Help! I want to start my own business but I don’t know if it’s the right time

Dear Aunty B,

I’ve always dreamed of owning my own business. There is something so appealing about walking out the door from my job in someone else’s company and working for myself for a change. And I know exactly what I would do: I want to create a catering company that makes and delivers healthy lunches to busy office workers.

But I’ve had this dream for years and I have never quite brought myself to the point of being able to make it happen. What if it doesn’t work out? What if I give up my current job, that pays reasonably well, only to fall flat on my face? And I don’t even come from a foodie background so I don’t even know that I would be capable of running this kind of business.

How will I know when it’s the right time to start a business?

Annie,

Adelaide

Dear Annie,

The truth is there is never a perfect time to start a new business. But I have some good news for you: there are ways to get through this indecision.

It sounds to me like you are stuck. It happens to all of us, especially business owners. But the way to become unstuck is to understand why you’re in that position to start with.

One of the best explanations I have seen of why we become stuck is from leadership coach Alli Polin, who blogs at Break the Frame. Polin has a wealth of professional experience and when it comes to making big decisions she is an expert – she moved herself from the United States to the Australian Outback just a few years ago.

According to Polin, there are four types of “states of stuck” and once you can understand which state you’re in, there is a pathway to overcome the indecision.

From what I can tell, you are currently in one of two stuck states: “I know what to do but it’s risky” or “I don’t know how to do what I want to do”. You know you want to open a catering business but you’re concerned that the risk is too high or that you don’t know how to achieve success.

If it’s the risk that is holding you back, Polin’s advice is to remember that success “never happens in a straight line” and you have to “expect some messiness”.

Admitting the fears you have is one of the first steps to being able to move forward.

And as for being unsure where to start building your dream business, Polin says experimenting and asking others for help is the way to go.

“We all wish there was a magic formula for cusses, but there’s not. Determine desired results, hypothesise, take action, reflect and adjust,” Polin says.

Be smart,

Aunty B

Category: People – Aunty B

Tags: decision making, Alli Polin, Break the Frame