There are many business models but there are no business laws. Physics can be deduced to 3 main laws. Business has endless models with endless variables.
Marketing is a great example of this. No matter how proficient and tested a marketing strategy or company may be, there is never a guarantee of success. The client, the product, the service, the end-user, the economic climate… they all make for a wild, chaotic theater in which to play.
This is the great challenge of business.
No one ever tells you these things as you start out all wide-eyed and naive of the joys of running a business. The reasons for going into business are completely different than the reasons for staying in business.
When I first started SageRock, I was spreading the good news of business ownership. I tried to get everyone involved in their own business. Now when someone asks me if they should start their own business, I tell them it all depends on how they feel about going to war. If you are excited and engaged in fighting battle after battle, year after year… then business is for you. If that doesn’t sound like fun, then I would probably think of another career move.
I don’t think I could live without the war.