Should you shut down your business — because you’re not making money — or keep going? Tough call. Here’s my advice.

You want to be self-employed. So freaking badly.

So you hand in your two weeks notice at your j-o-b (see ya later, suckers!), slap together a website, and start hustling to line up your first couple of clients.

Things are going OK. You’re making a little money. But not fast enough. Definitely not consistently.

A few weeks go by. Then months. You’re watching your hard-earned savings start to dwindle away and you’re starting to panic. Is it always going to be this hard?

Soon, you’re facing a tough choice:

Should you…

1. Keep marching forward, keep trying to build your business, hold out awhile longer.

(Even though you might burn through your savings account, piss off your spouse, and stain your pillowcases with sloppy stress-tears every night.)

Or…

2. Hit the brakes and quit now before things get really shitty.

(You gave it a shot. You tried. That’s something. Maybe it’s time to get a “real job” again…)

This is one of THE hardest questions for entrepreneurs. And unfortunately, it’s not a choice that anybody else can make for you, because nobody else is going to live with the rewards (or consequences) of your decision. Only you.

If you’re facing this decision, my heart goes out to you. I’ve been there. Pretty much everyone business owner I know has been at this crossroads, too, at least once. It’s not an easy one to face.

My advice?

Ask yourself the following no-BS questions before you make the final call.

1. Do I have evidence that things are moving in the right direction, even if it’s not as fast as I might like?

Do you have five clients this month — and last month you only had two? That’s tangible progress. Do you feel like you can keep the momentum building? If so, it might be worth hanging in there awhile longer. You might just need to be patient.

2. Am I really, truly trying my hardest to make my business work?

Or are you binge-watching Orange Is The New Black instead of working on building relationships with customers, promoting your services, delivering talks in your local ‘hood to drum up awareness about your work, and so on?

If you’ve been “hiding out” and waiting for business to just plop into your lap, that’s a problem. You might want to get to work, for real this time… before you decide that your biz is not going to work.

3. Is there a “side hustle” I could do to drum up some extra cash, at least temporarily, like a part-time job or consulting work?

No shame in that game. Plenty of successful biz owners started off by financing their “dream gig” with a “side gig” (or “day job”) of some kind.

Michelle Ward worked as an administrative assistant while she was starting up her career coaching business. Alexandra Franzen edited resumes and cover letters for $25 a pop in the very early days of her freelance writing career (not her dream gig, at all, but it helped cover the grocery bills). I worked as a bartender during the early days of my Tarot biz. (I’d read Tarot for customers in between mixing drinks and slinging beers. Many of those peeps eventually became steady clients!)

Having a side hustle could mean that you’re working “two jobs” at the same time, for a little while, but if it gives you the ability to keep growing your dream biz without going into debt, it could be worth the double-effort.

4. Am I the kind of person who is OK living with risk and uncertainty? Or is that going to wreck my quality of life?

Running your own business means that a certain degree of “uncertainty” is going to be part of your life, not just right now, but pretty much… forever.

Some people thrive on risk and adventure. Others feel suffocated and overwhelmed by that kind of life — just like some people love big parties and crowds while others prefer intimate gatherings. Know yo’self. Choose accordingly.

5. Can I afford to keep going with this dream right now?

On a very practical level… do you have savings? Kids to support? A mortgage? What’s your financial situation?

Take an un-emotional look at your finances and figure out what’s realistic. Try to channel your inner Suze Orman. Remember her “Can I Afford It?” TV segment? You can either afford to buy that cool electric scooter, or you can’t. You can either afford to keep marching forward with your business, even though it’s not super profitable right now, or you can’t.

And if you decide, “I can’t afford to keep pursuing this right now…” that doesn’t mean that the door to entrepreneurship is closed to you FOREVER. It just means that now might not be the ideal time.

Back to square one. Regroup. Learn from your mistakes — and your successes.

Next time around, you’ll be even better equipped to plan your biz, promote yourself, and earn the kind of income you want.

Final words:

No matter what you choose — stay in business or bow out — try to cultivate an attitude of gratitude. Even when the cash isn’t flowing as lusciously as you might like, there’s always something to appreciate in life.

“If I worry too much about all my have nots, I might not recognize just what I’ve got.”

—Mike Gee from Jungle Brothers

Whether you have 1000 customers or 1 boss, focusing on everything that’s good, beautiful and rewarding in your life will give you the energy to keep moving onward & upward. Don’t hate on yo’self, even if you need to fold or change your career plans. Celebrate. The best is yet to come.

Blessings,

Theresa

image from stock photography

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