Have you ever awoken from a nightmare that felt so real, that you actually felt relieved when you realized it was only a dream?
Many people each day wake up to a similar crushing fear, but theirs’ is not caused by a bad dream, but instead by a feeling of helplessness, and despair.
Each day, people who hate their jobs, dislike their quality of life, and have an overwhelming desire to live out their dreams of starting a business, instead choose to put on their business suit, pick up the briefcase, head to the office, sit in their cubicle with tropical destination pictures all over the walls, and remain there for the next 8-9 hours.
Why do people do this? Fear. They may hate their job, but they know what to expect. They know what time to wake up, what time to be there, what time to leave, and exactly how much money they will receive in two weeks. It is all they’ve done for 20 years, it’s all they know, and it’s what they’ve come to depend on.
Gripping Fear To Start A Business
This comfort forms a comforting shell of fear. It is a fear of change, a fear of risk, and a fear of failure. You know there won’t be failure if you keep doing things the same way. Often, it isn’t until you are more afraid of things staying the same, than of failing that you finally gain the tenacity to start your business.
What does it take to get to that point? Most people finally arrive when:
- They’ve gotten laid off.
- Or they’ve been pushed to the absolute limits of their sanity.
In both of those instances, they seem to be terrible times to take on the stress of running your own business! Should someone wait until they are 3 feet from the mental ward before they decide to start a business?
Coping With Fear
To avoid the above described situation, fear must be addressed. Coping with fears directly is the only absolute way to gain the confidence to make the correct decisions. The first step, in my opinion, on coping with this fear is to accept the fact your current job isn’t any safer.
There is a high percentage of the workforce who are desperately seeking employment after being laid off, or their company collapsing. Many of those people felt safe, but weren’t. Employment provides a false sense of safety. Whether you’re an atheist or all the most holy pastor on the planet, we all live on faith.
Each day, we step out of our doors assuming the air is clean enough to breathe, we get in our cars (which use combustible engines) and have faith that they’ve been engineered properly. We get on the roads (no explanation necessary) and we drive to a company that we assume is healthy enough to still have their doors open. You live on faith, even if you didn’t know it.
Starting a Business Responsibly
SCORE.org once stated that about 90% of all business failures occurred because a business was under-capitalized. That means they didn’t have enough money to operate properly. To take the sting out of your failure fears, a business plan must be created, implemented, and you should speak with a SCORE advisor. SCORE advisors are volunteers that will assist in looking over the business plan, and let you know what they think.
In addition to SCORE advisors, there is the SBA (Small Business Administration) to figure out how viable your idea is. They provide assistance on a variety of businesses – anywhere from Starting a Website all the way to starting a manufacturing plant. There is no reason to toss money into the wind and cross your fingers.
Starting a business does not have to be a bunch of guesswork, as long as the business is started & managed responsibly. Have enough confidence and desire, and you will be successful. It’s time to get fearless. Remember: Every business started with someone taking a risk.