Who hasn’t fantasized about owning their own business? Anyone who has ever had a boss snap at them after a long day, been surprised to find themselves fired in a series of ruthless corporate layoffs, or gotten into an argument with a coworker only to have management come down against them will surely know the desire not to have to answer to someone else at work.
It has to be said, though, that while there may indeed be some perks to owning your own business – hello, vacation time! – there are a number of serious challenges as well. Below we detail some of the major challenges of owning your own business and how best to go about preventing or solving them.
Everything That Goes Wrong is Your Problem
This is the first one, and it’s a doozy: when you are the boss of your own company, everything that goes wrong during the day is your fault. It doesn’t matter if it actually was your fault, of course, but it becomes your fault because you are the only one responsible for fixing it.
This is particularly challenging when it comes to technological issues. When you work in a big office and your computer breaks, you can sit back, enjoy a cup of coffee, and wait for the IT department to come round and sort it out. When you own your own business, you are the IT department – or at least, you’re responsible for getting them to fix it.
Save yourself some hassle on this front by getting a brand-new functional laptop for small business owner.
Dealing With Disgruntled Staff and Clients
Whereas, at one time, you would have handed off a furious customer to your higher-up or told an angry coworker they could speak about their issue to your shared boss, when you are the boss, all of this becomes your issue. When you own your own business, suddenly the people in your daily working life are coming to you with all their issues and complaints. Even when they are coming to you with less annoying things, like compliments or questions, they are still taking up a huge amount of your time.
The trick to solving this pesky problem is to limit the number of people you let into your inner circle – choose who you hire wisely, and trust your gut. A glowing CV doesn’t always reflect the personality behind the letters! More often than not, you want to keep people around you who you can trust and with whom you get along.
The same goes for clients! As the boss, you have the choice of who to sell to and who not to sell to – don’t make your life more difficult by courting choosey, fickle, or unkind clients. Building a good human base for your own business is key to its success later down the line, so don’t be afraid to play hardball and cut out people who aren’t making your life any easier!
