Running a business day to day is nothing like you imagine, here’s why

Author
Ryan Jones
Director | Gomentum Ltd
2nd June 2018

In the 2 years Gomentum have existed, we’ve witnessed and experienced a huge void in the reality of what you think it’s like to own a business, versus what it’s actually like in the real world. Lucky for us, Gomentum isn’t our first business. We knew what we were letting ourselves in for and could prepare to the best of our ability.

For most business owners however, they tell us what their world is really like and it’s very different to what they expected. Here’s what they thought their world would be like;

7am - wake up all refreshed, in charge of own daily destiny

7am to 8am - enjoy breakfast with family/kids/partner/catching up on the news

8am to 9am - either do the school run (positive work/life balance) or, go to the gym to keep the mind fit and healthy

9am to 11am - rock up to the office all motivated and inspirational, check email, meet and help staff, delegate work

11am to 2pm - go and meet a few clients including lunch with one

2pm to 5pm - generate some new business, attend social networking, do business on the golf course, attend some cool events

5pm to 6pm - telephone the office – check the day has gone well?

6pm to 8pm - spend time with family/kids/partner catching up on their day

8pm-11pm - enjoy social time, sports, going out with friends, watching TV

11pm - tucked up in bed, get a great 8 hours sleep Here’s what they tell us their world is really like;

3am - wake up unintentionally

3:01am - faster than Usain Bolt over 100m, head is full of thoughts; excitement, fear, worry, “To-do” list

3:02am to 5am - try as hard as possible to relax and drift back to sleep

5am - get up, realise you may as a well of got up at 3:01am. Wished you got up at 3:01am and written down the positive thoughts and ideas of the last 2 hours, as now you can’t quite remember them in the same light.

5am to 7am - have some breakfast, watch Global news as too early for local news, keep attempting to recall good thoughts of 3am-5am, punish yourself mentally for not starting to work as you’re up, attempt to mingle with family/kids/partners who can’t understand why you’re so awake at this time?

7am - must get to the office and start work

7am to 9am - arrive at office ready for the day, write “to-do” list, read emails, get head positive and in business planning and growth mode

9am to 11am - mind-set gone from Business planning and growth to business continuity! Client demands have already hit the inbox, staff arrive and need your help. Check the bank balance, there’s not enough, feel positivity turning to stress

11am to 6pm - you deal with the above, no disciplined order, no prioritisation, you get through the day, you put others before you and your business

2pm - (10 min break), you realise you haven’t eaten all day. Go to Tesco metro. Fight your conscience – you can’t afford to buy food every day, why didn’t your lazy arse make something at home and bring it in? Opt for cheap meal deal with soggy egg cress sandwich.

4pm to 6pm - start getting messages from home, “what time are you leaving the office?”

6pm to 8pm - get home; try and engage with family whilst shattered, microwave your dinner, head full of things you still need to do. Rush food. Get asked when you’re next going to cook for everyone? Debate with partner – everything you’re doing is for the future of the family

8pm - partner resorts to entertaining themselves as you’re working. You try to work. You're very ineffective, distracted with guilt over work/life balance, do a few emails, decide to stop, you can pick up on everything else tomorrow

9pm - attempt to socialise with partner whilst drifting in and out of consciousness. Get blamed for not paying attention (rightly so)

9:30pm to 10pm - go to bed already knowing your ill-prepared and behind for tomorrow

10pm to 3am - sleep but not great. Visit the bathroom a couple of times

3am - it all starts again So, why would anyone go into business? Think of the employed luxuries! A guaranteed salary, holiday, pension, weekends off, notice periods to find more work, stable credit scores, private healthcare, flexible hours, etc, etc.

Doom and gloom? Doesn’t have to be. It is 100% possible to achieve that first perceived lifestyle when you own a business, what they don’t tell you is the years of work, effort and sacrifice required to reach it. Sadly, business owners who take this all on alone, cope alone and don’t ask for help, often find themselves stuck in the latter world.

They go around and around in circles for so long their businesses fail or fail to deliver the desired end goal, to provide long-term financial security for their families. If you recognise yourself as a business owner in this latter situation, it’s not too late.

Put your hand up and ask for help. If you’re thinking of going into business, prep yourself for this world. It isn’t full of glamour and success even when you put the real work in.

Your challenges as a business owner never disappear, they simply evolve, as must you in order to survive.

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