on March 10, 2020
This year, our firm is celebrating its 12th birthday.
Since launching in early 2008, we’ve been ducking and weaving our way forward through growth spurts, setbacks, huge wins, challenging times, and everything in between. I’m proud to say that, as a result, we have become a small-but-mighty virtual assistant firm that’s lead by our amazing team and fueled by our even more amazing clientele.
Recently, as part of a year-long series for a local business publication, I was profiled as part of a “Where Are They Now” feature of business owners, executives, and local leaders. They mostly asked what I’ve been up to the past several years, but one of the questions was: If you had to do it all over again, would you do anything differently?
No.
Well … maybe.
Yes.
Had I known then what I know now about all the insane stuff that happens when you start a business and run your own show, I’m pretty sure it would’ve terrified (the old) me enough to never take the leap in the first place.
I can say, almost without hesitation, that if my extremely introverted, short-attention-span, soul-of-an-artist, not-always-super-confident, perfectionist self would’ve known what I was getting into, I would’ve given the whole thing a resounding, “That’ll be a hard pass, thanks.”
In celebration of our 12 years in business, here are 12 solid reasons my current self would’ve given my past self not to ever start a business. Ever.
1. You’ll hang out with the weirdest people.
Business owners are an insatiably weird bunch. They’re scrappy, stressed out, innovative, funny, and can’t help but color outside the lines. They don’t look at the world the same way as everyone else and, as a result, you’ll find your mind uncomfortably stretched and your understanding of the world broadened more than you ever expected.
2. You’ll be shoved outside your comfort zone so many times, you’ll have a permanent bruise.
You’ll be pushed, pulled, poked, and shoved into doing things you never thought you’d be able to do. But you’ll do it because you have to. And when you come out the other side, your views of yourself will evolve and shift and grow in unexpected ways.
3. You’ll lug around a giant toolbox of problem-solving skills, and you’ll never be able to get rid of it.
This toolbox is heavy. SO heavy. And it only gets heavier. You’ll be armed to the teeth with ways to solve All The Problems. The longer you run a business, the more experiences, people, resources, and junk you’ll collect and carry around. You’ll be like a trouble-busting pack mule.
4. You think you’re stressed now? Just wait…
You know how you were super stressed that one time you had that interview for the job you really wanted, and had to convince them to hire you?
Bahahahahahahaha!
#SalesSkills
5. The battles you pick will be bigger and more meaningful.
Remember when you had that super-duper-horrible manager who was exceptionally mean? And it was a big deal and you took it personally and you cried a lot and thought you were going to die? Turns out, crap like that won’t matter to you anymore. Your skin will get a little bit thicker, and you won’t really care what anyone thinks about you and the path you’re paving, You will defend your truth with everything you’ve got.
6. Don’t even get me started on leaning in and pushing back.
As a woman-owned business… in professional services… that provides administrative support… you will run into the occasional old white dude who won’t take you or your business seriously. You’ll quickly learn to put on your big girl pants and send the message that disrespect isn’t an option. And you’ll smile when you explain that if they want to engage your services, your firm’s rates just doubled.
7. You’ll learn leadership, whether you like it or not.
You’ll slowly – and very ungracefully – learn how to take the lead until you’re eventually tasked with making Big Decisions for the Greater Good. This will happen before you’re ready for it, but you’ll have no choice but to build your expert team and lead them to victory in all the battles of small business.
8. You have the freedom to decide All. The. Things.
Where you work, who you work with, when you work, what you do, how you do it, why you do what you do… all of these things are entirely up to you. It’s the curse of being Boss Lady. You – and only you — are responsible for you.
9. You’ll find security in the strangest places.
Long gone will the days of a steady paycheck and predictable schedule. Instead, you’ll learn to find security in your own abilities, your own processes, and your own style. You’ll be forced to remind yourself time and time again that you can only control what you can control, and you’ll learn to have faith simply trusting the process.
10. Kiss that fixed mindset goodbye.
A lifetime ago, someone once told you that intelligence, grit, and perseverance is something you’re born with. You either have it or you don’t. Well, kiddo, you can kiss that limiting belief goodbye. These are all things that you’ll learn very quickly can be developed, practiced, built upon, and grown.
11. You’ll curse a lot more.
This will mostly involve you looking in the mirror a lot and saying “Ok, f*ck it. Let’s do this.”
12. You’ll have so many transferable skills that you’ll even surprise yourself.
Learning how to build a business from nothing requires an insane amount of constant learning. Turns out, this knowledge and these skills are easily transferable to pretty much every area of life. You’ll be able to plan an entire wedding in a few phone calls, one meeting, and three follow up emails.
So, there you have it. A dozen very solid and very sound reasons not to start a business. If you choose to ignore these clear warnings, do so at your own risk.
And have a TON of fun doing so.
