Entrepreneurship: The Five Unique Challenges Entrepreneurs face.

 Entrepreneurship is often portrayed as the epitome of professional freedom, filled with potential, financial freedom, and the allure of being your own boss. While there’s no doubt that starting and running your own business is rewarding, entrepreneurship also comes with its unique set of challenges. Being an entrepreneur requires you to wear multiple hats, generally at the same time, which can feel chaotic and overwhelming. You’re not just the founder managing big picture business decisions, but you might also be client-facing in a customer service role, managing accounting and payroll, and so much more based on your specific business. For many entrepreneurs, especially high performers who want to do it all, the pressure to do all the things and do them well can become overwhelming.  And when you’re juggling so many things, it’s easy to lose focus, get stuck in a cycle of stress, and even burnout. Let’s dive into the common struggles entrepreneurs face and how a career coach can help you overcome them.

Balancing Vision and Strategy.

You started your business with a clear vision of how you could solve a problem for your clients and how you could use your unique talents for a greater positive impact in the world. But when you’re in the weeds of running a business, it’s easy to lose sight of the bigger picture. Decisions can become reactive, and it can feel like you’re constantly putting out fires instead of strategically moving your business forward.

As an entrepreneur and leader of the business, there's a constant need to stay connected to the broader vision and trajectory of the business. For many founders, this can become really overwhelming, so it’s necessary to break your vision down into actionable, realistic goals, and create a specific, roadmap to reach them.

Managing your Time so You can Stop Juggling Everything.

Entrepreneurs are notorious for doing it all—and for trying to do it all themselves. From overseeing operations to managing finances and dealing with customer service, the list of tasks is often endless. And if you’re a high performer, you might be resistant to delegating, feeling like you need to manage everything yourself. This strategy of taking on every task from start to finish can quickly lead to stress and burnout professionally.

You may find yourself feeling like every business day brings a new fire drill. You’re constantly reacting to crises, putting out fires, or chasing after every new opportunity that comes your way.

In order to stop feeling like every day is a snowball of chaos, you need to better understand how to prioritize important tasks, develop effective time management strategies and learn how to delegate to your team. This can be achieved by learning and implementing new systems and habits that increase productivity while also giving your time back in your schedule for things outside of the business, like quality time with family or friends, time for self-care, and recovery - all of which are essential to maintaining a healthy work-life balance.

Turning Goals and Ambitions into Action.

As an entrepreneur, you’re probably no stranger to setting big, ambitious goals. But achieving those goals? That’s a whole other story. Despite your best intentions, competing priorities such as day-to-day operations and time-sensitive business needs all too often win out over long-term goal planning and progress. One of the biggest challenges any entrepreneur or small business owner can face when it comes to growing their business is being present and staying focused. As a business owner it’s necessary to have regular time in the calendar dedicated to vision and goal setting as well as a clear strategy of how you’ll implement and take action regularly on your goals and move the business forward.

Decision Fatigue.

 Every day, as an entrepreneur you are  faced with a constant stream of decisions—big and small—that require your attention. Whether it's deciding which task to tackle first, making choices about your product or service, or considering the long-term direction of your business, it all adds up. The more decisions you make, the more mental energy it takes, and over time, that can lead to feeling worn out, mentally drained, and ultimately result in decision fatigue. It’s important to find strategies to offset the mental load of constant decision making. Some ways you can strike this balance include, setting clear priorities, delegating more, or simplifying your decision-making process to avoid burning out.

Managing Stress and Avoiding Burnout.

The stress and pressure to perform that entrepreneurs face on a daily basis can be overwhelming. The pressures of managing a business, making decisions, creating financial stability for yourself and your employees, and meeting overall expectations can take a toll on your mental and physical health and wellbeing. If you’re a high achiever, you may push yourself even harder, which only increases the stress. You may even find that your personal life is taking a toll. You’re less present for your friends and family, or you’re distracted when you are physically present. Over time, the constant pressures and chronic stress can lead to burnout which can negatively impact personal and professional well-being and even impact business outcomes. As an entrepreneur and leader it's crucial to have stress reduction strategies at your finger-tips to manage and mitigate stress.

How to Overcome these Entrepreneurial Challenges.

If you’ve resonated with any of the above entrepreneurial challenges, chances are you feel these challenges are holding you and your business back. You’re ready to face these challenges head on so you can take your business to the next level.  Here are some simple ways to move the needle and create progress: 

• Create a clear vision for the future of the business. Stay connected to this vision with regular check-ins. Pivot the vision as necessary. 

• Learn to effectively prioritize tasks, engage a time management system, and get comfortable delegating. 

• Take regular action on the goals you set. Create a plan to regularly review progress on your business goals.

• Engage a decision-making system that’s sustainable. Delegate decision-making to qualified and trusted team members as necessary.

• Learn to manage your stress. Off-set the stress and pressures of entrepreneurship with restorative practices. 

These are simple strategies that with a bit of time and planning are easily actionable.

Let’s be real for a minute. If you’re reading this blog, chances are you’ve already thought about doing some of these items.

The reality is, you just haven’t done them…yet. 

This is where I come into the picture.

Not only am I a career and performance coach, I am also a multi-passionate entrepreneur. I understand firsthand the unique struggles of starting and managing a successful business - the endless hustle and grind, the late nights, and the immense highs and lows of creating a life and business you’re proud of. 

I work with high-achieving entrepreneurs, just like you, to help you stay energized and engaged with your business goals, overcome self-doubt and impostor syndrome, and create a thriving business you’re excited to show up to each day.

If you are ready to take your business to the next level, schedule a complimentary consultation where we’ll discuss you, your business, and what the future holds for your business. I can’t wait to chat with you! 

Meet Nicole McDaniel, LPC, BCC

Nicole McDaniel is a licensed psychotherapist and board certified coach based in Sandy Springs, Georgia. Nicole provides career coaching for high performing professionals who are burnout, battling perfectionism, and impostor syndrome.