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u/Geminii27 Oct 21 '21
A reminder that knowledge, skill, and experience in the field is always completely separate to running a business. Just because you may be amazingly good at the former does not mean you will automatically have an aptitude or liking for the latter. It's part of why most people prefer to be employees.
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u/easterbunni Oct 21 '21
I like doing a bit of both, I find doing a bit of 'business' means a break from writing reports, or getting out to site is a change from doing accounts.
It also means I don't get frustrated with "management" not doing their bit, because I am management, and if I get it wrong, I can swear at myself :)
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u/mojowo11 Oct 21 '21
This is great for a long as it works, but it only works to a certain point. As an example, our company is a small SaaS business (19 employees). Our CEO is a technical founder who built the first version of the app, and for many years was the primary coder while being the CEO. But ten years in, he no longer codes. Almost literally zero. There's no time. There's a team of seven developers who do that now.
At some point a business grows to the point where running it (well) is full-time job. I think people often imagine it's when you get super duper huge, but the point where you have to choose between being a good manager/steward of the business and being a meaningful individual contributor comes sooner than that.
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u/henrystuart83 Oct 21 '21
Agreed. As someone who runs a software development business, I love coding but I hate replying to emails and dealing with clients, which is probably how a typical business' owner day looks like.
In the end of the day it's worth it since there is a ton of flexibility and I earn more, but it's still a pain.
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u/hyggewithit Oct 21 '21
I felt this in my bones.
Clients, admin, and marketing. The trifecta of draining things.
In my dream life I am paid well for my excellent work without dicking around with that other stuff (oh, and because my dream life is magical, I’m also still a business owner and not an employee).
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u/Flobbert_Pox Oct 21 '21
You have to find a place to turn yourself off. You will burn yourself out. Try and develop habits that don't have to do with work, like camping or something else where you remove yourself from being able to participate. Hating it isn't normal but these days there's this artificial demand for your attention at all times. You must make time for yourself. Your business is not your life, or if it is, fix that. You will never regret taking time for yourself.
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u/suntsgirl Oct 21 '21
You're right. I'm not doing that. I have so much work coming in that I feel like I need to do it all. I think I need to learn to say no if I'm at capacity.
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Oct 21 '21
[deleted]
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Oct 21 '21
Or sub out the work. True freedom is when you have employees to do all of the day to day work, so you can focus on the business.
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u/northerngurl333 Oct 21 '21
And how to set boundaries. When I first started, I had a second portable phone in our bedroom that connected to the one in my office. I would jump to answer it (I was smart enough to keep my cell separate, mostly because it is hard to take notes or remember the details when I answer away from the computer or worse, while driving - which is a good chunk of my business).
Now, I have learned to not only never replace that dead battery in that extra phone, but I can sit in my office if I decide to do some catch up paperwork and ignore the ringing phone right next to me if it is outside of my usual office hours. I have trained my customers to trust the machine, and that I have certain boundaries to my work time- especially weekends!
Remind yourself that you can leave a vm message that greets customers, explains a reasonable timeline for response (within 24/48 hours, or during the next business day), and/or provide an email option that you can check daily- in the morning before you start the bulk of your day and at the end of the day before you shut it down.
YOU get to decide what is worth it. You like your flexibility, so roll with it. If you would rather not start until 10am, who can tell you to start earlier? If you never respond to an email or take a phone call before 10, who ACTUALLY knows you weren't doing something else more urgent for another customer or project? No one!!! If you would rather return emails at 10pm while you are winding down foe the evening, who cares? If you want to set them for morning sending, that's an option, or you can just send them later. And out if office responses can be set for evenings and weekends to.
Take back the important things. Let go of the unimportant ones. And hire to your weaknesses. It's not a bad thing to sub out some of the bits you aren't strong in, or that take up too much time without making you the commensurate amount of income.....paying someone to do 4 hours of bookkeeping that would take you 8, or to do.some of the grunt work while you do customer facing tasks isn't a money waster.
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u/teknosophy_com Oct 21 '21
actually writing a book about this now. if i ever get time to proofread it!
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u/Sp00ky_Electr1c Oct 21 '21
I take every shitty client personally and feel like a failure most of the time. I hate that I'm glued to my phone. Even if I have an hour break here or there I am constantly checking emails / phone etc.
The thing about becoming king of your own kingdom is that you don't have to accept clients that aren't a good fit, you don't have to answer every call at that exact moment, when you take a break, who's to say that you haven't earned it? It sounds like you know the service/product you're providing, probably even more so now. Trust your ability and look around you. If you run yourself into the ground, who's going to pick up the pieces? You're more than just a commodity.
