Standing at the top of the cliff<\/h3>\n
The people who ask me whether they should take the step into entrepreneurship have usually already come a long way. On the one hand, mostly professionally. But almost always mentally. <\/p>\n
I like to compare the process of switching to entrepreneurship with jumping off a cliff. You have to deal with it, climb the cliff from the flat side. This is usually a longer process. Established people who have already had a professional career make up the majority of company founders. Breaking out of their supposed security and into an uncertain future is the biggest mental step for many. <\/p>\n
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Once all these considerations have been made, these people stand, figuratively speaking, on top of this cliff, with a parachute that you don’t really know whether it will carry you. And then they write me an email. In 99 out of 100 cases, I advise them to jump. I sometimes imagine it as if I were standing next to them and shouting “Jump!”. <\/p>\n
Is it going wrong?<\/h3>\n
The leap in and of itself must be really scary. It is also a leap out of your comfort zone. It changes your personal circumstances. Does the parachute open properly – in other words, can the company gain a foothold in the market? Completely open. Founders usually have a draconian idea of failure. In reality, it is usually less bad. This is also because new doors usually open again and again. <\/p>\n
The definition of success and failure almost always changes over time. The business model is often adapted and realigned. <\/p>\n
Interaction between risk and ambition<\/h3>\n
I think that the decision to set up a company for people who are already in professional life should always be seen as a trade-off between acceptable risk and one’s own ambition.<\/p>\n
I think most people are quite ambitious, but on the other hand they are not risk-conscious enough. This leads many people to become dissatisfied with their risk-free but monotonous lives. <\/p>\n
Another factor is professional success. For a long time, I myself was very afraid to really take on a lot of entrepreneurial risk. I always had and\/or was involved in companies in which I had shares or a say. However, it only gradually became clear to me that I would never be happy with this. Even though I enjoyed my work and had always been able to earn good money. One day, I suddenly realized that the money in the bank wasn’t going to help me. <\/p>\n
So I was faced with the decision to continue as before or to change things fundamentally. I opted for the latter, which for me meant founding a high-risk venture every five years and being involved in as many start-ups as possible at the same time. That’s not a recipe for an easy life. It’s more of a recipe for constant drama. But something that I think suits me. <\/p>\n
So two years ago, although I’ve always been a self-employed entrepreneur in some way, I was standing on the cliff myself. And I shouted at myself: “Jump!” <\/p>\n
Why I then actually jumped had to do with the simple consideration that if I just carry on like this now, I will lose more on balance than if I jump. Maybe not necessarily financially, but in my life in general. <\/p>\n
“I honor everyone who tries. Simply because trying something new is always better than maintaining the status quo. And because every beginning has something magical about it.” <\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Anything is possible – if you only believe in it<\/h3>\n
I often hear battle cries such as “Anything is possible – you just have to believe in it”. I think that’s utter nonsense. There are many things that are not or not yet possible and believing in them is probably the least helpful thing. <\/p>\n
In addition to motivating young entrepreneurs to take the plunge, I usually also give them a few tips. If you think you’re about to hear a lot of wise things, you’re mistaken. It’s all much more banal than you’re constantly being told in the relevant start-up formats. <\/p>\n
The important things are not hip. It’s more traditional virtues such as hard work<\/em> and discipline<\/em> that really get you ahead. What makes the difference is probably not giving up. Even<\/em>if that would feel right. If you can still go your own way with gratitude<\/em>, it will be easier. And in the end, as many people underestimate, it simply takes an incredible amount of luck<\/em>. The more you do, the more you get involved, the more fortunate circumstances arise. There’s nothing esoteric about it. It’s more a mundane calculation of probability. <\/p>\n
So if you are thinking about starting a business or becoming self-employed, I can only say one thing: do it. Because as Erich K\u00e4stner<\/a> said: <\/p>\n
“There is nothing good unless you do it.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
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\nSo do it.<\/p>\nArtikel auf Social Media teilen:<\/p>\n<\/div>