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I got an email from a good mate of mine this morning that got me thinking some:
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Entrepreneurs suffer more mental disease than most people. More of us commit suicide.
Could this be because most of us are "reluctant" entrepreneurs?
All our school and university training pushes us into a job. We never need to worry about personal fallout from all the trappings of "business".
But something goes wrong en route. We find ourselves without any job.
We're forced into an environment we don't yet understand. Our entrepreneurial effort is because we see no other option at that time. And so we start up under duress. We have to learn to drive while we're in heavy traffic.
We never feel safe. We never are. Worldwide statistics reflect a massive attrition rate.
The success stories we read come from a few who bet the farm and made it big. For each of those there are thousands of us who bet the farm and lost it.
We look to people like lawyers and accountants for guidance. But they too haven't learnt much about business. Their training also focused on the craft rather than the engine around it.
And bankers? Bankers aren't business advisers. They are salespeople. They sell the thing we most need: access to money.
We look at the wrong things when we assess their offer. We look at the price, the interest rate. We don't look at how "roadworthy" their vehicle is.
That's why their suretyship contract hurts us so much. Our stress levels go through the roof as soon as we realise the extent of the fallout if we have to close.
That fallout forces us to stop making business decisions. We're faced with losing our home so we make personal decisions to try and stem the onslaught. And so closure is never planned nor structured. It is almost always life-changing.
Would it be a long stretch to suggest that a simple contract causes us to go nuts and kill ourselves? I don't think so.
But it does not have to be like this. Understand first. Then we can take back control.
Please check out my free course on the dangers of signing suretyships. If you have a business overdraft you have already signed one. It would be useful to know what it means.
Warm regards
Peter Carruthers
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Of course he's right about the perils of suretyships. I can speak from personal experience - mess this up and you can find yourself gutted like a kipper. Financially at least. (Although I can tell you financial disaster does tend to bring rather heavy pressure to bear on other aspects of your life too).
If you've never delved into the perils of suretyships before, I suggest you take the free course.
But it was the statement about "reluctant" entrepreneurs that had me really thinking - Could it be that most of us are entrepreneurs got into this against our will?
I've always taken it that it was my decision to go into business for myself. But did I actually have a choice?
Practically... No. Not really. It really did seem to be the only viable option open to me at the time.
Does that "lack of options" make me a "reluctant" entrepreneur?
Putting it that way - Maybe yes.
So just how many of us small business owners are reluctant entrepreneurs?
If you're a business owner, or entrepreneur, or self-employed - it'd be interesting to hear your thoughts.
Did you "start your own business" out of a lack of options, or because you saw an opportunity?
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Entrepreneurs suffer more mental disease than most people. More of us commit suicide.
Could this be because most of us are "reluctant" entrepreneurs?
All our school and university training pushes us into a job. We never need to worry about personal fallout from all the trappings of "business".
But something goes wrong en route. We find ourselves without any job.
We're forced into an environment we don't yet understand. Our entrepreneurial effort is because we see no other option at that time. And so we start up under duress. We have to learn to drive while we're in heavy traffic.
We never feel safe. We never are. Worldwide statistics reflect a massive attrition rate.
The success stories we read come from a few who bet the farm and made it big. For each of those there are thousands of us who bet the farm and lost it.
We look to people like lawyers and accountants for guidance. But they too haven't learnt much about business. Their training also focused on the craft rather than the engine around it.
And bankers? Bankers aren't business advisers. They are salespeople. They sell the thing we most need: access to money.
We look at the wrong things when we assess their offer. We look at the price, the interest rate. We don't look at how "roadworthy" their vehicle is.
That's why their suretyship contract hurts us so much. Our stress levels go through the roof as soon as we realise the extent of the fallout if we have to close.
That fallout forces us to stop making business decisions. We're faced with losing our home so we make personal decisions to try and stem the onslaught. And so closure is never planned nor structured. It is almost always life-changing.
Would it be a long stretch to suggest that a simple contract causes us to go nuts and kill ourselves? I don't think so.
But it does not have to be like this. Understand first. Then we can take back control.
Please check out my free course on the dangers of signing suretyships. If you have a business overdraft you have already signed one. It would be useful to know what it means.
Warm regards
Peter Carruthers
-----
Of course he's right about the perils of suretyships. I can speak from personal experience - mess this up and you can find yourself gutted like a kipper. Financially at least. (Although I can tell you financial disaster does tend to bring rather heavy pressure to bear on other aspects of your life too).
If you've never delved into the perils of suretyships before, I suggest you take the free course.
But it was the statement about "reluctant" entrepreneurs that had me really thinking - Could it be that most of us are entrepreneurs got into this against our will?
I've always taken it that it was my decision to go into business for myself. But did I actually have a choice?
Practically... No. Not really. It really did seem to be the only viable option open to me at the time.
Does that "lack of options" make me a "reluctant" entrepreneur?
Putting it that way - Maybe yes.
So just how many of us small business owners are reluctant entrepreneurs?
If you're a business owner, or entrepreneur, or self-employed - it'd be interesting to hear your thoughts.
Did you "start your own business" out of a lack of options, or because you saw an opportunity?
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