Earlier today I read an article from Michael Kwan that discussed the idea that dot com entrepreneurs are unconventional and most people are not comfortable with leaving the security of a 9-to-5 career for the possibilities of entrepreneurship.
This is something that I can relate to because I currently have a traditional 9-to-5 career while I have been pursuing my goals of entrepreneurship in the evenings and on weekends.
As a husband and father to two young boys, I am afraid of taking the plunge into full-time entrepreneurship and am comforted by the security and stability of receiving my paycheck every two weeks.
Is the security of my full-time job holding me back? Is the fear of the unknown preventing me from reaching my entrepreneurial goals?
While I do believe the effort to pursue entrepreneurship on a part-time basis will likely result in a longer journey towards my goals, I don’t think it is as easy as just throwing caution to the wind and leaving the security and stability of a corporate job.
According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, there are deficiency needs that must be met before one can move upwards into what Maslow referred to as the growth needs of self-actualization and transcendence. Self-actualization is defined as the instinctual need of humans to make the most of their abilities and to strive to be the best they can - traits often used to describe entrepreneurs.
Examples of deficiency needs include:
- Physiological Needs such as eating, drinking and sleeping.
- Safety Needs such as security of life, employment and family.
- Love/Belonging Needs such as friendship, family and sexual intimacy.
- Esteem Needs such as self-esteem, self-respect and respect of others.
Looking at Maslow’s hierarchy of needs seems to offer an explanation behind the fear to leave the security of a corporate career to pursue entrepreneurship.
It is human nature to want to be able to make sure you and your family are safe with a place to live, food on the table and overall security. The fear of the unknown can have a profound impact on your desire to provide for your family as it is presents a threat, whether real or not, to your ability to meet these basic needs.
Would I feel or act differently if I was single or didn’t have kids? That is a question that is too late for me to truly answer but I believe I would be more open to leaving the stability and security of a corporate job to pursue entrepreneurship if my primary concern wasn’t the well-being of my family.
While I haven’t found any research with specific numbers, it would be interesting to look at the breakdown of people that have started their own business to see:
- How many are single and/or without kids?
- How many had previous financial security where not being single and/or without kids was not an issue?
- How many had a great sense of urgency and/or the support of their family regardless of the outcome?
Is there something to be said about Maslow’s hierarchy of needs? Or is the desire to provide for your family just a mask for the fear of the unknown that comes with being an entrepreneur?
I’d love to hear your thoughts!
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Thanks for the link, Derek. It’s interesting that you bring up Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, given that I was a Psychology major in university.
To answer some of your questions, I am single and I have no kids (though I do have a pet bunny to care for).
Derek, I know what you mean about having to keep a job that supports your family. But remember the grass is always greener on the other side. This is a case for “possibility thinking” my friend.
As dads it is our job to make our joy into our work so we can “be there” for our wife and kids. If that lay in online entrepeneurism for you, then you HAVE to make it happen — no excuses.
Having said that I will tell you I am not alone in wishing I made as much per month on my blog as you do on yours. My grass, your grass, it’s all the same my my good friend! Find what gets you excited and make that your work. Do what you love, the money will follow. I truly believe that.
@Michael :: You’re quite welcome. At the time I wrote this post I didn’t even connect the reference to Maslow with the fact that you mentioned you had a Psychology major but I wonder if there was some subconscious influence.
@Damien :: You’re absolutely right that making your passion your work is important. Thank you for the comment and the perspective!
Great food for thought, Derek and the commenters.
Around year 2000 when I was single I had left fulltime work to pursue something I could call my own. Unfortunately, partner & I were inexperienced & things never took off. Between partner & I, he is the more determined one: I went back to fulltime work whereas he pursued his interest. He now has 2 retail outlets in a completely different industry.
His personal-passion is similar to mine but only a lot stronger: Something to call his own. This mattered more than the actual subject / context, as long as it is his. Kudos to him for where he is now.
My greatest weakness, & this still applies very strongly for me today, is that I know I need to find something that will continually interest me. It has been the only reason why I have not ventured out again: The fear of losing interest. Some readers of my resume have labelled me a job-hopper. One interviewer joked that she hoped I wouldn’t change wives as often!
So, my intention is to turn this weakness into a strength- I really need to find a long-lasting interest.
Sometime since then, I got married & we are now expecting our second one. All the aspects about security applies 100%. Yet I still have that lingering itch.
I have found I actually enjoy being a parent. Not only do I want to be the guide in their lives, I also want to provide the best for them, & have found that I enjoy the research in providing it.
Few months ago I thought of sharing this experience with the world. I started a blog on all things related to parenting, when only recently I thought blogging was such a waste of precious time. To date, I am still very keen on it.
I am not sure where this will take me. My immediate objective is to continue building content & at the same time self-observing to see my own patterns of behaviour!
JLow, thanks for sharing your thoughts and perspective! Also, I don’t think I have congratulated on your upcoming addition to your family so congrats!
I’m not sure what your background is and what you do for a living but have you thought about being an independent consultant? When I was an IT consultant, it offered the opportunity to mix things up every now and then when you visit a new client. It helped to keep things fresh.
Funnily enough, I *am* in the IT industry!
Ex-partner & I wanted to mix his creative background with our knowledge & experience with the online domain to create an online creative-industry jobs classified, as well as some offline billboard-related advertising sales. We did get somewhere with an online creative community www.doxob.com , but it died a natural death as everyone had a day job!
Incidentally his website is on my blogroll, “WandZ”
For me, to be a consultant one has to be quite specialised in a given field. I feel I am too much of a generalist to pull it off…
JLow said: “I feel I am too much of a generalist…”
Oh, so you are in management!
I can certainly understand and appreciate the difficulty of launching a new venture while holding down an unrelated day job.
Arrgh! I gave it away!