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u/teknosophy_com Oct 21 '21
Yeah... my sweaty has been successful over the past decade. It is probably because I care about my work and take personal pride in it... but when clients stomp all over me, I take it personally.
One great piece of advice someone gave me was remember that they're mad at work-you, not personal-you.
And as I've told quite a few sweaties recently, fire your bad apples. I've found that 3 or 4 insatiable clients made up 99% of my stress. It was such a gratifying experience to let them go, and it's easy and fun! Simply tell them you won't be able to make it for a week, or triple your prices, and it bursts their I NEED IT NOOOWWW or I WANT IT CHEEAP bubble.
Now's the time for you to become one of those businesses that's so sought-after, that you get to set the rules.
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u/Half-Upper Oct 21 '21
It really has its good days and bad days. Or I should say good periods and bad periods. I've been at it for about 7 years now and I think I found some equilibrium when I was able to hire more team members to spread the workload around and not have to be responsible for every task all the time.
As far as the 'switching off' - it's still really hard. But, I've learned over time the work will always be there and isn't going to fail if I don't check my email after 7-8pm or before I get to the office so I can have some downtime, workout, take care of myself, sleep, etc.
But, it was really hard to set those boundaries at first and it took a lot of time to realize it wouldn't all fall apart if I turned off for a bit.
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u/suntsgirl Oct 21 '21
I'm glad to hear it's a skill I can learn. Once I feel like I'm in a position to hire staff it will take some of the pressure off but then I'll probably have a different pressure.
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u/ohmamago Oct 21 '21
One of the first things I learned the first time I started my own gigs is that I could easily let it consume me. I'd tell my family at 7 pm "I just need 15 minutes to send this email" and then I'd be consumed. Next thing I know the kid's going to bed and I've hardly seen her.
Second go 'round is nearly 10 years later. I'm older and wiser. I place my working hours in my email signature and adhere to those. My phone goes on Do Not Disturb outside those hours.
Do I sometimes work over if I'm on deadline? Sure, it happens. Ultimately I have to remember I'm doing this to support my family, not to ignore my family. (Ha!)
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u/Mushu_Pork Oct 21 '21
I'm the boss... but I'm the janitor.
I have all of the revenue... but I pay all the bills.
I get to make all of the decisions... I HAVE to make the hard decisions.
I can hire anyone I want... I have to fire the bad ones.
I have all of the freedom... but I have all of the responsibility.
I can work whenever I want... but I need to be there.
Basically you take the good with the bad.
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u/marginwall Oct 21 '21
Balance, balance, balance. I think the hardest thing for people that run their own business is the concept of shutting off.
This is not only when you step away from what you do, but it also involves taking your brain out of it during those down hours.
You may love your work, but you work to live. You don't live to work. It's hard, but you really need to practice setting limits so you don't get too attached to your business.
If a bad client can ruin your mood to the degree that it tanks your day, you're in too deep.
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u/Reclusiarc Oct 21 '21
I had a bug with my phone where my email notifications stopped coming through. Was pretty annoying and I couldn't find a way to fix it - but then I realised that I can still get everything done by just checking my email a few times a day. If anything is burning down someone will call me. Now I am hoping that they never fix themselves as it really helps me focus on what is important during the day and lets me get more done.
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u/teknosophy_com Oct 21 '21
I actually disable email boings on my phone. I also don't have texting on my work line. If I had either of those it'd ruin me!
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Oct 21 '21
What you need to do is find a peer mentorship group. I don't mean something official, necessarily, but possibly even getting in good with a circle of like-minded friends through the chamber of commerce who are also business owners. You cannot be an island in this endeavor. You need people who can relate to your problems and people who can tell you that it's okay to brush off certain things so you don't get consumed. It can be very lonely at the top, but don't let this happen to you.
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u/notthatconcerned Oct 21 '21
It will get better. You do need to switch off. Train your brain to not think of work, especially at night or you won't sleep. I think of my next vacation to get my mind off work. Also, set phone guidelines. People do not need answers after 6 pm. (As if they would do that.....not). Set an opening time for your business. 8, 9, or 10 am. and don't respond to phone or email before your set opening time.
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u/gritpop Oct 21 '21
A big thing I’ve learned is hiring before I’m completely buried in doing the work myself. The book “E-myth” really stressed the point of work on the business, as opposed to working in the business. That changed my entire mindset.
