Starting your own business was fun, at first. But now it just feels like…work. You’re doing the same things over, and over, again.
Look for customers. Sell your service or product. Give customer the product. The customer (hopefully) pays you. Repeat steps 1 through 4.
If you feel sick of running a business, you’re not alone.
Most entrepreneurs consider quitting their specific business. Some even walk away from being an entrepreneur and eventually work for someone else’s business.
Just because you’re not excited as you once were doesn’t necessarily mean it’s time to quit. You at least need to think it through.
Here are 3 signs that it might be time to close your business.
- You often ask yourself, “Why am I doing this?”
Your reasons for starting a business used to be nice and simple.
You just wanted to earn some money for an upcoming trip. Maybe you wanted to buy a new phone or some new things for your podcast or your music group.
Maybe you had ideas about starting a business and using your talents and money to helps others.
But now?
Now, you just keep wondering what you’re doing. You’re just waiting for when the next customer will pay you. Maybe you’ve become the cliché where you really do see each customer as a number.
Or, you’re just tired all the time.
Whatever it is, all you know is something has to change.
- You feel overwhelmed.
When you start a business, you’re usually doing everything yourself.
That includes providing your product/service, marketing, managing your money, setting future plans and goals, and more.
And on top of that, you still have school and probably at least a few groups and/or teams you’ve joined.
Sometimes, it really is all too much.
At that point, it might be time to take a break (and let your customers know you’re taking a break), get a friend or family member to help you with your business, or bring your business to an end.
- You just don’t like your business anymore.
Being an entrepreneur might look fun and glamorous.
But that’s not always the case.
Sure, it’s fun to see people like and share your social media posts about your business. And you will probably have at least some customers (hopefully, most of your customers) who are nice and make having a business fun.
But even the most awesome and exciting businesses have at least some boring routines.
Some people don’t enjoy repeating the same tasks, such as creating spreadsheets and other reports.
Should you stay or should you go? A few final thoughts.
Before deciding to end your business, here are a few more things to keep in mind.
- Running a business is like running a marathon, not a sprint. As we said earlier, feeling sick of running your own business happens to most business owners. Maybe you just need a short break from your business.
- Take a real look at your success and goals. So, maybe you’re not flashing lots of cash. But you probably already made some money and learned a lot about your business and yourself. And that’s a big deal, even if you didn’t make as much money or get as many customers as you hoped for by this point. Your past wins could motivate you to keep working through this rough time.
Whatever you decide to do, don’t see this rough time as a failure. Even if you decide to end your business, you can always try out another business idea, or help someone else grow their business.
Have you ever thought about closing your business? Share your story in the comments section below.
Also see:
• A helpful checklist for closing down a business – 10+ tips for young entrepreneurs
• 3 Steps to overcoming a business failure
Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash
