Personal Leadership for Women: Business or Hobby?

“Businesses are in business to make money.  If it does not make money, it is not a business.  It is a hobby.”

This was the most valuable piece of information I learned when I went to the University of Louisville for an MBA.  (If I could remember the professor’s name, I would give him the credit.  Unfortunately, I do not even remember name of the class.)  It forced me to take a very critical look at my business at the time.  I have used it to assess my business since.

If you are self-employed, do you treat your business as a business?  Or do you treat it as a hobby?  Do you invest as much time into your business as you would if you were punching a time clock?  Or do you fit in time where you can in between personal pursuits?

I know people who run their business as a business.  They put the time and effort into it that is needed to achieve the success they want.  I know others who consistently let everything else come first.  It can be easy to do, especially if you work from home.  There are many potential distractions.

This may be hard to believe, but the ones that are most successful are those that treat it as a business and work extremely hard and put in long hours.  If you want a business, that is the price to pay.

If what you really want is a hobby, there is nothing wrong with that if you have another way to support yourself.  But at least be honest with yourself.  A simple question to ask yourself is if you would pay someone else to do what you do throughout the day.

Do you have a business or a hobby?  And which do you want?