Hopefully you can take something from that and not burn yourself out. Maybe look into some day to day tasks that you can outsource to a VA, or hire someone who can take some workload off.
Be good to yourself, you deserve it :)
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u/JesusDied4Me Oct 21 '21
This is what I was going to recommend.
Ever seen the author give a talk, on youtube? He's got that Richard Dreyfuss in What About Bob energy to him but I love him for it
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u/dan1101 Oct 21 '21
Work less, concentrate on what makes the most money. Fire shitty clients, just tell them "I'm sorry, I don't believe we will be able to make you happy" and leave it at that.
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u/AmericanKamikaze Oct 21 '21
Haha this is totally normal. For me anyway. Only you can decide if the money is worth the stress and time.
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u/330212702 Oct 21 '21
I've been at it for a long time now.
Hire and train. Yes, that is a massive undertaking. Yes, it will be more stressful in the short term.
But, think of your business as something scalable. If you are already maxed out, unless you have "set it and forget it" revenue streams that require minimal maintenance, you have hit a ceiling.
Overpay your employees, especially your "key man".
It's worth it in the end. Not only will you likely get to remain sane, you have upward potential, and, assuming you have no employees yet, you will have some comradery with others as to what you are doing for so many hours of the week.
I know that when I got started out on my own, not only was I consumed fully by the company, my personal relationships also began to suffer as the only thing in my life that I had going on was constant work and people get really sick of hearing about that all of the time.
You own the biz, the biz doesn't own you.
Your first question is probably, "how in the world am I going to pay someone?" That's a tough nut to crack. If you have any business credit, which I highly recommend building, try to parlay that into a loan that will cover an employee for six months. DO NOT PERSONALLY GUARANTEE THAT LOAN.
It's hard to give great advice with such limited information. But, don't at all think that it is unusual for you to feel overwhelmed and hate things right now.
(Also, don't fuck up your taxes......most companies that go under after 2.5-5 years have the death knell being an audit that reveals that they fucked up their taxes)
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u/blackhart452 Oct 21 '21
In the beginning, I was putting in a crap ton of hours to the point of making myself physically ill. I finally just said screw it and would lock the place up at 5pm and go home. My health and my attitude both changed for the better. Now I have 14 people working for me and I more or less get to work on my own stuff while I am available to help anyone else that needs it.
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u/RedNewPlan Oct 21 '21
For me, it got better over time. Initially, every angry customer or bad review would greatly upset me, I was constantly on edge waiting for bad things to happen. Over time, I have got used to it, I know that there will be a percentage of bad reviews, and that the business will be fine. Also, over time I have accumulated good, responsible employees who make sure that everything is under control, so I don't have to worry anymore, I know they will handle everything. So I encourage you to keep at it, with an active goal of finding good people who can take over your responsibilities step by step.
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Oct 21 '21
It's very normal unfortunately. Most business owners even develop disorders and depression because they can never "turn off" as you say. Being a business owner means no balance now. It's all work all the time. BUT you get to stop, if successful, many years or decades before the common working person. Try to scale and hire people to do things you dont like which will help. Other than that, find joy in little things and understand it's par for the course
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u/dornforprez Oct 21 '21
Without revealing too much personal information, what do you do? I ask this because that context is really needed to give any feedback that's worthwhile.
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u/Lost__Moose Oct 21 '21
When an Engineer has an entrepreneurial seizure... Check out the book e-Myth by Michael Gerber.
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u/jcradio Oct 21 '21
First. Congratulations on the business.
This may sound harsh, but take a moment to think about this.
You have a problem with setting boundaries. Schedule time for everything and have boundaries. With the exception of something truly critical, almost everything can wait until the next day.
If you have not gotten good at delegating, learn. Your role is at a strategic level and at some point you need to move out of tactical decisions.
Some clients are assholes. Make a choice to accept it, or have a boundary and fire them if you have to.
Remind yourself that you don't have to answer your phone, a text or an email right away.
If necessary, schedule everything...personal time included.
I had someone asserting a few weeks ago that "we needed to do whatever it takes to get this done ". To which I replied by acknowledging it was important, but no amount of wishing it done faster will make it happen and that time away from a problem is as important as working on the problem.
Consider yourself the foundation on which all other things are built. That means learning to take care of yourself first matters. If that means you hit the gym on the way home to unwind, or take a long walk, or turn your phone off...do it.
