Every person have the potential to start their own business. When is the last time you are unhappy with a product or service that you are using? Do you occasionally have some big ideas zooming across your mind while you are bathing or going through some daily routine?
All the above are business ideas that you can turn into reality. The sad thing is, even though there are a lot of potential founders, CEOs, Chairman or perhaps millionaires around us, not many are running their own business and when you ask them why, it is very likely that you will get one of the 15 excuses below.
“The economy is bad!”
You cannot expect customers to have the best purchasing power, banks to have the most lenient financing options and all economic sectors to boom at the same time. There are no perfect capital markets so if you are waiting for it, you are not going to start a business, ever!
“I have no funds to get started!”
There are always funds around and all you need to do is ask. If your business plan fails to impress venture capitalists or angel investors, sharpen it after reading 8 Tips for Successful Venture Capital Meetings and give it another go. If you don’t have sufficient cash for bootstrapping and your family members can’t help much, move onto friends and relatives. Banks and government agencies are mostly for existing businesses but there’s no harm to ask.
“Everything I do have a high chance of failure!”
Yes, it is proven that everything you do will fail so you really have nothing to lose here. 
When you have lower expectations, you tend to be a better entrepreneur because you will be realistic with estimates and predictions. Failure is the mother of success and failures are often the great teachers for successful entrepreneurs.
“My ideas sound stupid!”
50 years ago, mobile computing, on-demand entertainment and worldwide social interaction are stupid ideas. It is the innovation, persistence and hard work of entrepreneurs who believe in their ideas that brought them to life, together with money for themselves and the comfort for us. Prove those non-believers wrong and if possible, get them out of the way!
“I don’t understand business processes!”
You don’t need a MBA to run a business. In fact, most successful entrepreneurs are college droupouts. Of course, knowledge about business processes will play its part in minimizing error costs but you need to choose the right lecturers for entrepreneurs to achieve that. Theories add boundaries to your thinking. Sometimes, you learn better and have more fun by taking the trial and error route.
“I have a 9 to 5!”
You should look out for employment contract clauses that might prohibits you from starting a business that relates to the know-how and the nature of business of your employer. Other than that, you shouldn’t have much problems if you can manage your time properly and be more productive.
“I am too young/old!”
If you think that you are too young, read up Lessons from an 11 Years Old Entrepreneur and 13 Years Old Entrepreneur Finds Chocolate Success. If you think you are too old, the number of baby boomer entrepreneurs is on the rise. Age is not and shouldn’t be a factor in determining whether you should become an entrepreneur.
“I have too many ideas for a startup!”
No one is limiting you from having multiple startups. We call entrepreneurs with multiple startups as serial entrepreneurs. Know your own abilities and focus on one task at a time. Learn how to jot down and postpone your ideas. Start off with the idea that you have the most confidence in or the one that pushes your excitement to the max.
“Every sector is dominated!”
It is impossible that every sector is dominated. If a monopoly is in place, customers will definitely have some dissatisfaction which you can capitalize on. The Blue Ocean Strategy book will teach you how to move away from red bloody competition and find a new market of your own by creating a brand new market or by narrowing down the broad niches.
“I am no CEO material!”
As a founder or owner of a company or business, it is not necessary for you to take up the CEO position. If you are good with marketing, you can be the CMO. The CFO position is always there is you are an expert in financial performance analysis. It does more harm than good for an entrepreneur with bad managerial skills to stay on as CEO.
“I cannot afford a mentor!”
A mentor is good if you want personalized guidance and support. However, we have more than enough resources, case studies and tutorials, both online and offline, covering several major business sectors. Also, you have two large entrepreneurs forum, namely Young Entrepreneur Forum and Startup Nation which you can source answers for questions that you have. Alternatively, you can contact me if you have any questions about entrepreneurship and ways to improve your business. 
“I have a family!”
Quitting your day job immediately after having your own business plan is not feasible at all due to the risk involved, especially if you have a family. You can work on your startup after work and during holidays. Spare some time for your family. Getting them to help can be a win-win situation that can help growing your business and improving the relationship. Again, productivity and time management is crucial.
