Business and entrepreneurship are two sides of the same coin — the coin of life. These industries are deeply connected, and they represent a wide swath of life experience between the two of them. These are just a few of the major lessons that can be learned when owning and managing a business.
Hard Work IS a Talent
It’s easy to look to successful business people who seem to breeze through their career and say ‘wow, they have such talent’ — but what we don’t see is the amount of hard work that lays behind their success. Much like we don’t see the everyday lives of people we follow on social media, we don’t see the drudgery and effort that has to go into being a successful business person. Every successful business requires hard work, even if the person running the business does have talent — in fact, it’s not unlikely that their talent IS their ability to work hard. Not everybody has it in them to push through the daily grind that every entrepreneur has to deal with.
Perfection Doesn’t Exist — But You Do
If you are the kind of person who likes to look at a business or investment as a numbers game, you might fall into the trap of looking for that ‘perfect’ investment — or looking at how your business could be if it were ‘perfectly’ ran. Don’t fall prey to the idea of perfection, it doesn’t exist. Nothing will ever truly be perfect, and trying to achieve it will only result in major stress and frustration. Work towards improvement, yes, but accept that at a certain point you should be happy with the state of your business.
Don’t Let Money Be Your Only Motivator
When entering the world of business or entrepreneurship, you may have the ultimate goal of being truly financially independent. This isn’t a bad goal by any means, but if this is the only motivation behind your work, you will likely struggle. Making money your only reason for working is enough for some people, but most need to have a reason behind their work — a purpose. Many want to help others — medical professionals or service industry for instance — while others want to have a say in the making of the world — politicians, of course; but also architects, designers, artists. Find a purpose behind your work and you’ll find it much easier to slog through the day-to-day.
Never Neglect Your Health
Today, during a worldwide pandemic this is one of the most important lessons to learn. We need to acknowledge that we have limitations, and the most strict limitations are those set by our bodies. Both physical and mental health are critical to the high-stress fields of business and entrepreneurship. Stress can weaken your immune system, and can make it harder to focus or work in general. Take care of yourself above all else.
Risk-Taking is Key — but Make Sure it’s the Right Risk
The highest-rank chess grandmasters know how important risks are — you never know how far ahead your competition is thinking, and sometimes you see a winning movie that could make or break it for you. But know your options, and think deeply before taking any risks. Many people enter entrepreneurship with the belief that risks are a natural part of the industry. This is true, but it’s the ability to think through the risk and weigh the costs and benefits that will set the big winners and losers apart.