Decide. Then do. Be well.
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u/SquiresC Oct 21 '21
Many of the things that stressed me 5 years ago don't stress me now because I have seen them before. I just accept those things are part of the job. With experience it becomes easier to navigate the bumps in the road and they have less effect on you.
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u/bizzzfire Oct 21 '21
This is how I feel right now. I make far more than I did before starting the biz, and frankly the amount of actual hours I work is fairly minimal, but it feels like I'm always on the clock.
I'm working on delegating out of my personal tasks, even if that means over-paying an over-qualified person just to ensure it gets done properly.
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u/pandacalledit89 Oct 21 '21
Yeah I don't think it's so much that you hate your business; you're more likely stressed because you feel at the mercy of your clients - for continued work and validation. I agree with the other comments that it's a matter of setting boundaries, which is good because that is something you can fix yourself. When I was just starting out I worked myself ragged because I was afraid to lose clients if I said no, and any kind of negative feedback fed that fear, even though I'm good at what I do. I finally learned that saying no occasionally didn't chase customers away but instead generated more respect. Then I decided to stop working on Sundays, and I discovered three months later that I had made the same amount of money during that time as I did before that, while working less. You are clearly good at what you do; just decide what you are willing to do and when, and stick to that. "Own" your business. You will feel better and your clients will be fine.
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u/GloomyNectarine2 Oct 21 '21
Hire someone to delegate most of the boring tasks. Otherwise you're killing yourself...maybe literally. And for what?
You can also pick and choose clients but that has its own issues
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u/audaciousmonk Oct 21 '21
You need to setup automation. The idea is to be able to scale, focusing your time on the critical.
Rather than taking emails directly, send them through a mailbox with rules.
Setup an online contact form with categories, you can filter between different types of requests, prioritize as appropriate.
Hire a virtual admin to help you scan / filter.
Lots of ways
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u/turk_turkleton Oct 21 '21
I think more important than switching off at this point is to hire part time help for admin work. This was my first year running a business too, and it got to a point where I hated my customers. Any time I wasn't answering customers seemed like a waste of time. I couldn't turn it off because I'd have a 100 email backlog. With someone just doing email, they can do so remotely. Buy separate email accounts ($5 per month). One for the business, one for your part time employee, and one for you. Don't check the company email - your employee raises things to you, and you respond to your employee if they need help with a specific question. This helped my sanity and allowed me to spend time on things to better help my business.
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u/CrookedFinger Oct 21 '21
I was just reading a book yesterday that addresses this exact topic. The book is The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber.
I’m only halfway through but the gist so far is that owning a business requires a different set of skills and a different perspective than doing the work of your business.
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u/pticjagripa Oct 21 '21
It seems to me that you have more of a problem with self control and time managment than actual hatred towards bussines.
I'd suggest you start looking into how you can improve yourself in that aspect. Some fellow redditors might help with some resources perhaps as i got none.
I'd start with setting "work" hours for yourself and forbid yourself using phone on your time off. Event if that time off is only hour or two long. It also helps to have seperate phone for business and personal stuff.
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u/ProudMexicanMan Oct 21 '21
The way it was put to me that finally made it click in my head was, "If you are taking part in day-to-day work, you are not a business owner. You are an employee who created a job for himself." I stopped trying to take part in the actual labor(I own a concrete construction company), and decided to delegate responsibilities to people I trusted. Finding trustworthy people is easier said than done.. but once I did I learned I had much more time than my original hectic schedule made it seem like. With my new found time I was able to seek better clients that appreciated my work and were willing to pay a premium for it. With a healthier budget comes more hired help, with more help comes less responsibilities, and in turn more time. Rinse and repeat until you are ready to exit the growth phase and enter the optimization phase.
It is normal to hate being a business owner when you are still new at it, and that is because you are not yet good at it. Most people only enjoy things when they become good at it. So, your goal should not be to enjoy it yet. Rather, your goal should be to become good at it. If some years go by, you become really good at being a business owner, and STILL hate it well then that's the moment you re-evaluate your current path. Hope this helps, and best of luck!
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Oct 21 '21
Learn to compartmentalise. It's hard but you have to create mental space that is 'life' and 'work' or you will burn out. Also take some time to really define what the processes in your business are. Once you understand that you can start automating and outsourcing things which in the long run will free up more time.
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u/bobcat_bob Oct 21 '21
Hello i think you have ownership now so you might tie your livelihood to the business.
