Joys & Pitfalls of Working as an Entrepreneur

Are you ready to take on the challenge of being an entrepreneur? Or you don’t want to leave your 9-5? Read on!

Last night over a glass of wine, we reminisced about past Melbourne Cup celebrations with our work colleagues. My husband asked me if I missed my old life in the corporate sector. It’s been nearly 18 months since I changed course and started running my own business and the question set me on a path of reflection. 

• Did I miss the stable paycheck coming in every month? Yeah!
• Did I miss the fun dinners & team events with my old colleagues? Of course!
• Did I miss the fact that I would work like crazy during the week but had the luxury of completely switching off on a weekend or holiday? Absolutely!

The truth is there are a lot of aspects that make corporate life super attractive which is why it’s hard to break free from. 

Working for yourself, on the other hand, let’s face it, has its pros & cons. For starters, 

• Do you have the flexibility to choose when you work & where you work? Yeah!
• Do you get to wear multiple hats in a day and often learn as you go? Of course!
• Do you get to push the boundaries & challenge yourself with something new every single day? Absolutely!

What every business owner will tell you though is that you have the flexibility and can definitely spend more time with your kids. I certainly have this year 🙂 but you never stop working. Yes, you choose your hours and have the freedom to do what you like during the week but you usually end up working at night and very often on weekends. 

The beauty of working for yourself is you can go on a holiday anytime you like but the bitter truth is you NEVER truly are on a holiday. 😉

I love travelling and I’ve travelled both domestically and internationally with my family a lot more this year. At the same time, my laptop has never been more than a few metres from me.

But what I’ve found is that the work I often do late at night, on weekends and while on holiday never really FEELS like work. I actually enjoy it as I get to build something that I believe will truly make an impact. It excites me to challenge myself, meet like-minded entrepreneurs and try new things to grow my business every day. Sometimes things work out and other times they don’t, either way, it’s on me and that’s the game changer.  

Is there stress associated with running your own business? Of course! But it’s a different kind of stress. It’s transient and is often replaced with an overwhelming sense of satisfaction when things go well & you genuinely make a difference to someone’s business.

I experienced a good amount of success in my corporate life and yet when I think back, it never felt enough. Something was always missing making me strive for more. 

Now, the bar I set is my own, no matter how high I set it and the satisfaction I get when I hit key milestones is like nothing I’ve ever felt before. 

It is the steady corporate life for you or would you be better off running your own business? This is a very personal question and really comes down to what drives you and makes you happy. 😀

I can safely say that while it was a tough decision at the start. I now have 2 successful businesses and have settled well into running both. I know I have a lot more to do and definitely can’t say what the future has in store for me but then again, that’s EXACTLY what makes the life of a business owner that much more exciting. 😉