One of the choices that an entrepreneur has to make while they are working on the venture is how they would like to continue engaging with their venture? While one may initially get into entrepreneurship for the excitement, freedom, etc., these could change rapidly as an individual begins engaging with the venture creation process. The difference between the assumed and the real could be quite stark.
The initial focus of the entrepreneurial journey may be to get to the first customer, and then find a pool of customers. The relatively stable revenue stream from the business you set up, opens up a new set of questions. Let us say: you have built up a venture that now provides you with a regular income, which is about four times that you used to get had you taken up the usual corporate trajectory. Other demands from the personal front don’t seem to change much. It is important at this junction to re-evaluate your entrepreneurial choice.
It is not about asking, do I want to get back to work, but asking do I want to scale up at all? It is not about asking do I want to get back to work but the better question to ask yourself is do I want to scale up at all? If you want to scale up, make sure you have made it clear to yourself and correspondingly begin engaging with different people towards it. On the other hand, if you choose not to scale up, you are essentially making this a lifestyle business, a business that is stable and supports the lifestyle you imagined.
To clarify, this does not make this kind of an entrepreneur any less valuable or accomplished. But making this choice is important. Acceptance of this is essential to make a lot of subsequent choices about your entrepreneurial career. People at this juncture often shift away from active management of their firm for growth and think about playing the investor role more actively. They begin mentoring and take up equity for the same, offer their business as a platform for growth to other startups, and many more valuable roles when seen from an ecosystem perspective.
Ask yourself:
Now that I have reached a relatively stable position in terms of my venture, what excites me further?
How should I manage my existing venture? How do I think of keeping myself occupied as the existing venture is operating in a stable state?