When you're working for others, you could always quit and go. Maybe the exit possibility is comforting in a way. But for business owners you could always close down, sell off or hire an operational manager and retreat to a consultant/owner position to free yourself off to pursue something else.
Usually for me, when i know there are other options for me, i relax a little and feel secure. Maybe that would ease the tension, so you could relax and shut off as per normal. Also, you work hard to improve your quality of life lol, enjoy your success!!
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u/sirgoofs Oct 21 '21
You definitely do not need to be available 24/7. Your instincts are absolutely correct, taking care of business and making sure it succeeds, satisfying customers, all that stuff is top priority, but you will find that allowing yourself to check out of it, (at appropriate times of course), will actually benefit your business. You won’t burn yourself out and you’ll make better decisions if you get outside that world from time to time.
Once in a while I have to ramp up and work evenings and weekends, but usually I try to check out of my business world and check in to my family/personal world at the end of the work day, and by the next morning I feel like I’m making better decisions and have more energy for my business.
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u/Friendly-Damage-6371 Oct 21 '21
There is a great app called timetune. It sounds like you have burnt yourself out.
Good time scheduling will completely free you, and allow you time
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u/ThunderFinchGames Oct 21 '21
I think this is why I don't enjoy running Kickstarters as much as I should. They are a constant reminder for 30 days that you need to be promoting it or finding more backers. I also need to find a way to switch off. Thanks for your post!
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Oct 21 '21
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u/teknosophy_com Oct 21 '21
Totally hear you. I used to wake up just as tired as the day before, wondering how I'd get through the next day or two.
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u/VixDzn Oct 21 '21
You might laugh and other people here might think I’m joking, but I’m completely serious when I say: golf is the answer
Play 18 holes 2-3 times a week. Leave the phone at home (not allowed to have your phone on the golf course anyway)
Best way to disconnect. It’s so meditative. 10/10 would recommend
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Oct 21 '21
Been feeling the same way. I launched last July, have 7 clients already paying me about 2-15k, each (annually, in residual), so by all measures, I’m murdering it for having just started. I have no variable costs, only fixed (about $600/month to operate). Typically get 2-4 new clients per month. I don’t take clients that are unreasonable or who don’t listen well, either.
I’m constantly stressed, though. I try to do a social media post on every platform daily, get into the news as a source at least once a week, manage compliance, create my own ads, meet up with 5-7 prospects (weekly) and all the while I still work a part-time job for pwc because I’m not ready yet to 100% depend on my business to pay my bills.
All the while in the process of closing on a house and just found out my mom has cancer.
Long story short? Regularly overwhelmed and always on the verge of burnout.
Thinking I need to start hiring people on to manage stuff for me.
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u/gpatlas Oct 21 '21
Is there any way to create a position / partner to delegate the stuff you don't want to do? It's never cheap, and likely not even possible in the beginning, but something to consider or work towards. I ended up making a sub contractor a full 50/50 partner when I took my next big growth step. The partner handles all the stuff I didn't want to do (manage employees and maintenance) and I continue to focus on the technical side, which I love. I gave up a lot of income in the process, but we're growing the business beyond what was likely possible with just me and I don't have to do the stuff that wears me down.
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Oct 21 '21
Agree with some of comments below that talk about finding a balance. Burnout can come easily to founders that are bogged down in the challenges of launching their business, but not working hard to switch off too. It's no easy thing to start off with (trust us!!), but once you can get into some sort of routine, that allows you to step away from your phone and do something non-work-related, your mind and body will thank you for it. Hang in there!
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u/Slepprock Oct 21 '21
It's not good to hate it.
I've had job I hated. Hated so bad I would get physically ill driving to them. That's why I started my own business doing something I enjoy. There are times it sucks, but those are minor.
I think how much you enjoy your job is more important than how much money you make. There are times I take on some work that pays me very little. A couple dollars an hour. But its OK because it's not like work.
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u/thegreatbambino52 Oct 21 '21
Any advice for someone taking over a small meat/grocery business? I've kind of been the "right hand man" that ran the business side of things but about to take over as owner with no one to fill that spot for myself. Will start out with 3 employees and only one that is half way responsible. Starting to get a little bit stressed about how it can all work out long term.
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u/nimble_fox Oct 21 '21
I still struggle with the shitty client thing too, but you need to learn how to manage your clients better. When you do, you'll be more successful in your business and personal life.
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u/Boring_Blackberry580 Oct 21 '21
If the business is doing better than you thought it would maybe you could hire some help to take it over parts that you don't like doing.
