Small
Business, Big Problems
If
you are a small business owner,
you probably spend a lot of
time worrying. It’s perfectly
understandable, too. If you’re
the Big Boss, you find yourself
in the position of trying
to be all things to all people,
and that’s a lot to be
concerned about. Everyone
wants an answer from you—employees,
vendors, clients, contractors,
customers, and your family.
High
employee turnover and the
difficulty of finding reliable
workers is one of the major
problems reported by small
business owners. Even when
you use pre-hiring drug tests
and background checks, there
always seem to be problem
employees, malcontents who
like to make “the company”
out to be greedy and unfair,
and of course you’re
the main villain in the scenario.
Meanwhile,
although you may be painted
as the bad guy or gal, you’re
actually worrying about how
much of a raise you can afford
to give employees while you
continue to obey all the workplace
regulations of the Occupational
Safety and Health Administration
and other government bureaucracies,
make sure you aren’t
discriminating against anyone
who might sue you, and try
to work out the biggest bugaboo
of all—health insurance.
Then
there are worker’s compensation,
unemployment compensation,
and liability insurance—to
say nothing of payroll tax
reports, W-2s, 1099s, performance
reports, and all the other
forms associated with employing
and paying people. Even though
you delegate a lot of these
responsibilities to others,
you’re the one who makes
the final call and takes the
big fall if someone doesn’t
do their job.
Of
course, you need to leave
some time to think about the
economic aspects of your business.
Are you targeting the right
market with the correct strategies?
Are you keeping up with changing
market conditions? Are your
prices in line? Too high?
Too low? How can you compete
with the big-box stores? You’ve
got to read reports that track
your sales, measure your profit
margins, detail your inventory,
explain your net profit, and
list your expenses. What about
those cash flow problems?
Are you going to be able to
make the payroll and pay yourself
this week? Has that loan been
approved?
If
you’ve got a business
with trucks on the road or
other equipment, you’ve
got maintenance, safety, and
insurance headaches to deal
with. Office equipment is
another source of frustration.
Sure, it’s great that
everything is done by computer
these days—but what a
mess it is when the person
inputting the data messes
up or forgets to backup important
files. And speaking of computers,
has your web site been updated
lately? How about your virus
protection?
The
list of troubles to be faced
daily goes on and on. Vendors
want to be paid. Dissatisfied
customers want refunds. Contractors
don’t meet deadlines.
The computer crashes.
As
we said, small business owners
have a lot of worries. Spreading
themselves too thin inevitably
leads to stress, and in return
stress can lead to depression,
anxiety, heart problems, and
difficulties in personal relationships.
Spouses and children may complain,
“You’re married
to the business,” or
“You’re never home,
and when you are you’re
so distracted they can’t
get through to you anyway
because your mind is still
at the office.” Vacations?
Forget it. The small business
owner is always “on call”
even if a short vacation can
be managed.
The
truth is, a lot of small business
owners wished they had never
gone into business at all.
But what would they do if
they sold out? After all,
they’re business people.
They love the idea of being
part of the business world,
associating with other business
owners, and simply being part
of the amazing free enterprise
system. But being your own
boss is supposed to be a dream-come-true,
not a daily round of hassles.
Is
it Time to Re-evaluate?
If
you’re a frustrated small
business owner and you feel
trapped by many of these problems,
you may be looking for a new
enterprise that will not be
so taxing—a way to create
a stable income that still
leaves you time for the very
people you’ve been working
so hard for: yourself and
your family. You’ve already
proven that you can succeed—and
if only it weren’t for
all those annoyances bogging
you down, you can only imagine
how much more successful you’d
be.
There
is an alternative to a bricks-and-mortar
business that robs your energy
and enthusiasm. According
to a September, 2006, report
by the U.S. Census Bureau,
about 49% of small businesses
today are home-based, and
the number is expected to
continue rising. Why is a
home-based business so appealing
to so many? To begin with,
most of the aggravations associated
with storefront businesses
just aren’t there. Feelings
of freedom and peace reign
in a comfortable home office
environment. There is time
to spend with family.
As
a home-based entrepreneur,
you will still be part of
a viable business community
of like-minded individuals
who will be happy to network
with you and who won’t
expect you to be their caretaker.
This frees you up to devote
your time to accumulating
wealth for yourself and your
family, the people who matter
most to you.
It
costs nothing to investigate
this burgeoning business concept.
Simply fill in the web form
to receive free, no-obligation
information on how a home-based
business can give you a whole
new outlook on your business
life.
