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Overcoming psychological obstacles to starting a new business

When one thinks of starting a new business, he (or she) loses sleep. He breathes heavy. His pulse goes up 15 percent. He feels a lump in his throat, swallows hard and finds that the lump is still there. He loses his appetite. Paradoxically, he might binge eat to calm himself down. He doesn't go out with the boys. He doesn't laugh when his colleague shares a good joke. He doesn't want to get up in the morning. He has trouble sleeping at night. He argues with his spouse if his wife says something negative about his new venture. He still argues with her if she is all enthusiastic, "what about if I am wrong?" He becomes a difficult man to please, let alone to live with. All these are happening because of this uncertainly and sense of insecurity. Security is a very fundamental human need. So close to our heart is this need that many of us will give up our dreams in return for security. Yet there is another need for him to satisfy: the need to achieve, or in more philosophical term, the need of self-fulfillment. I was educated in medicine and business and have qualifications from both fields. Nonetheless, I can't pretend how a psychologist would tackle these obstacles. Nonetheless, where knowledge falls short, we can resort to our experience. These psychological obstacles and their symptoms did cripple me when I was going into new ventures during my twenty-three years of working life. I found the following mental arguments useful. They worked well for me probably because they were rather simple and straightforward:

Not all employers are equal.
You are employed by some employer, or yourself.
You want to be working for an employer who treats you well.
You don't want your employer to sacrifice your welfare to maximize his profits.
You want to work for someone you can trust.
You are more likely to protect your own welfare than any other employer would.
So if you can trust yourself, do work for yourself.
If you can't trust yourself, don't work for yourself, but still keep looking for the best employer you can find and offer to work for him, as soon as possible.

Many a times, logic works much better than psychology. It did for me.
Best of luck with your new business.

P.S. Don't forget there are also physical obstacles to starting your new business. At least, don't do anything hastily unless you have enough savings to support your family for six months.

Learn more about this author, Walt McCarthy.
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