BISMARCK, ND (KXNET) — Owning and operating a small business can be an excellent way to not only share your unique creations with the world, but free yourself from the grip of a standard nine-to-five. Unfortunately for budding business owners, in many cases, these careers can be even more stressful than typical positions due to the huge amount of extra work they entail. As a new study showcases, even exiting a small company can be difficult — and there are plenty of reasons, both financial and personal, that keep people from doing so.
As part of an effort to determine what small business owners across America think of the idea, integration service site LateNode surveyed 2,000 entrepreneurs around the country regarding leaving their companies. When the results of this survey were tallied, it was discovered that 45% of North Dakota’s small business owners expressed a desire to exit, but feel unable to do so due to various constraints.
The most prevalent of these barricades, as the research suggests, is emotional attachment — with 37% of respondents experiencing difficulty leaving after forming personal connections to their companies. In a similar (albeit less personal) vein, 25% of the polled individuals noted that they rely on the business as their primary financial resource. Even those with an interest in leaving beyond the financial or personal aspects experience difficulty with the process, as a further 20% and 19% noted that their barriers included finding a way to sell the business at a profitable price and locating a suitable buyer.
In addition to the reason for their proverbial imprisonment, the study also asked questions relating to the work-life balance, hectic schedules, and hurdles faced by small businesses throughout the United States. Below is a list of their findings, and what independent owners believe are the largest problems they face on a day-to-day basis.
- According to the survey, the largest hurdle that ND entrepreneurs face when exiting or managing their small businesses is time management, as noted by 39% of respondents. Other notable challenges include the struggles of financial constraints (voted on by 25% of the surveyed individuals), keeping a proper work-life balance (19%), and finding and retaining customers (15%).
- Pressing further into the work-life balance aspect, 72% of the polled individuals stated that maintaining one was extremely important to them, which underscores how demanding many small businesses can be.
- Only one in three entrepreneurs (30%) admitted to not being entirely familiar with AI-driven solutions to help automate their businesses — which could serve to help reduce the stress that comes with operating and managing multiple aspects. At the same time, only 43% of survey respondents noted that they were satisfied with their levels of automation, suggesting that there is still a large gap between the adoption of modern solutions and the number of business owners properly adapting to them.
- When asked about the most time-consuming parts of their businesses,31% of those who took part in the survey cited administrative tasks as the most prevalent tasks to be taken care of — with other high-ranking areas including customer service (29%), marketing and sales (24%), and product or service development (15%).
“In the pursuit of entrepreneurial dreams,” says LateNode’s Daniel Vasilyeu, “it is important to remember that sometimes the greatest act of courage is knowing when to let go, to pivot, or to start anew. It’s also important for entrepreneurs to at least become familiar with the variety of automation tools that exist and are getting better each day. These tools can drastically save time and resources, boosting business efficiency and paving the way for greater success,”
To view the full study — including a detailed infographic of how many small business owners in each state feel unable to escape the business they created — visit this page on LateNode’s website.