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Not everyone is cut out to be an entrepreneur.

By Prajakt Raut - Founder Applyifi

While entrepreneurship has become a very desired career option, often I see aspiring entrepreneurs choose entrepreneurship for the wrong reasons. And often I notice that they are not fully prepared for an entrepreneurial journey.

I urge everyone with the desire and aspiration to become an entrepreneur to assess the risks in the context of your own circumstances very, very carefully. Doing a startup is challenging. And it requires a lot of hard work. Most often a lot, lot more than you would usually put in when you are in a job.

Not everyone is cut out to be an entrepreneur. I would urge you to think very carefully about how your decision to startup is likely to affect your life, and the life of your loved ones. If you have families to feed, loans & EMIs to pay or are expecting higher financial needs in the near future then carefully assess if the timing is right for you.

Of course there are a number of stories of how people have battled against all odds to succeed as entrepreneurs, and I hope you will too. But proceed with a lot of thought and after assessing the circumstances that you are currently in.

If you have family that depends on your income, ensure that you talk to them and help them understand the challenges you might face and the sacrifices that you request them to make. It is tough.

Starting up will consume all your available time. Hence also assess very carefully, again in the context of your circumstances, whether you will have enough time to devote to this. (e.g. if you are taking care of an elder or are a soon-to-be parent, you will have to assess if you will have the time to pursue the venture at this stage, or is it more prudent to postpone it for a while.).

There will be well-meaning folks who will discourage you. The point is not to ignore them. It is important to explain to them your decision and seek support, and even if you want to proceed despite their opposition, they have a right to know your thoughts. Support of family & friends is crucial. Without it, the challenging times can be quite daunting and stressful.

Not for one moment am I being discouraging. All I am suggesting is that the more you assess all the risks and implications, the better prepared you will be to deal with those.

Entrepreneurship teaches you a number of things about life in general. It is an immensely satisfying journey, even if you do not reach your intended destination. However, the journey is often very, very challenging and it takes a lot of patience, persistence and perseverance to succeed. I advice aspiring entrepreneurs to not get taken up by stories of instant success. Those are rare. Instead look at the 1000s of others whose ventures did not succeed. Or did not succeed as aspired.

Even those who succeed often a lot longer than they had planned for, and it is often a lot tougher than they had imagined. But it is a ride worth taking.

The point of this article is not to pull you down. It is to help you be better-prepared for your journey.

By Prajakt Raut - Founder applyifi