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DQ News: Your Biz Is Not Your Hobby: Why Many Small Businesses Fail

A reader wrote:

What business should I start? I have lots of hobbies and am sure I can find something, but how do I narrow it down to one that I will really love to do day in and day out.

Many people start businesses because they enjoy doing something a recreationally. Since we’re all told to do what you love, what makes more sense than to start doing as a business something that you love to do as a hobby?

The most obvious example I can think of, are people who start restaurants because they love to cook. Unfortunately, there’s much more to the restaurant business than just cooking. Marketing, staffing, inventory, and customer relations all take up more time than cooking for new restauranteur. So do the unglamorous jobs like cleaning the toilets. Unfortunately, I think that many small business entrepreneurs are not prepared for this reality and this is reflected in the failure rate for small businesses.

Before you jump into something as a business, think it through as a business.

I don’t recommend that you over plan everything before you begin, though. When you’re starting up, you have to figure out whether or not anyone will actually buy any of what your company will offer.

Readers, what do you think? Is my advice spot on, or am I off my rocker?

Photo by Kevin McShane.

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