Myths About Business

Time to separate fact from fiction. There are a lot of myths about business floating around that need to be debunked.  

A lot of the time, these are negative vibes perpetuated by society to pressure would-be entrepreneurs into maintaining the status quo. But sometimes, these are excuses we make for ourselves. Deep down we want to launch our own business, but the fear of failure takes the forefront of our mindset and does whatever it can to discourage our success.

Well, enough of that! Let’s look at 8 common myths about business and the truth behind them.

#1 Starting Your Own Business Is a Dangerous Risk

Here’s the thing: almost everything worth doing poses some risk. If it makes you miserable, working a steady 9-to-5 job is risky. You’re risking your mental health and your happiness after all.

But starting a business isn’t actually as big a risk as a lot of naysayers make it out to be. Here are two simple ways to think about it to make the point clear.

First, if you do want to start your own business, there is no one saying you have to completely cut the cord from your other sources of income over night. Plenty of successful entrepreneurs start out slowly, taking small calculated risks before they were in a comfortable place to dive-in head first.

Second, even in the worst case scenario, when you’re entire business flops, you’ve still got all the same employable skills you had before. Plus, you’ve got a lot of experience as an entrepreneur (which employers love), so you’ll probably be more employable than before.

#2 You Can’t Start a Business Until You Have a Unique Product or Service

Every now and then, someone comes up with a groundbreaking new idea that really shakes up the industry. But it’s rare. And it’s not a necessity for entering into business.

You don’t need something brand new to enter the market. You just need a unique selling point to set you apart from the competition.

#3 You Can’t Start a Business Until You Have Mastered Every Aspect of It

Another one of the myths about business we tell ourselves to procrastinate getting started. Here’s a little secret that most entrepreneurs might not want to admit: they learned more along the way then they knew before launching.

The truth is, there is just so much to running a successful enterprise that you can never be fully prepared for it. A better approach is to admit to yourself that you barely know anything and enter into your launch with a mindset prepared to learn as you go.

#4 It’s Not The Right Time To Start a Business

“My family life is too busy.”

“I don’t have enough saved up yet.”

“I’ll have more free time next month.”

Statements like these might be strategic calculations. But more often than not, they are just excuses for procrastinating.  

The truth is that there is never a best time for you to launch your business. You will always have other responsibilities distracting your attention, other wants and needs to spend your money on, and other things to do to keep you busy.

If you really do want to become an entrepreneur, the best time to start is now.

#5 You Need a Lot of Money To Launch a Business

One of the more common myths about business is that getting started necessarily has to be expensive. You’ve got to take out a small business loan or empty all of your savings into your new venture.

But the truth is that there are plenty of business opportunities out there that have little to no startup costs. You can read about several of them in our list of 7 Home-based Business Ideas.

#6 You Must Invest in Office Space

This myth often presents itself as “Once you have an office, you know you’ve got a real business.” This is a trap, though. Office space is expensive. Unless you’re running a business that relies strongly on foot traffic, you’d be better off spending all that rent money on marketing and ads.

The truth, of course, is that hundreds of thousands of businesses around the world operate successfully from home offices or even local coffee shops. It’s the age of the internet, and there’s never been a better time to become an entrepreneur with nothing more than your computer.

#7 You Have to Be an Extrovert to Be Successful as a Business Owner

Introverts unite! You don’t need to be a talkative, outgoing, people person who loves social engagement in order to succeed at business. In fact, according to Entrepreneur,  some of the most successful business owners in the world are introverted, including Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, and Elon Musk.

Some research even suggests that introverts make better leaders. The theory is that they are more willing to let their team manage themselves. This means the boss has more time to focus on more important tasks and their team can function more productively without all the micromanaging.

#8 Running an Online Business is Passive Income

A lot of people turn to launching a business online because they want to be able to make money while they sleep. Unfortunately, so-called “passive income” is not quite the dream that it’s often made out to be.

Think of it this way. No one decides to open up a new restaurant or a new brick-and-mortar retail store because they want the easy life. They know it’s going to be a lot of work, and that they’ll probably be putting in more hours than their employees—at least during the early years of the business.

Building a business online doesn’t suddenly mean that the owner doesn’t have to do any work. Certainly the nature of your work is changed, and you aren’t tied to a particular location to get it done. But you’re still going to have to put in a lot of work upfront to get your online business to thrive.  

What Other Myths About Business Need Debunking?

We covered 8 of the most common myths about business and entrepreneurship, but there are plenty more of them out there being perpetuated by society and our own negative mindsets.

What are some of the myths that still need to be debunked? Share them in the comments and let us know your take on the truth.