theOfficialRJ
Contributor
Do you mean the beginning of my current (and first successful) business, or my beginning as an entrepreneur in general?
If you mean the latter, you have already begun by reading a book, coming up with ideas, and wondering if they'll work. The seed has been planted. For me, I was 20 years old and I got into stocks and bitcoin, and of course, lost a tonne of money. Over the next few years, I tried and failed at many different ventures like selling 3D printed car and motorcycle parts, Amazon FBA, photography, dropshipping etc. While I failed at all of those, I kept learning many valuable lessons that help me in my business today.
My current business started when I was quarantined for six months last year and had all the time in the world on my hands. I decided to try again at another business venture. This time though, things would be different. I had 1 simple rule for myself that I was not allowed to break under any circumstances: I will not quit. No matter how hard things got or how big a problem I faced, I will assess the situation, figure out a solution, and solve the problem. Looking back, had I applied this rule to my past businesses, most if not all of them would've eventually been successful.
What was life like during the first beginning of my current business? The business became my only focus. I was getting up early and staying up late working on the business. I became obsessed. I gave up my social life, even the hobby that this business is based around had to be put on the backburner. It began to drive my girlfriend apart. When the quarantine ended and work restarted, I could never focus on the task at hand because my mind was somewhere else. It turned me into a shitty employee. I was sneaking out for lunch 20 minutes early and coming back 20 minutes late. I had given up eating lunch (and breakfast) just so I could work on my business. I was also sneaking out at random times during the workday to squeeze in an extra 5-10 minutes of work here and there.
It wasn't healthy, but neither was my mental health at a 9-5 which I am definitely NOT meant for. What else? My girlfriend ended up cheating on me and became my ex. I quit my job prematurely because I just could not handle another day of temporal prostitution. The following month was tough. I was surviving on about $20/week worth of groceries. Mainly boiled rice and frozen veggies. But for the first time, I tasted just a small hint of the freedom that comes with being the master of your own time. I could hang out with my cat on a Wednesday afternoon. Thursday and Friday could be my weekend if I wanted them to. I could go for a walk at 2 AM on Monday if I felt like it. At this point, I still had a lot of work to do before the business could support me, but one thing was for sure: there was no going back to the 9-5 life. I worked harder than ever, took massive risks that I had never taken before, and thankfully today (two months later), I'm doing multiple five figures per month with my business, and growing steadily.
My personal growth has been the most valuable thing that I got out of this experience, not my business or the money. While it really F*cking sucked at times, I wouldn't have it any other way.
If you mean the latter, you have already begun by reading a book, coming up with ideas, and wondering if they'll work. The seed has been planted. For me, I was 20 years old and I got into stocks and bitcoin, and of course, lost a tonne of money. Over the next few years, I tried and failed at many different ventures like selling 3D printed car and motorcycle parts, Amazon FBA, photography, dropshipping etc. While I failed at all of those, I kept learning many valuable lessons that help me in my business today.
My current business started when I was quarantined for six months last year and had all the time in the world on my hands. I decided to try again at another business venture. This time though, things would be different. I had 1 simple rule for myself that I was not allowed to break under any circumstances: I will not quit. No matter how hard things got or how big a problem I faced, I will assess the situation, figure out a solution, and solve the problem. Looking back, had I applied this rule to my past businesses, most if not all of them would've eventually been successful.
What was life like during the first beginning of my current business? The business became my only focus. I was getting up early and staying up late working on the business. I became obsessed. I gave up my social life, even the hobby that this business is based around had to be put on the backburner. It began to drive my girlfriend apart. When the quarantine ended and work restarted, I could never focus on the task at hand because my mind was somewhere else. It turned me into a shitty employee. I was sneaking out for lunch 20 minutes early and coming back 20 minutes late. I had given up eating lunch (and breakfast) just so I could work on my business. I was also sneaking out at random times during the workday to squeeze in an extra 5-10 minutes of work here and there.
It wasn't healthy, but neither was my mental health at a 9-5 which I am definitely NOT meant for. What else? My girlfriend ended up cheating on me and became my ex. I quit my job prematurely because I just could not handle another day of temporal prostitution. The following month was tough. I was surviving on about $20/week worth of groceries. Mainly boiled rice and frozen veggies. But for the first time, I tasted just a small hint of the freedom that comes with being the master of your own time. I could hang out with my cat on a Wednesday afternoon. Thursday and Friday could be my weekend if I wanted them to. I could go for a walk at 2 AM on Monday if I felt like it. At this point, I still had a lot of work to do before the business could support me, but one thing was for sure: there was no going back to the 9-5 life. I worked harder than ever, took massive risks that I had never taken before, and thankfully today (two months later), I'm doing multiple five figures per month with my business, and growing steadily.
My personal growth has been the most valuable thing that I got out of this experience, not my business or the money. While it really F*cking sucked at times, I wouldn't have it any other way.