Do you dream of starting a business and then spending your days hanging out in a hammock sipping tropical drinks while the money comes in? Do you still believe in the get-rich quick-with-passive-income theory?
If so, you probably ought to stick with that day job. Yes, I really said that. I, Terri Belford, self-employment advocate, told you to chuck your entrepreneurial dreams and stay in that cubicle IF you don’t want to work like crazy, sometimes double duty in order to build a profitable business. As I interviewed top Etsy sellers who truly make a living selling their creative work, one thing they all had in common is that they treated it like a business. Even those who worked a day job while they built up their business put full-time effort into their own business. They worked mornings before work, evenings when they got home and on weekends. They wanted so desperately to succeed that they approached it like they meant business and it became a viable business.
Particularly in the early stage, you’ve got to put in the hours. There is no other way to succeed. The people who have replaced and even surpassed their job-income work full-time at their business. Yes, they have the option of working where they want and when they want. If they have a portable craft, they may go to the coffee shop or the beach to create or to spend time online marketing. If they want to take time off during the day for a walk or to join their kids on a field trip, they put in time in the evenings.
They also all devote time regularly to marketing. Some have a partner and one is the creator, the other the marketer but they market their business like a business which is why it becomes a business.
I’m not saying you won’t ever make money in your sleep. You absolutely can and will if you put in the time and energy in the beginning. Once you’ve created products there are many ways to leverage, to make something once and sell it over and over. Once you’ve done the hard work and your business is thriving, you can absolutely take time off and go hang out in that hammock. First, though, you’ve got to work like you mean business to create a profitable business.
This blog post originally appeared on craftbizblog.com.
Terri Belford has been self employed for over 30 years in businesses developed out of personal interests in the advertising, home furnishings, fine arts, healing arts and contemporary crafts fields. Terri also enjoys helping aspiring entrepreneurs, artists, crafts people and collectors become their own boss while making a living based on their passions.
