Truth 1. Why people start businesses
You’re flipping through a magazine and come across a test that assesses whether you have the right personality to start a business. You take the test and learn that you’re best suited for a traditional career. Your heart sinks, because you’ve been giving business ownership some thought. But you figure that the people who designed the test know what they’re doing. Right? Wrong!
There’s no scientific evidence that shows that people with certain personalities are more likely to start a business or will be a more successful business owner than anyone else. In fact, the somewhat surprising collection of research results illustrate that there are no meaningful differences between business owners and nonbusiness owners on the most basic human characteristics, behaviors, and desires.[1] Most people, for example, want to make more money and crave independence, not just business owners. People who start their own businesses are just as diverse as people in regular jobs. You don’t have to have a certain personality, behave in a particular way, or have a certain set of desires to be a successful business owner.
You don’t have to have a certain personality, behave in a particular way, or have a certain set of desires to be a successful business owner.
What, then, motivates people to start their own business? In most instances, it’s riskier and harder to start and run a business than it is to traverse a traditional career. Although there are many reasons that motivate people to start their own business, two reasons are paramount: the presence of aspiration gaps in people’s lives, and passion for a business idea.
Aspiration gaps
All of us have aspirations, which are made up of our most important goals, objectives, ambitions, and longings. Our aspirations vary because they’re influenced by our values, abilities, experiences, families, and individual circumstances. When one or more of our aspirations are unmet, we have aspiration gaps in our lives. Collectively, our aspirations form what researchers call our aspiration vectors. Sometimes our aspirations vectors get complex, like when we’re simultaneously trying to build a career, raise kids, love our spouse, save money, and so on. For people who have strong aspirations and are insistent that certain aspirations are met, their aspirations become the driving force in their lives. For example, a young mother might have the following three aspirations: a job that pays at least $35,000 per year, the ability to be home by 3:00 p.m. on weekdays to meet the school bus, and Sundays free to participate in church and volunteer-related activities. Similarly, the assistant manager for a large retail chain, like Home Depot or Target, might be driven by the single aspiration to have his own store by the time he is 30.
People can become discouraged or distressed when they look at their job or alternative jobs in the traditional labor market and conclude that none of the choices will allow their most important aspirations to be met. In these instances, an alternative is to start a business. Although starting a business isn’t easier than a traditional job, business owners usually have more discretion and control over their schedule and career trajectory. This discretion and control helps people better juggle both professional and family-related goals and aspirations and accomplish the things they want the most.[2]
Small business owners often work long hours and make sacrifices to make their businesses work, but they say it’s worth it because they’re passionate about the businesses they’re running.
Passion for a business idea
A second factor that motivates people to start their own businesses is passion for a business idea. What frequently happens is that a person gets an idea for a new product or service, and there is no practical way to bring the idea to market other than starting a new business. In these instances, a person’s passion for the idea is determined by how desirable and feasible the idea seems to be.[3] Many prospective business owners become very passionate about their ideas, particularly if they believe that the resulting business will improve their own circumstances and positively influence other people’s lives.
An important result of passion is that it often elicits extraordinary effort on the part of business owners to get their businesses off the ground and to run them successfully. Small business owners often work long hours and make sacrifices to make their businesses work, but they say it’s worth it because they’re passionate about the businesses they’re running.