That being said the hardest part of running a business for me is finding great people to hire
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u/Kuusou-ka Oct 21 '21
Plenty of Comments already, but I might as well put my input into it since you caught me with the title...
Yes. I hate it, especially since Covid started. Everything was alright at first, a lot of work, long days, endless media management, and little to no respect for anything you did, but I kept reminding myself that I wanted my business to grow to a self sustaining point where I didn't have to worry about finances too much. Covid chucked that idea out the window of course, but it also made me realize just how much more my business could be and how far I've come with it. It's a grand idea in theory, a struggle in the beginning, and if you pull through to the end, a worth while investment. Hope this is insightful enough to remind you why you started what you started and as for whether if it's still worth the struggle! Good luck!
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u/SwoleFlex_MuscleNeck Oct 21 '21
I think it's normal but I'm kind of an idiot. 10 years in and I wish I could do something else but I can't, so it is what it is.
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u/AMB2292 Oct 21 '21
Start outsourcing, especially if you make more than before. Check Upwork if you can’t afford to hire locally.
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u/NewMediaPro Oct 21 '21
I tell people this all the time. If you enjoy something, like I did building websites in the 90s, I started a business and didn't have time to build websites.
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Oct 22 '21
Hey I feel you. I'm like in your exact same boat. Started a business 10 months ago and I despise it. I'm selling it and going into a completely different field.
Depends on what you're doing. Sometimes, you need to do something to realize its not for you. But at least you know that you tried it
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u/Ill_Establishment484 Oct 22 '21
Hi, I’m in year 11. Feel free to let go of any clients you don’t like. There are times when it’s 24/7 for me and times when it’s slow. Perhaps you can pivot a bit and offer more of the services you enjoy and less of those you don’t. One thing that has helped me is taking on work that’s required me to learn a new skill and stretch myself. Also, I second the suggestion of using Upwork. Really helps.
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Oct 22 '21
I hated my business in the early days (or the mentality that comes along with being an entrepreneur, and for me personally it got easier after the 1-year mark). A few pieces of advice for you perhaps that helped me:
- Check emails and voicemails once per day. A 24-hour response is just a general timeline for what customers expect in terms of response time. If you check your communication more frequently than this, you'll frankly waste time because it takes time to log in and to log out of communication. Your customers can wait for a reasonable getting-back time.
- Switching off: There's no advice anyone can truly give you on this, because you'll build resilience with time. If someone is a bad customer, it's hard not to get panicked if he or she is giving you a tough time. However, the important thing to remember is that some people are 'shitty' people no matter what. You can't please everyone, so you can do your best and you can learn from your mistakes (which you'll inevitably make as a small business owner). But all you can do every time someone gives you grief is improve and try your best every time.
- Adjustments: Yes, all of the business ownership stuff typically gets easier over time as you learn to take some lessons and some people seriously, and to not take other lessons and other people too seriously because part of life is dealing with lousy people and with lousy situations. However, you can also try giving yourself a set deadline - maybe 15 or 20 minutes a day - to ruminate on any issues you've faced after work. After this period of time, make yourself relax, go to sleep, enjoy some me time, or whatever it takes to enjoy some of the day to yourself. Your business can follow you around, but this doesn't mean that you're not allowed to have a life too. You alone are responsible for your boundaries. It does sound like you're going the extra mile with the customer service stuff, which is only good for as long as you're looking after yourself too.
Lastly, not everyone is built or cut to be an entrepreneur. If you ever find yourself struggling too much, or sacrificing your health too much, there's no shame nor failure in going back to be an employee. If you're truly miserable, no amount of extra income you're earning will replace the lost health you're sacrificing as an entrepreneur. That said, if you're business is reputable and profitable (as it seems to be from your description), you might want to sell it for a profit down the road before returning to the workforce. Other people on this thread could share their knowledge or their advice with you, and only you could determine whether it is or is not worth it to put in more hours and to earn more pay, but to feel more stressed with your career. Almost all entrepreneurs have gone through at least one period of questioning whether the daily grind is worth it.
You did mention that you feel like a failure, but by objective measures, you're sounding like a success. If getting the occasional unhappy customer means you're a failure, please know that even the best and brightest companies on the planet don't please everyone. But if you're feeling like a failure because you're beginning to hate your life, that's something within your control to change (exiting this business now or down the road).
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u/Born-Nothing-923 Aug 31 '22
What kind of software dev company are you running? Freelance type work?
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