Evan Carmichael and Stephen Kelly discuss what to do when running a business you hate. Stephen says despair from setbacks like lost customers or bad reviews signals you should ask yourself if you still care. If the answer is no, sell the company or shut it down and move to something that makes you feel alive.
Jeff is writing in, Evan and Stephen, how do you overcome the crushing feeling of despair while running and trying to grow a business you no longer like or enjoy?
Oh, that's, well, I think that's it, because I think the reality is being an entrepreneur, it is a roller coaster. It's a world of ups and downs. It's a day of fantastic achievements, You go on your YouTube channel, you go on your Facebook, you feel invigorated. The next day, something whacks you, someone resigns, or someone comes after your competitor, or you lose a customer, something happens where you get a bad review on social media, and you know, it can be crushing. I kind of think that's what we talked about. You got to pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and crack on with it because We're all passionate about what we're following. But if it's genuinely kind of despair, then I think if it's got to a stage, you've got to ask yourself, am I still passionate about this business? If not, think about, well, what's the appropriate exit? Because again, what do we do? We spend two-thirds, three-quarters of our conscious lives working, working following our dreams, and we're not being true to ourselves. If we know what we're pursuing is something we're not passionate about. So, you know, ultimately, if someone comes along and wants to buy the company, that's probably a good exit, and you should do that. Go and start the new gig of something you're passionate about.
Yeah, I totally agree. The key thing in the question there was at the end, so running a business that you no longer like or enjoy, you know, if you don't like or enjoy what you're doing, you're never going to be great at it. So get out. If it's at the point where you can sell it, great, sell it. If not, then then close shop and go do something that, that makes you come alive and you are passionate about. Because the feeling is only going to get worse. If you feel like it's despair and crushing right now, it's only going to get worse the longer you keep doing something that you are not in love with.
