Kevin O’Leary: Entrepreneurship Isn’t Pretty — Here’s Why It’s Worth It
Written by
Chris Ozarowski
Edited by
Levi Leidy
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In a recent post on the social media platform Threads, businessman and “Shark Tank” star Kevin O’Leary wrote that the “pretty side of entrepreneurship” doesn’t exist. He said that there’s no balance in the life of a business owner, but that the effort is worth it in the end. So what are the personal costs of starting a business, and what can you gain?
Is There a Pretty Side of Entrepreneurship?
While O’Leary said there isn’t a “pretty side” to running a business, he does agree that the journey is worth it in the end. For many, the benefits of having your own successful business, whether that’s financial independence or the ability to be your own boss, outweigh the negatives.
O’Leary’s statement seems to imply that suffering is just part of the business process. This isn’t necessarily the case for all businesses, though. Every business will come with a certain amount of stress — that’s just part of life. However, many business owners find that they can finally make good money doing something they love, with less stress than they had at their previous job.
In the end, whether your business has a pretty side may come down to how successful it is. Make sure that you have a solid business plan and prepare for potential problems before they crop up. While O’Leary often implies that your work always takes precedence, spending quality time with your family and friends is also important for your mental health and happiness.
Personal Costs of Starting a Business
Depending on the type of business you start, you may need to invest a significant amount of capital, whether it’s from your savings, a loan or an investment from someone else. The potential for loss is real — if you’ve misjudged whether there’s a market for what you’re selling or you don’t have enough know-how to succeed in the field, you could lose everything you’ve put in.
Some business owners find themselves pouring money into their business for inventory, marketing, office space and equipment before seeing any success. If you started your business on debt, bad decisions could land you in trouble for the next few years of your life. This is why it’s important to always have a clear financial plan and consider the risks before diving in.
Businesses Require Time and Effort
Prepare to invest a lot of your time into your business. Many business owners find themselves working upward of 60 to 70 hours a week, especially during the starting phase, when the business isn’t doing well enough to hire any staff to help. Your workdays might extend late into the evening, and weekends could become just another workday.
You may need to spend significant amounts of time on the day-to-day operations, marketing your product or service, managing your finances and talking to customers about their needs and issues. Your business’s success may directly depend on the effort you put in, so you need to be ready to make personal sacrifices.
Stress
Running your own business can be an emotional roller coaster. The uncertainty of a startup, combined with the pressure to succeed, can lead to significant amounts of stress. You may experience highs when things go well and profound lows when they don’t. The fear of failure can be overwhelming, especially when your financial future is on the line.
Good planning, a strong support network and maintaining as much of a work-life balance as possible can help keep the stress at bay. Try to prepare for possible issues before they crop up so you’re not always scrambling to fix things after the fact.
Rewards of Running Your Own Business
Despite the risks, the potential financial rewards of running your own business can be substantial. If your business succeeds, it can generate far more income than most traditional jobs. The more your business grows, the more financial benefits you reap, including potentially selling your business for a profit later on.
Independence and Control
One of the greatest rewards of running your own business is the independence it offers. As a business owner, you make the critical decisions and steer the company’s direction. You choose whom to hire, what products to sell and how to market them.
If you’ve ever had a serious disagreement with a manager or boss at your job, then you know how valuable it is to be free to make your own decisions. If you know your niche and have a good plan, you have the opportunity to capitalize on it.
Personal Fulfillment
A unique satisfaction comes with knowing you built something from the ground up. Watching your ideas materialize into a functioning business that provides value to customers and creates jobs can be incredibly rewarding. Studies have shown that one of the most important parts of job satisfaction is knowing that your work is meaningful to other people. When you run your own business, you get to see the direct impact of your decisions and innovations and how they help your customers.
Should You Listen To Kevin O’Leary?
It might not always be a good idea to take O’Leary’s advice on business and investing at face value — at least, not without thinking about if it applies to you.
It’s important to never blindly follow business advice, whether it’s from a friend or a financial influencer on the internet. The people who give you that advice will not be the ones who have to live with the consequences of any bad decisions, and they may not be giving advice that’s in your best interest. Take what’s useful to you but remember that you’re the one who knows your situation best.
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