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33% of Small Business Owners Lack the Motivation They Had When Business Was New

(Curated article )

Michael Guta In Startup

Do you still have the same passion for your business as when you first started?

A new study from Vistaprint has revealed 33% of small business owners in the US say they don’t have the same motivation as in those early days of their entrepreneurial journey.

In the study, more than a third or 36% said they experience this lack of motivation several times a year. The reason, of course, will vary from owner to owner, but Vistaprint says they can get their mojo back and get excited about what led them on this path in the first place.

For small business owners, the high level of stress which goes along with running a company is one of the biggest reasons for losing their enthusiasm. In the study, stress is identified as one of the primary contributors for losing one’s motivation.

In an emailed press release, Vistaprint Customer Strategy and Insights Director Simon Braier compared starting a business to starting a relationship. Braier said, “There is the honeymoon phase that carries you through for a while, but long-lasting relationships and businesses both require a lot of work and can come with a few rough patches.”
And as anyone who has been in a relationship knows, you have to be on top of things if you want it to succeed. Braier added, “By consistently reminding yourself why you started your business and seizing new opportunities you can avoid slumps in motivation and keep the spark alive.”

The study comes from a survey which was carried out in February 2019 with the participation of 365 small businesses owners with 0 to 10 employees.

The survey was also administered in Canada with 371 respondents, and the UK with 294 respondents.

In the US, the top reasons for losing motivation was high levels of stress at number one, followed by lack of regular/stable salary, and lack of work-life balance.

The respondents in the UK gave a lack of regular/stable salary as their number one cause followed by stress, and lower than expected potential. In Canada the lack of regular/stable salary was on top, followed by stress and lack of work-life balance.

The fact all three countries identify high levels of stress as the top two reason highlights the role stress plays in one’s motivation to continue to do what they are doing.

As to how they were able to identify their lack or loss of motivation, respondents in the US gave procrastinating on necessary business projects as their primary reason. The other reasons were not posting on social media and not updating the website as often.

Running a small business means staying on top and any procrastination will eventually be responsible for the downfall of the company. With more small business now online with e-commerce, not updating a website or posting on social media is also a recipe for failure.

Respondents in Canada and the UK also said procrastination was their top reason for identifying their lack of motivation.

Keeping the Passion Burning

In the survey, Vistaprint also asked the participants in all three countries how they keep their passion alive over the years and if they could offer some tips for small business owners.

The first tip is a great one. They said, “Remind yourself why you started your business in the first place.” You might think you will never forget why you started your business, but as the survey points out high-level stress and other issues can make you forget.

Some of the other tips are: seek new challenges and set new goals, refresh your brand, create partnerships with other businesses/brands, hit the “reset” button by taking time away from your business and more

4 Ways to Successfully Turn Your Day Job into a Side Hustle That Earns You Passive Income

( Curated article)

Nightingale-Conant

VIP CONTRIBUTOR

The following excerpt is from Nightingale-Conant’s book The Power of Passive Income: Make Money Work For You.

Few people are lucky enough to love their 9-to-5s, and more people are finding themselves doing something else on the side, either to add to their income or feed their passion. Sometimes, those side hustles start to feel more like the real thing, and suddenly, these people are dreaming about running a business of their own. Sound familiar? If you’re one of the thousands of people dreaming about turning your side hustle into a true business, you’re not alone.

Moving away from a steady, full-time position to being on your own is the scariest, yet most invigorating feeling in the world. Being an entrepreneur is a ton of work, but it’s also completely possible. Here are four tips to follow if you want to go pro:

1. Be clear and honest with yourself about when it’s time to make the jump.

Giving up the benefits and security that come with a full-time job is scary, and sometimes unrealistic, but it’s also dangerous to keep waiting until the time feels right. Ask yourself exactly what you need to have before you can make your side gig your new reality. A good rule of thumb is to have enough savings to live for about six months without income and/or with the income you already have from your side clients. You should also have a clear idea of who your potential clients may be and how to connect with them.

After taking care of the logistical considerations, try to avoid dragging your feet. According to the British Psychological Society, you’re 91 percent more likely to accomplish something if you give yourself a deadline. So do it! Hold yourself accountable. Maybe you’re not willing to stay at your current job beyond a certain date, or maybe there’ll be other indicators that will make you certain that it’s time to go. If your current role isn’t fulfilling and the passion is gone, it may be the perfect catalyst for making the jump.

2. Before you quit, put the processes in place to help your side gig scale.

Early on, business organization and strategizing are huge components of success. You’ll need to create as much efficiency and ease as possible in your daily systems. This could mean scheduling things carefully or using free software to make your work more effective. Try not to switch back and forth between different focus areas within the same day. Going back and forth between tasks that aren’t related is inefficient and breaks focus.

Digitizing your work can help, too. According to Accenture, companies that use cloud collaboration tools with their teams improve productivity, have greater clarity about what’s going on in their business, and save money. When you start out, it can feel silly to keep documents in a shareable cloud space (like Google Drive, Dropbox, or whatever option you like best), but you need to have the structures in place so you’re ready for the time you hire a team to support you. This is a good thing to play around with before you quit your main gig. Having the tools and processes you know work well for you ready to go when you make the switch can make ramp-up time easier.

3. Work hard and be humble.

Your time is valuable, but as a new entrepreneur, you can’t treat it like currency. Be prepared to put in lots of hours with minimal returns at first. Initially, your time isn’t money, yet. It’s groundwork. Building a side gig up from the ground up requires wearing a lot of different hats. If you want your business to succeed, you have to be ready to play customer service rep, salesperson, individual contributor, and HR.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed, break the work down further. Spend more time working on the day-to-day tasks and checking things off your to-do list. These are all working toward your big vision, but in small doable pieces rather than hefty overwhelming ones. Try not to consider any task beneath you and take some time to truly understand what goes into each part of your business. You won’t have a boss telling you what’s right or wrong, so you’ll need to build a sense of self-accountability—one of the toughest parts of being an entrepreneur. Take notes about the challenges you face in each aspect of your business so you’ll know what anyone you might hire will have to cope with. It’s your best chance to determine what resources might need to go where later.

4. Surround yourself with smart people -- even if you never plan to work with them.

As much as entrepreneurship can be a solitary job, especially in the beginning, it’s vital to your success to learn how others can help you thrive. Invest your time in like-minded people. Take time to get to know others and their stories and create valuable relationships. So much of success is built from opportunities or inspiration from people we know. Find people you connect with to talk about your ideas, write about your ideas online, and build a community that empowers you. Take advantage of those around you who want to see you succeed. You’ll be surprised at how much people want to help!

The number of new startups and small businesses has dropped dramatically in recent years, nearing a 40-year low in 2016. The landscape has gotten tougher, which makes being an entrepreneur scarier. Turning a side hustle into the real thing is not easy. But, just as with most other big decisions in life, there are always lessons to be learned no matter what happens. Be thoughtful, take smart risks, and see where your side hustle can go.

Step out of your comfort zone and discover something new and exciting

A truly CREATIVE Partnership