What Sacrifices have you made?

**KKoher** · 09-01-2008 09:19 AM

When you think about starting a new business the term "sacrifice" isn't one that pops into your head right away....But, in reality, it is something you should be prepared to do...How much of your current lifestyle are you willing to sacrifice for your new business..How much have you already sacrificed for your current business..And, if you could go back, would you do it again?

**mirage12** · 09-02-2008 04:09 AM

Actually,it's not sacrifice..It is also part of your investment.

**Scott Bradley** · 09-03-2008 05:50 AM

Originally Posted by KKoher

When you think about starting a new business the term "sacrifice" isn't one that pops into your head right away....But, in reality, it is something you should be prepared to do...How much of your current lifestyle are you willing to sacrifice for your new business..How much have you already sacrificed for your current business..And, if you could go back, would you do it again?

Some would probably say that you sacrifice time for yourself...but for me when I am working on any project or business I am in my element and enjoying every minute of it.

As I stay tuned in to what is going on with my project it breeds more and more passion to stick with the project I am working on.

Am I sacrificing time with my family and friends...sure...but would I want to be doing anything other than working on my project...HELL NO!

**ewaste** · 09-03-2008 10:36 AM

my sacrifices in the name of working for myself and helping others in the process, are wwwaaaaayyyyyyy too many to mention. i'll just stop there.

**VIG_Ruddell** · 09-03-2008 01:41 PM

I never had to sacrifice my lifestyle but I did sacrifice time with my friends and family. But it got better over time because I wasn't spending my evenings working towards building my business. So my sacrifices payed off and I wouldn't trade it for the world.

**anuragsharma** · 09-03-2008 03:01 PM

I agree with one of the above posts that these are not sacrifices but investments. But, yeah there are times when I wish I was doing a job so that I can have money and can help my parents to get the house build. Right now I am 27 and literally having nothing to give my parents. I want to help them but I am helpless. I am not sure if we can call this a sacrifice. I think it is more of a boundary or limitation that one faces which going up the steps of entrepreneurship.

**zharlene** · 09-03-2008 10:03 PM

I suppose I've sacrificed quite a bit of my social life (well, I barely have one now).

Unlike many other replies on this thread, I would definitely consider these things "sacrifices". Being away from my friends (and booze) esp. since my family is back home (in another country) is very painful...I'm sacrificing my 'youth' as well.

**ferrer76** · 09-04-2008 03:38 AM

To get into business or to start our own business there is no need to sacrifice but we have give our commitment towards this. The Commitment itself is sacrifice here. Means to develop your own business you will leave every thing from food to children's every thing this is known as commitment not the sacrifice ok.

**teenbizcoach** · 09-04-2008 09:35 AM

After working nearly a dozen years for someone else....where I did the 12-14 hour day and weekend routine, when I started my business I said I am NEVER working long hours like that again and I am NEVER going to work with customers and people that are ungrateful.

So I initially sacrificed 'income' and 'pride' to some extent. I outsourced from the first month I started my business but it meant I couldn't get paid. I literally had just enough from savings to pay my bills and at that time rent which has since become a mortgage. I had time (and lots of it) to go out and spend with friends and family but I had no money. So I stayed home anyway. I feel that I also sacrificed pride in the sense there were many aspects of my business that I wanted to be involved in the process but I realized that I was not the expert and the time it would take to do some of these things would equal "forever". I also wanted to personally spend time on appts and managing relationships with my prospective and existing clients so I could be sure that I was only working with the people who I enjoyed working with and who enjoyed working with me. So I had to fully trust the back end people that I hired via freelance to "do what they do best" and carry out my vision. It makes you crazy when it's not the way you envision, and they are not saying what you would say but time and time again you often see 'their way' ends up working out a lot better. Had I not hired a knowledgeable person on website design I would probably not have a clue to this day about SEO, RSS feeds, guest blogging etc. and my website/blog would never be found or ranked. If I didn't get a marketing person who could tell me about the PR side of it in terms of pitching to the media I never would have been featured in the newspaper or on TV and besides if I was trying to do all this stuff I never would have the opportunity to serve all the clients I currently serve and continue my lifestyle interests. If I didn't hire a VA I would have to handle all those calls myself and respond to emails and I would not be able to keep up my social networking sites or even have 5 minutes to sit down and write this response. I like to wake up and say I feel like going to the beach today for 5 days or so and not worry about notifying people or wondering what will happen when I am gone.

I definitely look at time and business in a different way than my friends who are also entrepreneurs (some work those crazy hours with little to show, temp jobs and others have businesses that they had to dissolve).

That is not what we wish for when we hope to start a business so why do we start out that way and continue on that path?

It was very difficult for me in the beginning like most (but in a different way). However, in both the short and long term of things I will wholeheartedly say it was very well worth it.

**KKoher** · 09-04-2008 09:45 AM

When I first wrote this post it wasn't meant to turn out this way, debating weather time or money spent was a sacrifice, but just to see if others had given up a part of their life style that they hadn't planned on giving up when they first started out. I've been trying to build up my inventory in the store, and obviously, the best way to do that it to have more money to invest into stock. So, since our lease was up on our house, we decided to move into a smaller, cheaper apartment, therefore reducing the money I need to take home weekly to help pay our bills. That extra money is now going towards more inventory for the store. Shortly after the move I was upset at myself thinking a year after my business was started I should be moving up in the world, not having to give up my house for an apartment, but then I realised that it was worth it. And that if living in an apartment can benefit my business, I should have done this a year ago. That's what this whole post was supposed to be about....Can this be considered a commitment to my business....sure, I've never doubted my commitment to it...but at the same time, it can be looked at as a sacrifice of lifestyle as well. How committed are you to your business, are you willing to give up a little at the chance to succeed?

**jackmcmanus21** · 09-04-2008 10:08 AM

Time and money immediately come to mind. There is also a great amount of responsibility, so you sacrifice some of your "carefree" attitude

**Ahern & Brucker** · 09-04-2008 11:40 AM

but just to see if others had given up a part of their life style that they hadn't planned on giving up when they first started out.

I've been at this for 30 years... I've never really thought of any of the trials as sacrifices... Moree i've adopted these into my lifestyle design.

everything has two costs... the cost to have and the cost to maintain. weigh the cost with the benefits and you have your answer... you either want iit and are willing to pay all of the cost or, it's not worth it and the cost is 0.

if you want something, than doing what it takes to get it can't be considered a sacrifice.

it's not a sacrifice to go from a house to an apartment...

maybe for some "Young" entreprenur's it seems like a BIG sacrifice... but, in real time... it's just a "economic adjustment". no big deal, you don't win any awards or get any special kudos for doing it... maybe a warm fuzzy feeling is all you will get for some brief period of moment but... it's the cost of doing business... like paying your bills and putting in the hours and doing what it takes to get the job done...