5 Hard Truths about Growing Your Business While Working Full-Time
By Phil & Pam
It seems like everywhere you turn to in the media, starting a business is the answer to your economic problems and they often tell you that if you can get things going while you’re still at your full-time job that is the most ideal situation. Well, I’m going to share some hard truths that may be tough to swallow for many of you and I won’t sugar-coat anything about starting a business on the side. Here we go!
You’ll burn the mid-night oil…a LOT. After you’ve put in 40 or more hours a week for your day job, you’re probably tired and would like to go home and relax. This is not a luxury you’ll get to enjoy for a while when you’re setting up your business. Be prepared to work over-time, lose lots of hours of sleep, and see an increase in your stress levels…and actually enjoy it. It’s not particularly healthy for you, but sometimes you have to buckle down and do whatever it takes. I highly recommend that you take one day off each week for a month to work solely on your business. For example, take every Wednesday off in June or take a mini “staycation” for a three-day weekend and lock yourself up in a hotel room to knock out that long to-do list for your business.
You’ll probably resent your job. If you don’t already hate the job you’re working at now, your whole mindset will begin to shift about where you spend most of your time. You’ll question why you’re making all this money for “the man”, you won’t relate to your co-workers who are doing everything they can to climb the corporate ladder, and eventually you’ll start showing up late or taking longer lunches. Like my mentor Pam Slim says, “hating your job is not a business plan”. Snap out of it! Keep the mojo going while you’re at work. As they say, don’t bite the hand that feeds you…at least not yet.
You’ll take too long to realize you need to budget. Cashflow is one of the main reasons many people suffer financially personally and business-wise. If you keep it real with yourself, you’ll realize that it will probably (not always) be more than a year or two before you start making your current salary with your business. The way to build wealth is to make more and cut “excess” expenses. So while you’re working on generating more income, you need to cutback on your expenses – seriously. Your money has a purpose, so be firm with your financial goals.
Your goals will take a lot longer with or without planning. There are some of us who absolutely love planning – I do! There’s just something about getting the big picture of it all and then trying to hash out the details that gets me excited for the future. However, sometimes we can do so much planning that we end up taking absolutely no action. Keep things simple; get your business plan down to 1 page. Yep, that’s all you need when you’re starting out – seriously. On the flip side, if you do absolutely no planning, you’ll suffer from a serious case of “the shiny object syndrome” aka distraction. How will you know where you’re going or what is working for you or not if you don’t plan something? Don’t just be “busy” and end up stuck in the same place six from months now; create and implement your plan strategically.
You’ll make mistakes. You do know that being an entrepreneur is about taking risks right? You’ll screw some things up, things won’t go as planned, you’ll do some things you never thought you had the guts to do. The feeling in your soul when you’re about to do something scary yet exciting will wash over you time and time again. Embrace it. If I told you that there’s no such thing as failure and that “perfectionism” is actually a fear of failure, would you believe me? Would you go about your business differently? I surely hope so.
Phew! So after all of that being said, if you still have the entrepreneurial spirit boiling within you then face the realities and keep on going. Don’t be fooled by the media, being a business owner requires hard work and more importantly working smart. It is absolutely worth it and quite rewarding indeed. Just be honest about what it takes, it will only help you get to where you want to be.
P.S. If you have any questions about what it will take for you to take your business or career to the next level, post in the comment below or send me an email. I’d love to hear from you!
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Thanks Kimmoy! This is totally where I am at right now and I am feeling alot of these things and need reminding that its not just me, its everyone who is trying to make it while still working to pay the bills!
xoxo
Stiletto
You’re very welcome and you’re definitely not alone – keep it up!
Kimmoy,
You so said it!!! After months and months of sleepless nights and OMG moments when things go through the way we plan, I don’t regret one moment. Achieving your dreams means you’ll have to make it happen for yourself. You’ll sacrifice, you’ll take risks (a lot of them) and you’ll find great joy in every small detail that goes your way.
Thanks for sharing! I’m saving this one!!!
Much love,
Mel
Thanks Mel!
Kimmoy,
Are you spying on me? LOL I went through all of these things in the beginning of my business the only difference is I had no job to go to so I had to make my business work! One thing I can say after being a business owner for over five years if you do not take risks and dump your dream stealing family and friends you will never make it. After all these years my family still wonders what I do to make money and I hardly ever leave the house!
LOL You know Glen you bring up a good point about dealing with your family members when starting a business, not everyone gets it and not everyone is supportive either. Sounds like a new post, thanks for the inspiration
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Kimmoy,
This article was on point. I burn the midnight oil more often than not. I’m going to sleep well after midnight and waking up at 5:30am just to be able to get in a couple of hours of work before I go to my 9-5. It is very hard work but I wouldn’t trade it for the world.
Without planning and having supportive people in your life, it will take you a lot longer to complete your goals. Get rid of the negative people and replace them with positive. I would rather have 1 supportive person on my team then 5 negative, naysayers who call you crazy for working so hard any day of the week.
I am definitely posting this on facebook.
Hi Kimmoy,
I have to tell you this post completely changed my mindset. After taking two years to write my book, during which I chose to stop working as a coach, my business dried up.
It was a tough time and my book required that I face some hard truths so I needed to invest myself completely in it. Now that it’s done, although I have a list of subscribers that continues to build, I’ve been facing a lot of financial hardship.
Family and friends has continuously told me to go back to work and let the book sell itself naturally. Thanks to your post, I finally got it. After reading each of the 5 hard truths, I realized that none of them are as hard as what I’ve been facing by cutting off my option to go back to work.
You’ve inspired me to return back to my roots and to take on the business world once again. I realized that with all the know how that I’ve acquired about marketing, I can easily schedule blog posts, broadcasts, Facebook, Twitter updates and anything else to continue to remain top of mind to my women. I have everything to gain and nothing to lose. Thanks a million for writing this post. You’ve set me free!
My advice to other women seeking relief: if you’re running a business and your products and programs are not yet flying off the shelves, you owe it to yourself and your family, to do whatever you can to maintain your peace of mind and happy home by getting back out there in the work force, making money, taking steps and having faith that your business will continue to grow.
Much love and many thanks,
Andrea
Much love,
Andrea