with it and never look back.
This doesn’t mean you need to be impulsive and jump on EVERY opportunity that comes your way. Because they will. It simply means that if you are being called, listen with all your might and don’t wait to take action just because now is not the most convenient time.
2- No one is satisfied with their first project. I guarantee, if your first project succeeds, you run a VERY high risk of painfully crashing and burning at some point. All because you take success for granted by assuming life will just be that easy all the time.
My first business made almost $70,000 the first year and about $90,000 the second year. I was a personal trainer working for myself with only the one revenue stream.
However, my first business partnership knocked me down to less than half of that the following year. Eventually, I struggled to rebuild on my own when I finally walked away because I had a false sense of courage that it could be just as easy as it was the first time.
3- Get comfortable with the mistakes enough to choose them strategically. Many of the best entrepreneurs fail MANY times along the journey to success. We may crash and burn, or lose it all, however, we are willing to get back up and keep running because we choose our steps in relation to the bigger picture.
The key is to never identify with your fails. Celebrate them as wins, learn from them, then move on.
FAST.
I’ve lost partnerships, had my car unlawfully repo’d at work during a lawsuit, gone through horrible break ups with business partners while still in business with them, and even died at one point…It all fueled me to get back up to play bigger and better than ever before.
The greatest successes I have made in life happen when I choose to take a risk knowing I may fall- KNOWING the fall can actually move me up the growth ladder exponentially.
I have fallen enough to know that sometimes a fall can birth an opportunity.
It may be messy and painful however the reward of the lesson makes the risk SO worth it in the end!
4- Calculated risks are very different than the ones we take where we deny our instincts. If your gut tells you not to go down a path. DO NOT DO IT. I don’t care how good the opportunity looks…you will get knocked the F* out.
I know.
Because I’ve done it.
A few times.
Just because you are friends with or dating someone you see potential in, does NOT mean they are a good fit for business partnership.
The worst partners are people you love who are unwilling to discuss and deal with the tough stuff in business. Seriously. And when you are close with them in friendship or intimacy, it makes matters SO much worse.
Talk about challenging the strength of your relationship!
5) Learn self discipline BEFORE you jump. Learn to call bullsh*t on your own excuses and listen to people give you feedback on how you show up for them.
This is an essential part of business that you NEED to develop a tough skin for asap.
We can hide behind a fancy pants branding image and post only motivational quotes that may or may not go viral, however, if we cannot even keep ourselves focused enough to DO THE WORK, we may not be able to survive the growing pains of the entrepreneur journey.
I was in a toxic relationship with one of my ex business partners that I was unable to admit to. Instead of facing the need to get out and go back to doing my own thing, I hid behind busy work and gave up my discipline in working out and stopped focusing on stuff that actually mattered.
In fact, I created SO much useless busy work for myself that I started pushing people away with the “I have too much work to do” excuse…and I was completely disconnected from the fact that I was the creator of that chaos until I got out of both the relationship and the business.
6) Build a business that grows with you: not some pretty, perfect, compartmentalized version of your ideal self that does not align with who you are behind closed doors.
Posting only your perceived, precisely packaged wins on social media prevents you from being REAL. When life gets tough, you won’t know how to show up for/with your clients/customers because you’ve essentially been lying to them about your authentic self.
And don’t attempt to argue with me about how showing only the good side is being authentic.
It’s not.
Check out Ryan Orrico on Instagram for a swift kick in the ass on being unapologetically authentic.
When I went through my death experience, I didn’t know how to tell people that I got stuck in the hospital for four days, that I had surgery to save my life, and that I needed space…and support…to heal. I was so afraid to share my story or even talk about how weak I was during that six month recovery period.
It was entirely egoic…
More about me wanting to look perfect in their eyes and fearing their disapproval of me than feeling confident enough to say
“damn…I guess I AM human after all…” 😒
If you want to start your own business and work from home, be ready for the ride of your life.
It WILL be one of the most raw lessons you have ever had in self awareness.
You’ll fall flat on your face and be the only one who can pick yourself back up.
There will be days when you question whether or not you’ll be able to pay your bills…or your staff…or yourself…
You’ll have moments where you don’t feel like working because you are too emotional or family stuff is getting in the way, and you won’t have a steady paycheck to act as your safety net if you decide to take a personal day, a sick day or a vacation day.
You won’t have cushy benefits or kooky co-workers to shoot the sh*t with when you don’t feel like working. In fact, you will spend many days alone, tired, and feeling hopeless.
And yet…
IF you are bold enough to face the journey, curious enough to challenge your own beliefs of what’s possible, and courageous enough to stand tall in the face of adversity, you WILL succeed.
It is my sincere desire to see you succeed at whatever you decide to do and so I can only pray that you will take my words here as a guide and be brutally honest with yourself enough to determine IF you are ready to take the journey or if you are simply running away from a tough situation because the grass looks greener on the other side.
If you liked this article please comment, share and give it a 👏 Thank you for reading! Namaste.
About the author:
Alida is an Intuitive Life Strategist, student of comparative religions, and co-owner of Mind Soul Fit OC in Newport Beach, CA. Her coaching company, Ambassador for Goodness, hosts various workshops on mindfulness, spiritual entrepreneurship, intuitive eating, art therapy, and relationship success. This blog is also a podcast called Wisdom Nuggets and can be found on iTunes, Anchor, Google Play Music, Overcast, Pocketcasts and almost anywhere podcasts are found!
