by Dave Andrews

Created on: October 29, 2007

You know... For years, I dreamed of quitting my "day job" and owning my own business.

It was the only way to get ahead, right? That's what they say. "Own a home, don't rent", "If you're working for someone else, you'll never get very far".

I'll tell you, owning your own business is not easy, and it's almost certainly no way to riches. Sure, some people do make it, but many don't. There are some very serious implications here.

Let's talk about statistics. I'm not sure that any are accurate, but there are certainly plenty out there. I did a search to find the percentage of businesses that fail in the first year. Talk about misinformation!

The first one I found had the title "Why do 9 of 10 new businesses fail within their first two years" but the very first sentence read "Nine out of ten new businesses fail in their first year" Is it the first year or the first two years? The second one said that 71% fail within the first year.

The third one I visited, like the first, couldn't make up its mind. The title said "SBA says 50% fail during first year" but the second sentence in the article said "According to the SBA, over 50% of small businesses fail in the first five years."

There were just as many opinions as to WHY so many businesses fail in their first year.

Let's be honest here... I don't know what percentage of businesses fail in the first year. I don't know exactly why so many fail. I do know this... It's not easy. I've been there, and hey! I lasted more than two years! Ultimately I was working from (literally) dawn to well into the night seven days a week and making next to nothing. It just wasn't worth it, so I quit, launching my family into an extra $50,000 in debt.

I didn't like my day job, although I made a respectable $45,000 a year (this was around 6 years ago).

I felt like that job was a ball and chain around my neck. I had to get out. Had to be my own boss. Oh, how I wish I'd known then what I know now.

My business was really doomed from the start. I started up a digital printing business. I ended up turning it into a sign shop. I ran it on my own, it was supposed to be a partnership.

I had a partner, who worked with me at the time. She and I spent months planning this. We traveled up to Boston (from Florida) to look at equipment and discuss options with manufacturers. I knew I wasn't the bookkeeping type, I was the creative, "hands-on" type. She was going to handle the books.

At the very last moment, her husband became deathly ill and she had to back out. I scaled

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