Ee 026 The Proverbial

EE 026: The Proverbial “Elephant In The Room”

December 30, 2020 |

A recent survey found that more than 70% of people want to be some sort of entrepreneur. That’s awesome and I’d happily welcome each and every one of them to the ranks! 

I can see how entrepreneurship would be a seductive gig.  I could rattle off a whole litany of reasons.  Some of the more top-of-mind are pride, purpose, freedom, and the desire to make more money.

Good starting point, wouldn’t you agree?  

Upside aside, starting and running your own business on a day-to-day basis is no easy task.  In fact, it can be downright brutal at times.  And a pursuit that is truly worth the effort…with one caveat.

That caveat is the proverbial “elephant in the room”.  Oh it’s there.  It’s big.  Massive even.  And it is eyeballin’ you my friend. 

The pachyderm to whom I refer is the answer to one very important, seemingly simple question:  are YOU cut out for entrepreneurship? 

Only you can truly answer this question.  It is the most important factor when considering an all-in position on entrepreneurship, in my humble opinion. 

I’ll leave you to think about your gut-level answer as you contemplate why becoming an entrepreneur is on your radar.  There are many reasons to consider when taking the rather giant leap into entrepreneurship. Oh, I could go on, and on, and on, and on.

But in the interest of time, I’ll share my top 10:

  1. Autonomy: running your own business allows you to be in charge of your own destiny. It also helps you to avoid getting stuck in the “daily grind” or the “rat race”. For many people running their own business lets them have a career that is self-sustaining.
  2. Opportunity: Being an entrepreneur opens up a whole new world of opportunity for you. You will have the opportunity to do anything you want in life. This means you can choose to spend your life changing the world for the better. Few other career choices can offer this kind of opportunity.
  3. Impact: Many people who work for other companies truly want to work hard and help that company to succeed, but few are actually able to have such an impact. When you run your own business everything you do will directly impact the company, which can be very rewarding.
  4. Freedom: this is the answer most people will give if you ask them why they want to become an entrepreneur. For many people the idea of doing what they want, exactly how they want to do it is the most compelling reason to take the risk and run their own business. It is true…having freedom in life and career does make a huge difference!
  5. Responsibility: when you run your own business you have the ability to be responsible to society and operate your business the way that you feel it should be run. This is especially true if you have the desire to help others, the world in general. If you work for someone else you may not be able to improve the world the way you want to, but if you are the boss you can.
  6. Being your Own Boss: this is another common answer for why many people want to become entrepreneurs. If you are your own boss you can do things your way. You can make your own decisions, take your own risks, and decide your own fate.
  7. Time and Family: depending on your specific goals in life, becoming an entrepreneur could give you the freedom of time and allow you to spend more of it with your family.  
  8. Creating a Legacy: if the idea of forging a lasting legacy is important to you then few other careers give you the opportunity to do so like operating your own business.
  9. Accomplishment: if you have specific goals that you would like to accomplish in your life running your own business could help you to do so.
  10. Control: for a lot of business owners the sense of security that comes with the ability to control your own work is a major reason to become an entrepreneur.

Gut-check time…do any of these 10 reasons light the fire in your belly?  Do they spark a desire deep within that only the unbridled potential of wading into the entrepreneurial waters can bring?  

Chew on the prospect of liberating your inner entrepreneur and look that elephant right in the eye as you answer the critical question…

Am I cut out to be an entrepreneur?  

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