The path to small business success is never smooth. Sometimes, you may feel like quitting and joining a regular job because you are not making progress towards your goals. But should you really go back to the 9-to-5 grind?
According to a new survey from FreshBooks, 96% of the self-employed professionals have no desire to return to a “regular job”. And 70% of them say that being self-employed gives them a better work-life balance.
If you, as a small business owner, sometimes, feel like going back to a regular job because of the never-ending struggle, you have not given all of yourself to your business.
Building a successful small business is a long race, not a sprint.
Big Dream of Being Self-employed
There are around 28.8 millions small businesses in the United States alone. FreshBooks estimates that around 24 million people want to work for themselves by 2021.
Why do people ditch the financial and social security of their jobs to be self-employed?
The main reason, as found out in the survey, was control over career. Being self-employed or running a small business allows people to have a better career control.
However, career control doesn’t mean the same thing for everyone.
For 65% of people, career control means the freedom to choose when to work, according to the survey.
Regardless of what control over career means to you, you will reckon the fact that running a small business is not a walk in the park.
Skill Needed for Self-Employed Success
Small business owners have to develop multiple skills to make their ventures successful.
Following are the top skills to be a successful small business owner.
You may sometimes find it overwhelming to learn new business skills, run your business, and face challenges at the same time. In such a difficult time, going back to a regular job may seem to be a good idea but seldom it turns out to be the right decision.
How Self-employed Professionals Work
It is not only you working in irregular hours or doing a wide variety of tasks daily. Most self-employed people or small business owners work differently.
In fact, 58% of self-employed people work irregular or odd hours, and 44% of people complete a wide range of tasks on a daily basis, as found in the survey.
When it comes to learning things, 41% of self-employed people learn new things daily. And 45% of people connect with their businesses from anywhere with the use of their smartphones. What’s more, 88% of self-employed professionals are expert in offering a smaller or more integrated set of services when they are planning to grow.
As a small business owner, you should try to work smartly in order to complete tasks efficiently. You need to excel in what you offer, and you must find easy ways to connect to your audience. The transition from traditional to being self-employed may be a little bumpy sometimes, but often it is empowering and satisfying.
Running a small business is a marathon. Slow and steady often wins the race. You must remember this – if it were easy, everyone would be doing it.
The Survey
FreshBooks with its market research partner Dynata collected data from more than 3,700 Americans. The respondents were working full-time either as small business owners, independent professionals or traditional employees. You can access the full survey here.
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