10 reasons why you should not get into business

I am constantly approached for my thoughts around business ideas, startups, and purchases. Most times, someone wants to make the leap from employee to entrepreneur. This leap is a difficult one. Although working for one self can be rewarding. If the motives and conditions are not aligned, the business will likely fail.

According to Michael Gerber in "E-Myth Revisited", 85% of businesses fail in the first five years of operation. There are many reasons for this failure but some of them are related to the person starting the business.

Here are 10 reasons why you should not get into business:

1. Business is tough. It will make your skin crawl because you'll not get enough sleep. You'll constantly worry about the next sale, next invoice, or the next payment. It's a constant struggle to balance income and expenses. And in the early years, you'll have to sacrifice both time and money for a potential dream. There is no guaranteed paycheque every two weeks. If you don't work, you don't get paid. And even when you work, you may not get paid. Your personal finances could suffer. You could lose your home, your savings and even your marriage for this dream. Is it worth that much to you?

2. No balance. There's no room for work-family balance in the beginning. This concept was written by a bunch of new wave hippies who sold hand made hemp figurines out of the back of their Westphalias. If you're going to start a business, you have a choice: have a really small business that you treat like a hobby and pays you as such or have a real business with help from others (employees, contractors, or partners). A real business takes full time dedication and commitment.  Are you willing to give up family vacations, weekends, and your evenings for this business?

3. Getting into business is NOT a career choice. It's a lifestyle choice. The 40 hour work week was developed by socialists trying to create more work for more people. A business is like a child. You have to care, feed and nurture it all the time. You don't take a day off from being a parent, when the kids aren't around. You don't take a day off from being a business owner, when you're not at the office. How much do you value your weekends, evenings and vacations?

4. People are creatures of habit. It is hard to convince them to switch to your new offering. They already have what they want, despite what you may think. The world doesn't need another business until you SHOW the world why you're so special. If you don't know why you are special or don't have time/money to show them, then how will the rest of the world ever know.

5. You get paid last. Every financial guru will tell you how you should be paid first. When you are starting a business, every surviving moment is based on your ability to pay employees, contractors, suppliers, landlords, and the government. After everyone is paid, if there's anything left over you can keep some for yourself ever keeping in mind that there's another round of payments the following week. There's always a reason to keep the cash in the corporate bank account, even if it means you miss your personal mortgage payment.

6. You need to be extremely strong mentally.  There will be times when you'll feel like a punching bag. Everyone wants something from you and you have nothing left to give. You'll feel small, insignificant. You'll feel like a poser trying to MAKE IT, when in fact you're eating cereal for supper because there's nothing else in the cupboard.

7. If you're looking for a retirement plan, don't buy a business. Although some businesses are very lucrative, retirement plans are for people with careers. See number 3. You may want to slow down as you get older, but there's no time for that right now. You're working toward a dream. The best business owners don't have retirement dreams. They have growth dreams.

8. You love to travel. See number 2. If you do an amazing job at running your business, you may have enough money and time to travel. But in the first five years, you shouldn't go far. Your business is an infant. Despite what systems you've created, they may not have been tested in your absence. Before planning that 3 week vacation in Italy, go away for 3 days and see if the phone rings. If you don't call the business and no one calls you, try going away for 5 days. Working up to the three week vacation will take about five years (even if you have an impeccable team).

9. You want to make more money. Money cannot be the driver for you to get into business. Money is a result of a job well done. If you work for money, you're a slave to it. You will struggle for a long time. If you work for a purpose, people will follow you with money in their hands throwing it at your feet to help them. If you're opening a business to make money, do yourself a favour and quit now. It will be difficult for you to succeed with that premise.

10. You will lose friends. You will be seen as weird. The exceptional are not normal. To be normal is to be like everyone else. We are taught to conform. To be successful in business, you should NEVER conform. It's what sets you apart from your competitors. You'll be alone and may lose a few friends along the way. You will be focussed on your work and you will miss some of those social engagements you used to do.  Some friends won't understand. They would never say anything, but they secretly want to see you flat on your face so they can justify their own decisions of conformity. They are not jealous. They are afraid they are making the wrong choices.

I'm the world's first DE-Motivational speaker. If I haven't demotivated you from getting into business after this article, you may be one of those fine breeds that deserve to work for themselves. Good luck to you and I wish you much success.


"No one wants to be average, but everyone wants to be normal". - Roy Williams