What keeps you going?

[Lynda]

Running a company can be very hard, not just with all the problems that a startup has, but funding, the times when money is tight or when everything's going wrong.

So what keeps you going through this? Is there anything that draws you back to the entrepeneurial lifestyle through thick and thin? How do you keep your head up?

For me, I suppose I really enjoy being my own boss. It's a chance to do the work I enjoy, rather than working on projects for someone else, and at the end of the day whatever I earn is because of my own efforts. And I love the flexibility of controlling my own schedule, since no one can tell me I can't make a doctor's appointment in the morning and do an extra hour to catch up in the evening.

 

[doodles67]

I actually enjoy the challenge entrepreneurship provides. I actually work much harder for myself than I do when working for someone else, but I love the problem solving involved in running a business. I enjoy trying to find out how to get customers, how to keep customers, what are the best suppliers. I also love the flexibility because I have more input on products and services provided.

What keeps me going is the challenge because I know that times will get better, but that is also the time that I begin to look for new markets. Last year, my eBay store wasn't doing well, so I began selling products through Facebook. When business is good, I try to have at least six months living expenses in savings to help lesson the impact of bad times. There have been lean times when I have had to get a part-time job, but I have always had faith that my business would recover.

 

[pwarbi]

What kept me going at the start is I just remembered what the alternative was, having to go back to working for somebody else in a 9-5 job. That's what kept me going and helped keep me motivated to push on.

Everyone will find their own ways to motivate themselves though, and what works for one person won't always work for you.