Business Planning

Why Entrepreneurs Start Businesses: Key Motivations

Why is it important to understand your motives for starting a new business?

When you start your own business you are the owner and, of course, the boss. That means that if you wake up and don’t work on your business, no one can fire you, but that can become a problem if nothing gets done! When you understand why you are so passionate about building your business, that passion will keep you going when times get tough. If you know what your goal is, you will be better prepared to truly appreciate your progress each day/week/month as you get closer to achieving your goal.

Before we get started, copy the Understanding Your Why template to your Google Drive to begin understanding your motivations for launching a new business. Be sure to share with your mentor or anyone else you are collaborating with!

How do you get an understanding of why you want to start your own business?

By clearly specifying your goals, you’ll begin to define “success” for both yourself, as an individual, and for your business. Ask yourself questions like:

  • Why are you building this business? What makes it so important to you?

  • What are your goals for your business? Why are these your goals?

  • When/how will you know that your business is a success? What will your business look like? What will this allow you to do?

What are some reasons other people start a new business?

People start businesses for all kinds of reasons. For example, some entrepreneurs don’t want to work for somebody else, some entrepreneurs want to make a difference in the world, some want to make money, some want to be independent, some want to take care of their family, etc. Entrepreneurs’ goals or definitions of success are different. Some entrepreneurs have a financial goal (how much money they want to make), some want to see their company’s name in stores across the nation, and some business owners just want to be able to make their family proud. There’s no one reason to start a business, but clearly understanding your reasons will help guide your vision of success and your business decisions along the way.