Why Business is Harder Than I Imagined

Introduction to Why Business is Harder Than I Imagined

Starting your own business sounds exciting, but many entrepreneurs quickly realize that business is harder than they imagined. As a business owner, you’re free to build a company that fits your values, but the journey comes with unexpected hurdles. Let’s explore why business is more challenging than anticipated and how to overcome these obstacles.

 

Watch the full episode on Youtube: https://youtu.be/yzPJTI2D9ao

Listen to the full episode on podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/many-hats-of-business/episodes/001-Tanya-Talks—Business-is-Harder-than-I-Imagined-e2ll3hp

 

Timestamps

00:00 Introduction

00:55 Overview of ‘Tanya Talks’

01:14 Episode Topic Introduction

02:08 Business Tips and Advice

04:17 Overcoming Imposter Syndrome

05:31 Flexibility in Business

06:00 Outsourcing and Delegation

07:17 SEO and Website Tips

10:15 Conclusion and Upcoming Episode Teaser

Why Business is Harder Than I Imagined:

 

1. Wearing Multiple Hats:

Running a business means juggling various roles – from sales and marketing to finance and operations. This multitasking can be overwhelming, leading to burnout and self-doubt.

 

2. Unpredictable Challenges:

The business world is full of surprises. As Tanya Gordon, host of the “Many Hats of Business” podcast, points out, “None of us prepared for events like the COVID-19 pandemic. In the small business world, very few people have risk registers in place.”

 

3. Building Your Business, Your Way:

Creating a business that aligns with your values is crucial but challenging. Tanya advises, “Identify what parts of your business you don’t like. Can you get rid of them? It’s your business, so the answer is yes – maybe not yet, but you can work towards it.”

 

4. Overcoming Imposter Syndrome:

Many entrepreneurs struggle with feeling unqualified. Tanya suggests, “Remind yourself of what qualifies you. Think about your experiences, the times people asked for your advice, and how you’ve helped others.” It isn’t just about getting more pieces of paper to say you know what your doing. Lived experience counts for so much too.

 

5. Balancing Work and Life:

Achieving work-life balance is harder than expected. Tanya shares, “I’ve always wanted my business to be flexible around my life, not working all the time.” It is can be a constant struggle for business owners. It is good to accept we don’t find that easy and sometimes the balance isn’t quite right. If we then use this to work to get the balance back as soon as we can. There are times when we have to ‘get it done’ for a while but it shouldn’t be our permanent state for longevity.

 

6. Website and SEO Challenges:

A beautiful website doesn’t guarantee success. Tanya explains, “It’s demoralizing when you’ve waited ages for your website to go live, and then nothing happens – you don’t get orders from it.” Unfortunately, people just don’t realise that many web developers won’t fully optimise your site. Even where they make a start it often isn’t enough. The great thing with websites is that you can edit and improve as you go. A website should never be considered ‘finished’ so you can keep making tweaks and adding new blogs to bring people into your world.

 

7. Generating Leads and Referrals:

Growing your business through organic means is tougher than anticipated. Tanya notes, “50% of my new customers come from Google searches, the other 50% are referrals.” So it really is possible to bring organic leads into your business. The thing people don’t always realise about the power of SEO and Google searches is that the people finding you were searching for the exact thing you wrote about. When people see your posts on a Facebook scroll they weren’t seeing you with any intent already in their mind. Therefore you are starting from a further back position in the buying journey, which leaves you with more work to do.

 

Overcoming the Challenges:

 

1. Embrace flexibility and outsource tasks you dislike.
2. Focus on your unique qualifications to combat imposter syndrome.
3. Prioritize work-life balance from the start.
4. Invest time in SEO to drive organic growth.
5. Build strong customer relationships to encourage referrals.
6. View setbacks as learning opportunities, not failures.

 

Business is Harder Than I Imagined Conclusion:

While business is harder than many think, it’s also incredibly rewarding. By understanding these challenges and implementing strategies to overcome them, you can navigate the entrepreneurial journey successfully. Remember, as Tanya says, “There’s no such thing as failing in business if we take the learning from the situation.”

To dive deeper into why business is harder than expected and how to tackle these challenges, check out the other episodes of “Many Hats of Business – The Podcast” hosted by Tanya Gordon.