As an entrepreneur, you are basically trading a life of certainty, in terms of having a conventional job…. with a life of uncertainty, and whilst at times, this can feel exciting and liberating it can also feel rather stressful.
The common quote below sums up the aspirational and adventurous spirit of the entrepreneur:
“Here’s to the crazy ones.
The misfits.
The rebels.
The troublemakers.
The round pegs in the square holes.
The ones who see things differently.
They’re not fond of rules.
And they have no respect for the status quo.
You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them.
About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them.
Because they change things.
They push the human race forward.
And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius.
Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.”
Entrepreneurship, however, is not all aspirational glory, for many people, particularly in the early days there’s a struggle to make ends meet – both with regard to your business and your personal life.
Whilst in a corporate setting there are specialist companies such as GetFive that help people cope with the uncertainty they face, for instance, when being made redundant – yet as an entrepreneur, you’re often on your own, and unless you have a strong support network of like minded friends it can be difficult to face.
Indeed, if the majority of your friends are living a more traditional life, for instance, working 9-5 in a job they “put up with” but enables them to drive a nice car, pay the bills, keep a roof over their head, and kickback at weekends – you can feel like the odd one out, and whilst your cause is noble, it’s easy to end up feeling isolated.
In this sense, the challenge of uncertainty can be linked with the challenge of not living a traditional life where people look forward to weekends and get paid on a regular basis, in a consistent way, that isn’t contingent on anything other than them showing up and doing what they are told.
As an entrepreneur, particularly when starting out, weekends are consumed with business activity, the idea of clocking off and going home to enjoy a restful night isn’t quite on the cards, as even when you are trying to relax and switch off – your mind is still whirling – and it’s as if you end up giving your life to the business.
Of course, the upside of all this uncertainty is that if you do make it, the rewards are worth reaping, indeed there’s a wonderful saying that exclaims how entrepreneurs are willing to do the things today, others aren’t, so that they can have the benefits in the future that others can’t.
Within that saying you find the reason for dealing with such a challenging life of uncertainty and unpredictable fortunes. You are taking a calculated risk, that by investing all that you are into your business, you will come out on top.
