How To Overcome 5 Excuses That Can Block Your Side Gig Start Up

One upon a time, I had an arsenal of excuses that I would use to explain why I had this big business idea and had not started my business yet.  I didn't fully believe in myself and what I was capable of and I used these 5 excuses as my reasons not to start.  

Excuse #1 - I don't know where to start.

If you have an idea or several ideas and you need some direction, the first thing to do is find someone who can mentor and guide you to where you need to be.  Ask friends, family, acquaintances or business owners you know if they can refer someone to you. 

Try researching the internet for people who have products or services to guide individuals though the start-up process.   Find people who you can relate to and that you believe would best relate to you and the business you are trying to start.  Check out my training, The Hustle Plan, to help you do this!

If you need help with your business idea(s), click here to get my free worksheet that will guide you through a simple process to help you brainstorm ideas and to help you refine your existing ideas.  

Excuse #2 - I don't have the time.

I've always had a "9 to 5" with my side gigs and my full-time job has always been in finance and accounting, which means I'm busy most of the time.  Long hours and working on the weekend was required at times.  I believed this would leave me with less time to devote to my own business.  That was my excuse until I needed to make more money for unexpected expenses that came up.  I decided to journal my time to truthfully see where my time was spent.  Yes, you guessed it.  I found enough time where I could spend at least 8 hours per week on a business, not including Sundays.  

Where is your time spent? Try keeping track of your time and record where it's spent.  If you have time to lay around, do things that you don't have to do, watch TV or hang out doing things that don't promote bringing more money in your household or to better yourself, then you have some time to start a business.

Excuse #3 - I don't have the money to start.

What's entertaining about this excuse is that I hadn't done enough research to even know how much it would cost me to launch my consulting business.  I knew that I could conduct research for FREE and once I decided to take action and to do the work, I was enlightened!  I discovered that the amount I needed was less than what I originally believed and discovered numerous ways that I could launch my business using free resources until I progressed further to afford paid resources. 

Once I determined an amount to work towards for my start up, I needed to raise the cash. I knew that I had the gift of brainstorming business ideas, conducting research and setting up the foundation for businesses.  I started to tell everyone that I knew the services that I offered: business entity and foundation setup, business idea consultations and conducting research.  I charged $75 per hour and I got my first 3 clients. 

Word of mouth is a powerful and free marketing method! I realized this after more and more requests started coming in the form of referrals from these 3 clients.  My business tools were a cell phone, a computer, an email address, an internet connection and a way to accept payments.  I didn't have a website, business cards, a legal entity set up or even a business name and I still made money.  I did this for YEARS until I got serious about expanding my reach and this is when I formally launched my home-based consulting business.

My start-up costs were $60.00 per month for internet access and my cell phone, which I was already paying for in my household.  These now became business expenses.  I used my skills and freelanced my services at $75 an hour.  That's more than what most make in their "9 to 5"!

Ask yourself this question - what skills and talents do you have to freelance that will help you raise funds for your start-up?  If you need help determining this, get my free worksheet by clicking here.

Excuse #4 - I don't have support.

If you are married or have a partner, it is very important to have their support.  If you can incorporate them into your business, that's even better!  Having their support will help you excel, remain focused and motivated in your new endeavor.  

Get prepared to feel disappointment.  Sometimes you will not receive the support of close friends and family members and that's fine, though it can be hurtful.  Most of your customers will be strangers who see how your business can benefit their lives and they will have no issue with supporting you!

Support can come from surrounding yourself with like-minded individuals.  Try finding business organizations in your area or online communities with others like you that you can join.  This will help you see that you can overcome this excuse and create healthy doses of motivation.

Excuse #5 - I'm scared that I will fail.

Most individuals believe that failing at something is horrible.  My perception, along with several other business owners is that when we fail, we use this as a learning lesson. It's an event we've experienced and know what not to do next time. We dust ourselves off and we try again.  Failures occur often in business.  The key is how you recover from it.   

As business owners, we must be optimistic in all that we do.  We cannot foster a negative mindset or believe that we are not worth the abundance of influence and success that will come our way as long as we continue to push forward.  We won't die from our mistakes or failures.  However, we could experience great regret, sadness and disappointment by not pushing through to our full potential.

You can do this.  Just make the decision to START!!

Monica

P.S. Whenever you’re ready, here are 3 ways my team and I can help you start your side gig this year:

1. "LIKE" The Side Gig Hustler Facebook page. This is the place focused on side gigs, side hustles and everything in between!
   Like the page here!
2. JOIN my Facebook group "The Side Gig Hustler Community".  Join others who are working to start or who have recently started their own side gigs.  Get information to help you get to where you desire to be!  Join here!
3. Work with my team and me privately.
   If you’d like to work directly with my team and me …go to the Contact Us page at thesidegighustler.com and put “Private” in the subject line. Tell me about what you want to do, and I’ll get you all the info!