There are 2 types of businesses that people build.
And they are very different types of businesses, so it is very important to understand WHICH type of business you are building and WHY.
Neither type is really right or wrong in general, BUT…
One can be wrong for you, your personality, and your goals,
while totally correct for someone different.
That’s why you need to understand this basic difference.
Then it makes setting accurate goals for yourself easier.
And you’ll know WHO to take advice from (because it will fit you),
And who’s advice to ignore (because they just aren’t on the same page as you).
When I finally understood the difference, I became very clear on how to build what I wanted.
Not what someone else wanted me to build.
Or how someone else wanted me to build it.
With one simple question upfront in my mind, I was finally able to quickly determine if someone’s business advice would actually be good for me or not.
So what question is that, you ask?
Drum roll please…
“Are you building an ENTERPRISE business or a LIFESTYLE business?”
Still don’t get it?
Let me explain:
With an ENTERPRISE business your goal is to go BIG. Lots of deals, lots of staff, physical office space, payroll, overhead, etc.
You are building something that can someday function without you (or even after you’re gone). And can also perhaps be sold for a profit or acquired by a similar larger company interested in what you do.
It feels more like a “real” company because of all the overhead you are carrying. And it feels more like a “real” company because you go to an office every day and work hard. The difference is that you own the office, so at least you are properly profiting (hopefully) from all your efforts.
In a nutshell, it’s more traditional.
Nothing wrong with this type of business.
IF that’s what you want.
But there’s another type of business you can build as well.
A type that isn’t as well recognized, but is gaining popularity, especially as the internet makes more and more things easily possible.
And that’s a LIFESTYLE business.
With a LIFESTYLE business your main aim is to support yourself, your needs, and the lifestyle that you want to have.
A LIFESTYLE business stays ‘smaller’, as it doesn’t want the burden of employees.
The goal is to be lean and mean in terms of overhead, but still massively profitable.
It can operate from anywhere, as many of its functions are handled online via a laptop or via phone, so it isn’t location dependent.
No one has to know where you are.
And the main goal of this type of business is, well, LIFESTYLE.
Namely the owner’s lifestyle.
The owner is free to do as they please,
when they please,
and with whomever they please.
Without the day-to-day burden of a traditional enterprise business, the owner is free to explore the world travelling, spending time with family, or pursuing hobbies and interests.
In short, the business exists solely to serve them.
Are there drawbacks?
Yes.
The business is usually personality driven and therefore isn’t a great candidate for acquisition. And it also probably can’t survive beyond the life of the owner.
But does that bother you?
No problem either way, just choose appropriately for YOUR goals.
(Which is the thing no one else ever tells you! — It isn’t wrong, it’s just different, and you have to choose which type is best for YOU and YOUR family. And there’s NO need to apologize for that.)
So in a nutshell, when you understand this subtle but important difference, you’ll have much better focus on which type of business you are actually building. And you’ll instantly understand which angle someone’s advice is coming from, so you’ll know whether or not it fits into your framework or not.
And that will make a world of difference for you going forward.
Simplification of information is a beautiful thing.
I teach how to build a LIFESTYLE business.
If that’s something you’re interested in, I teach the critical components of my “Time Leverage” lifestyle system in my monthly Automated Entrepreneur newsletter.
Get all the details here:
http://TractionLifestyle.com
Tom Zeeb
The Automated Entrepreneur