“I have no experience in running a business!”
Most first time entrepreneurs will have this dilemma but no one is born with entrepreneurial skills. You have to learn by reading tons of materials and from your experience so that you can manage your business efficiently. Reading business books, business news, case studies and attending trade events or your local Chamber of Commerce contribute a lot in terms of knowledge for entrepreneurs.
“I need motivation for this!”
I have to admit that life as a solopreneur is boring. You need to network with like-minded peers through platforms such as local entrepreneur associations, LinkedIn, entrepreneur and small business blogs like this one and Twitter (small business and entrepreneur) to get motivated. Also, attend networking events that are targeted towards entrepreneurs and small business owners.
“I still need to learn!”
You need to get the basics right but you need not become a business professor to start a business. Take action and only read up when you face problems with your venture. It is also impossible for you to learn every aspect of a business in detail and even Fortune 500 companies are not all-rounded.
The above will be the 15 common excuses that you might get when trying to find out why someone is not starting his or her own business. All of them are busted in my elaborations. Do you agree with my arguments?
Have you ever heard of other excuses? What are some related examples that you would like to share with me?
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{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
I hope this post forces people to put their excuses away and realise that everyone can make excuses, but if you want to be successful you just have to jump in and start!
Great post, if there’s a will, there’s a way. Simple as that, if people are too busy making excuses then they are not serious about business.
@ Tom – StandOutBlogger.com
“Just do it!” This famous Nike slogan stands firm when it comes to entrepreneurship.
@ Tom
Worse, some only have the idea of starting one but they already have a long list of excuses.
Personally I have attempted to start a business but I gave up early and I think it is because there was no passion. I just thought it would be easy.
It’s all about passion, doing something that it does not feel like work.
True story I am an ex NFL player who filed for bankruptcy after being scammed in real estate. I lost everything but my since of self. I knew I wanted to start my own business I knew I had no money but I refused to let it be an excuse. if you can right it you can plan it if you can plan it you can do it.
Good for you. Most people, if given the situation that you have been through, will give up everything and continue to be down for years. I am glad that you are now back up and took action to achieve what you want to achieve. All the best to you.
Michael Jordan, one of the greatest NBA basketball stars of all-time said, “I can accept failure, but I can’t accept not trying”. Wayne Liew is an example of not using the excuse of his young age or lack of experience to start an online business. Excuses can only guarantee one thing and that’s complacency with mediocrity. At least those who tried and failed can use their mistakes as a learning experience to aim for success again.
http://www.24conference.com
Yes, one will never know the outcome unless they are willing to try it out. Thanks for the personal complements.
Hmm this is interesting. I am 23 now, worked quite a few jobs but aspire to become an entrepreneur and I really cannot see myself working a job much longer, only because it is not what I enjoy doing.
I mean what do I do? It will take time for my blog to grow before I can make money. Should I look into starting a business, or doing something i will like on the side to make the money meantime?
any suggestions?
Great points, especially ““I am no CEO material!””
Many entrepreneurs, especially the young ones, don’t realize that there is NO WAY that they can do large scale projects alone. An emphasis needs to be put on the importance of a team. The team allows everyone to focus on their specialty and results in a better product.
Don’t be afraid to build a team!
Good point there Nick. By having a team, an entrepreneur can also avoid a YOU, YOU, YOU and more YOUs organization which may tire him out. There is no perfect person on Earth and in order to build towards a better business or organization, you need to combine the strengths of others.
People need to differentiate if they are man of words or man of action and if you think you are an entrepreneur then you belong to the first half and thus the motto should be to “JUST DO IT”. Its unless you make your hands dirty, you shall not be able to reap the real benefits.
Yup, far too many aspiring entrepreneurs stay as aspiring entrepreneurs just
because they have too many excuses for not starting out.
Wonderful post. Good way to make those lazybones moves. And indeed some of them are so true. Great article and well thought out indeeed