I’m not talking about the yo-yo effect of watching liquid assets bounce around like a ping pong ball in some publicly-traded mechanism. That’s more like the rush you get from gambling…maybe because it actually is closer to gambling, as in, “I think I’ll roll the dice with this stock, let’s play my hand at bitcoin and see what happens.”
I’m also not talking about a fender bender where you have to come up with some cash from your emergency fund.
I’m talking about running a business where you are the principal, the owner, the boss, the big kahuna.
In a previous post, I recommend business ownership for everyone. I’m not backing away from that, even as you might be thinking you are hearing something different in this post. The fact is, I’m not saying anything different, just bringing another lens to the subject. I said in the previous post, not that business ownership was easy or fun but, that it makes you a better person. Well, the wise man says, “The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.” Ecclesiastes 7:4
Losing money in business stinks. And, we aren’t usually looking for extra pain in life, so I don’t generally get into something with the expectation that I am going to lose my shirt. Nevertheless, I find myself in business again and again because it is better to be in the arena than in the stands. In fact, God commands it again and again–be up and doing, persevere, don’t be slothful, don’t be a sluggard, don’t be a fool, count the cost, put your hand to the plow, well done faithful servant, who can find a virtuous woman…in Proverbs 31, don’t bury your money in the dirt, multiply it, don’t store up for no reason but to serve yourself, on and on.
But, it still stinks to lose money. I’ve lost money in business a lot of times, and a very wise man told me something I will never forget….you can make mistakes in business as long as there aren’t too many zeros behind them. Most of the times I’ve lost $1,000 in this start-up or $10,000 on that bad decision. At MTM trailer manufacturing, we took losing money to a whole new level, and for a long time. It’s not only the magnitude of the trial, but the longitude that causes it to be a life-altering experience.
It takes time to learn what efforts a customer is willing, and not willing, to pay for. It takes time to train employees to spend more time doing things the customer will pay for and less time on what they will not. It takes time to learn to trust each other in an organization…to count on everyone doing what they should do which speeds up others’ abilities to do what they should do. And, all that time costs a lot. Not just in start-up companies, however, is the prospect of losing money. I deal with the paranoia in my current service business. We can start to skid….and you first think, ‘surely the ship will be righted’, and if it doesn’t, then you think, ‘I’m sure it will be better next month’, and if it does, then you think, ‘I guess I need to start thinking about taking some action,’ and then, ‘what do I do now?!’ and on and on.
My advice:
- God is in control and just asks us to be stewards, He has all the answers and wants to shave off our rough edges.
- Know your KPIs, and make them as accurate as humanly possible, as easy to collect/report on as possible, covering as short of a time period as possible, and the best descriptors of your business’s success as possible
- Expect the frantic feeling when things aren’t going well, but don’t panic
- Count your blessings–getting depressed isn’t going to help you make better decisions
- Seek good counsel, don’t just trust your own thoughts or experience. Don’t be embarrassed or hide your business failings–we’ve all been there.